Heart of Midlothian Bell was born in
Edinburgh and began in
junior football with Rosebery. After a spell with
St Bernard's, he joined
Heart of Midlothian in October 1900 alongside teammate
Bob Houston. In
his first season with Hearts, he was joint
top scorer (with
Bill Porteous) with eight goals and was a member of the team that won the
Scottish Cup, defeating Division One runners-up
Celtic 4–3; he scored twice in the final, including the late winner. A month before that success Bell had earned what proved to be his solitary
cap for
Scotland, in a 1–1 draw with
Wales on 2 March 1901. At Hearts, he was regarded as a nippy forward, equally at home on either wing. In
1901–02 he helped Hearts to third place in the Scottish League table, as well as the
1901–02 World Championship.
Southampton In 1902, he moved to the south coast of England, where
Southampton were attempting to reclaim the
Southern League title, and recruited six new players, including fellow Scots,
Tom Robertson from
Liverpool and
Jack Fraser from
St Mirren. Bell made his debut on 18 October 1902, standing in for
Joe Turner, in a 1–1 draw at
Kettering Town. Injury prevented him from making regular appearances, although he made six consecutive league (and three in the FA Cup) in January and February replacing the injured
Dick Evans. Bell contributed six league goals, plus one in the cup, including a pair in an 11–0 victory over
Watford on 13 December 1902. This remains the "Saints" joint highest
victory margin in League football. After the
First World War he emigrated to Australia in 1919. ==Honours==