Tom Blair
Thomas Blair (24 February 1892 – 28 August 1961) was a Scottish footballer who played as a goalkeeper.[2]
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Thomas Blair | ||
Date of birth | 24 February 1892 | ||
Place of birth | Hutchesontown, Scotland | ||
Date of death | 28 August 1961 69) | (aged||
Place of death | Monifieth, Scotland | ||
Playing position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
– | Vale of Clyde | ||
1912–1920 | Kilmarnock | 226 | (0) |
1920–1922 | Manchester City | 38 | (0) |
1925–1926 | Philadelphia Field Club | ||
1926–1927 | Fall River Marksmen | ||
1927 | Hartford Americans | ||
1928 | Fall River Marksmen | ||
1929–1930 | New Bedford Whalers | ||
1931–1932 | Ayr United | ||
1932–1933 | Linfield | ||
1937 | Dundee United | 1 | (0) |
National team | |||
1917[1] | Scottish League (wartime) | 1 | (0) |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only |
Career
Blair was prominent in the 1910s playing for Kilmarnock,[3] with the culimation of his nine-year spell there being a Scottish Cup win in 1920, lifting the trophy as team captain.[4][5] He then moved to England with Manchester City,[6] spending two years there but only the regular in his position in the second campaign.
By now in his 30s, Blair accepted an invitation to play in the American Soccer League, appearing for teams including Fall River Marksmen[7] and New Bedford Whalers.[8] After several years in the United States he returned to Scotland with Ayr United (no league appearances recorded) then spent time in Northern Ireland at Linfield before becoming a coach at Dundee United in 1937. That same year he made a final, emergency SFL appearance in a 7–1 defeat to St Bernard's, aged 45.[9]
References
- Association Football. War Funds Match | The Army XI, 4; Scottish League, 3., The Glasgow Herald, 21 May 1917
- John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. Cite journal requires
|journal=
(help) - "[Kilmarnock player] Blair, Tom". FitbaStats.
- "Killie 3–2 Albion Rovers". Killie FC. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- "Kilmarnock, 3; Albion Rovers, 2. Scottish Cup–Final Tie". The Glasgow Herald. 19 April 1920. p. 13. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
- "Tom Blair". Blue Moon.
- "Interest Grows in Fall River's Visit". The Globe-Times – Bethlehem. 15 September 1926. Retrieved 8 June 2020 – via Bethlehem Steel Soccer Club.
- "Rousing Reception for Bethlehem Invaders". The Globe-Times – Bethlehem. 25 March 1929. Retrieved 8 June 2020 – via Bethlehem Steel Soccer Club.
- "Tom Blair Player Profile". Arab Archive.