Alexander "Jimmy" Ridland was born on 3 March 1882 in the South Island of New Zealand. The son of immigrants from the Shetland Islands, he earned his living as a blacksmith. He played rugby as a prop at regional level, playing 22 matches for Southland between 1907 and 1913, including some against foreign clubs.

A versatile player, he played in several positions and helped his team win several titles, but it was his skills as a hooker that brought him recognition.
 
After the 1910 inter-island match, he was selected for the All-Blacks tour of Australia. He played in six matches on the tour, including three test matches, and received favourable reviews from the press, who described him as "a very clever front row player, and is decidedly good in an open game". 

His career faltered on his return to New Zealand, where he was suspended after being sent off the field during a club match.

At the outbreak of the First World War, Jimmy enlisted in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in October 1917 and joined the New Zealand Rifle Brigade in England in 1918. Sent to France, he took part in the fierce fighting on the Ancre River in the Somme, at Bapaume and Crèvecœur-sur-l’Escaut. 

While engaged in the capture of Le Quesnoy on 4 November, Jimmy received a bullet wound to the head. He died the next day, aged 36. 

He is buried in Caudry British Cemetery, plot IV.F.31.