Åke Andersson

Åke Gustav "Plutten" Andersson (8 June 1918 – 11 May 1982) was a Swedish ice hockey, football and bandy player and manager, known for representing Hammarby IF in all three sports.

He represented his country at two Winter Olympic games, finishing fourth in 1948 and winning a bronze medal in 1952. He was the captain of the Sweden national team from 1945 until his retirement in 1954.

Early life Andersson grew up in a working-class home in a southern part of Stockholm known as Södermalm. His father was working as a groundskeeper at Hammarby Idrottsplats, the home of local club Hammarby IF which he joined at age 14.

Athletic career

Ice hockey In 1934, Andersson started to play hockey with Hammarby IF in Elitserien, Sweden's top tier.

He won six Swedish championships – in 1936, 1937, 1942, 1943, 1946 and 1951 – with the club. In total, Andersson made 351 competitive appearances for Hammarby, scoring 150 goals.

He was known as a hard-working player with a lot of stamina, possessing a good tactical mind and a great sense of play. He was also good at positioning himself and had good offensive qualities. Andersson was, among other awards and prizes, crowned as "Sweden's best hockey player" seven consecutive years.

Andersson decided to stay with Hammarby during his whole career, even though he had frequent offers from other teams in Sweden.

He won 62 competitive caps for the Sweden national team, scoring a total of 18 goals, and regularly captained the side.

He is a recipient of the honorary award Stora Grabbars Märke and was inducted into the Swedish Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012; both awards are handed out by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association. He was the head coach of Hammarby between 1960 and 1962. Up until 1951, Andersson made 231 league appearances for Hammarby, mostly in the Swedish second tier Division 2, scoring 40 goals, playing as a midfielder.

In 1939–40, Hammarby competed for one season in Allsvenskan, the domestic top league, with Andersson playing 13 of 22 fixtures, but was relegated immediately.

Personal life He was the younger brother of Stig Emanuel Andersson, who also was a celebrated sportsman.