Thomas Robertson (footballer, born 1875)

John Thomas Robertson[1] (1875 – 8 December 1923)[3] (usually referred to as Tom and sometimes as Jack) was a Scottish footballer who played at full-back around the turn of the 20th century for various clubs in England, including Stoke, Liverpool (where he was a member of the side which won the Football League championship in 1900–01) and Southampton (where he won the Southern League title in 1902–03 and 1903–04).

Not to be confused with Tommy Robertson or John Tait Robertson.

Tom Robertson
Personal information
Full name John Thomas Robertson[1]
Date of birth 1875
Place of birth Lesmahagow, Lanarkshire, Scotland
Date of death 8 December 1923(1923-12-08) (aged 48)
Place of death Worthing, Sussex, England
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position(s) Full-back
Youth career
Newton Thistle[1][2]
St Bernard's
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1894–1895 Stoke 26 (1)
1895–1897 Hibernian 38 (0)
1897 Millwall Athletic
1897–1900 Stoke 88 (2)
1900–1902 Liverpool 42 (0)
1902–1904 Southampton 45 (1)
1904–1905 Brighton & Hove Albion 26 (1)
Total 265 (5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Football career

Stoke

Robertson was born in Lesmahagow, Lanarkshire, Scotland,[3] before moving 25 miles north-west to Newton Mearns, near Glasgow. After playing as an amateur for his local village team and for St Bernard's of Edinburgh, he started his professional football career with Stoke of the English Football League First Division in May 1894.[4]

In each of his first two seasons with Stoke, when Robertson generally played as a half-back, he only managed 13 league appearances for the first-team. After spending the next two years at other clubs, firstly in Scotland with Hibernian (where he played on the losing side in the 1896 Scottish Cup Final) and then in England with Millwall Athletic of the Southern League, Robertson returned to Stoke for the start of the 1897–98 season. He now became the established right-back at the Victoria Ground, alongside Jack Eccles on the left.

At the end of Robertson's first season back at Stoke, in which he made 23 appearances, the club finished at the foot of the First Division table, having failed to win once away from home, and were required to enter the end of season play-offs, in a mini "tournament" also involving Blackburn Rovers and the top two teams in the Second Division, Burnley and Newcastle United. Stoke managed their first away victory of the season against Burnley, and finished the play-offs at the top of the table, with Burnley as runners-up. In the event, the Football League decided to expand the First Division by two clubs, and thus Blackburn and Newcastle were able to take their places in the expanded division for the following season.[5]

Stoke's financial problems prevented the club from strengthening the side for the 1898–99 season, other than the signing of goal-keeper George Clawley, who returned from Southampton.[6] The club fared better this season, finishing in mid-table, with Robertson only missing three matches. He also played in all six FA Cup matches, as Stoke reached the semi-finals, where they were defeated 3–1 by Derby County.

Although the FA Cup run improved Stoke's finances, they still struggled to sign or retain players, other than those with a local connection, with the only significant signing for the 1899–1900 season being goal-keeper Tom Wilkes from Aston Villa, to replace Clawley who had moved on to join Tottenham Hotspur.[7] The season saw a further improvement in the club's performances on the pitch, finishing the season ninth in the table, with Robertson appearing in all 34 League games, scoring twice.

At the end of the season, Robertson was signed by fellow First Division side, Liverpool. In his five seasons spent at Stoke, Robertson made a total of 128 appearances for the Potteries team, scoring three goals.

Liverpool

At Liverpool, Robertson soon established a reputation as a fierce competitor who "added considerable muscle to the Reds' rearguard".[8] He made 22 consecutive appearances from the start of the 1900–01 season, before John Glover took over for the next nine matches, although Robertson was back in place for the final three fixtures of the season as Liverpool secured their first league title by two points from runners-up Sunderland.

In the following season, it was Glover who started as the club's right-back but Robertson came back into contention during the second half of the season and made a further 17 First Division appearances, as Liverpool finished in the lower half of the table.[1]

In February 1902, Robertson was a member of the Liverpool side who were surprisingly beaten 4–1 at Anfield by Southampton of the Southern League on their way to the Cup Final.[4]

Southampton

In May 1902, Robertson joined Southampton of the Southern League, much against the wishes of the Liverpool management who were reluctant to release him.[4] He made his debut for Southampton at right-back in the opening match of the 1902–03 season, a 6–0 victory over Brentford, with England international George Molyneux on his left. On the pitch, Robertson soon established himself as "a reliable full-back" who "possessed a powerful kick and the ability to time his tackles to perfection", although off the pitch he was known as a "retiring fellow" who had a "holy horror" of being interviewed and was elusive when a reporter wanted a story.[4] He made 25 appearances in his first season at The Dell at the end of which the club claimed the Southern League title for the fifth time in seven years.[9]

Robertson met with a severe injury in the opening match of the 1903–04 season which put him out of the game until late November, during which period Samuel Meston took over from him. Robertson returned on 21 November 1903 and remained in the side for the rest of the season, although he struggled to recapture his old form. At the end of the season, the Saints claimed the Southern League title for the sixth (and final) time.[10]

Brighton

In the summer of 1904, Robertson moved along the south coast to join Brighton & Hove Albion, where he played out his final season before retiring.[11]

Following his retirement, Robertson became a publican in Hove.[4]

Career statistics

Source:[12]

Club Season League FA Cup Test Match Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Stoke 1894–95 First Division 13100—131
1895–96 First Division 13020—150
Total 26120—281
Hibernian 1894–95[13] Scottish Division Two 4020—60
1895–96[13] Scottish Division One 16050—210
1896–97[13] Scottish Division One 18020—200
Total 38090—470
Stoke 1897–98 First Division 2302020270
1898–99 First Division 31060—370
1899–1900 First Division 34220—362
Total 882100201002
Liverpool 1900–01 First Division 25020—270
1901–02 First Division 17030—200
Total 42050—470
Southampton 1902–03 Southern League 26130—291
1903–04 Southern League 19020—210
Total 45150—501
Career Total 2394310202724

Honours

Liverpool

Southampton

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References
  1. "Player profile: Tom Robertson". LFC History. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  2. "Past players: John Robertson". Liverpool F.C. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  3. Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 161.
  4. Holley & Chalk 1992, pp. 285–286.
  5. Gibbons 2001, pp. 388–389.
  6. Gibbons 2001, p. 401.
  7. Gibbons 2001, p. 444.
  8. The early history of Liverpool F.C. – The 1900–01 season
  9. Chalk & Holley 1987, pp. 32–33.
  10. Chalk & Holley 1987, pp. 34–35.
  11. Carder, Tim; Harris, Roger (1997). Albion A–Z: A Who's Who of Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Hove: Goldstone Books. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-9521337-1-1.
  12. Thomas Robertson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  13. "Tom Robertson". Fitbastats. Retrieved 10 December 2017.

Bibliography
  • Gibbons, Philip (2001). Association Football in Victorian England – A History of the Game from 1863 to 1900. Upfront Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84426-035-5.
  • Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (1992). The Alphabet of the Saints. ACL & Polar Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9514862-3-8.
  • Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan (1987). Saints – A complete record. Breedon Books. ISBN 978-0-907969-22-8.
  • Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan; Bull, David (2013). All the Saints: A Complete Players' Who's Who of Southampton FC. Hagiology Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9926864-0-6.
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