Dave Thomas (footballer, born 1917)

Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Dave Thomas
Personal information
Full name David Watkin John Thomas [1]
Date of birth(1917-07-06)6 July 1917
Place of birth Stepney, England
Date of death 30 March 1991(1991-03-30) (aged 73) [1]
Place of death Dovercourt, England
Position(s) Centre forward
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
0000–1938 Romford
1938–1948 Plymouth Argyle 74 (29)
1948–1950 Watford 105 (41)
1950–1953 Gillingham 80 (42)
1953 Sittingbourne
Managerial career
0000–1955 Chatham Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

David Watkin John Thomas (6 July 1917 – 30 March 1991) was an English footballer who played as a centre forward. He played in the Football League for Plymouth Argyle, Watford and Gillingham, scoring 112 goals in 259 appearances. He also played non-league football for Romford and Sittingbourne. His brother, Bob, played in the Football League for several clubs as an inside forward.

Life and career

Born in Stepney, Thomas began his career in non-league football with Romford. [2] [3] He joined Football League club Plymouth Argyle in 1938, as manager Jack Tresadern's first signing, [3] and established himself as the club's first choice centre forward after Bill Hullett was transferred to Manchester United. [3] [4] He made 23 appearances in the Second Division before the Second World War put an end to competitive football in September 1939. [4] He continued to play for Argyle in the South West Regional League until December, scoring five goals in six matches, [4] before guesting for Brentford, Clapton Orient, Fulham, Gillingham, Grimsby Town and West Ham United during the course of the war. [1] Thomas returned to Plymouth Argyle after the war had finished to take part in the 1945–46 Football League South. [3] [4] Towards the end of the campaign, his brother Bob joined the club from Brentford and the pair scored 36 goals between them in the 1946–47 season. [3]

Thomas lost his place in the team to Maurice Tadman at the beginning of the 1947–48 campaign. [3] He made his final appearance for Argyle in January 1948 before being transferred to Third Division South club Watford. [3] [4] Thomas spent three seasons with Watford and was the club's leading goalscorer twice. [5] He scored 41 league goals in 105 appearances before joining Gillingham in 1950, [2] where he continued to score regularly. He was Gillingham's leading goalscorer in his first season with the club and was tied with Derek Lewis in the 1951–52 campaign. [6] He left the club in 1953 and finished his career back in non-league football with Sittingbourne. [2] [4] He later managed Chatham Town and acted as trainer for Gravesend & Northfleet. [1] Thomas died in Dovercourt on 30 March 1991 at the age of 73. [7]

Related Research Articles

John Gilbert Cock MM MID was an English footballer who played for various English club sides as a centre forward. He also had the distinction of being the first Cornishman to play for the England national team, a decorated World War I soldier, and an actor. His younger brothers, Donald Cock and Herbert Cock, also played professional football.

The 2003–04 Football League was the 105th completed season of The Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Cookson</span> English footballer

James Cookson was an English footballer who played as a centre forward in the Football League for Manchester City, Chesterfield, West Bromwich Albion, Plymouth Argyle and Swindon Town.

The 2000–01 Football League was the 102nd completed season of The Football League.

Michael John Bickle is an English former professional footballer. He played for Plymouth Argyle and Gillingham between 1965 and 1973, before his career was cut short by injury.

Charles Boyd Hare was an English professional footballer who played in the Football League for Aston Villa, Woolwich Arsenal and Small Heath in the 1890s. An inside forward or centre forward, he also represented Watford and Plymouth Argyle in the Southern League.

The 1927–28 Torquay United F.C. season was Torquay United's first season in the Football League and their first season in Third Division South. The season runs from 1 July 1927 to 30 June 1928.

The 1928–29 Torquay United F.C. season was Torquay United's second season in the Football League and their second consecutive season in Third Division South. The season runs from 1 July 1928 to 30 June 1929.

The 1929–30 Torquay United F.C. season was Torquay United's third season in the Football League and their third consecutive season in Third Division South. The season runs from 1 July 1929 to 30 June 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Wilcox</span> English footballer

Harry Melbourne Wilcox was an English professional footballer who scored 66 goals in 174 appearances in the Football League playing for Small Heath, Preston North End, Leicester Fosse and West Bromwich Albion.

Danis Mahmut Mehmet Salman, sometimes known as Danny Salman, is an English former professional football player and coach, best remembered for his time as a defender in the Football League with Brentford. He made over 380 appearances for the Bees, is the club's youngest-ever league debutant and was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame. He also played for Millwall, Plymouth Argyle and Torquay United. Born in Cyprus, he represented England at youth level.

Ernest Matthew "Pat" Glover was a Welsh international footballer who played as a centre forward. He played in the Football League for Grimsby Town and Plymouth Argyle, and was capped seven times by the Wales national team.

Charles Clark was a Scottish footballer who played in the Football League for Everton, and the Southern League for Plymouth Argyle and Crystal Palace. He was a half back.

Percy Albert Mark Cherrett was an English footballer who played as a centre forward in the Football League for Portsmouth, Plymouth Argyle, Crystal Palace, Bristol City and Bournemouth & Boscombe.

William Harold Ingham was a footballer who played in the Football League for Bristol City and Gainsborough Trinity, and the Southern League for West Ham United, Plymouth Argyle and Norwich City. He was a centre forward.

Clarence Frederick Thomas "Clarrie" Bourton was an English footballer who played in the Football League for Bristol City, Blackburn Rovers, Coventry City and Plymouth Argyle. He is Coventry City's all-time leading goalscorer with 182 goals.

John Wright was a Scottish footballer who played in the Football League for Bolton Wanderers and The Wednesday, and the Southern League for Plymouth Argyle, Watford and Southend United. He was an inside forward.

The 1921–22 season was the 27th season of competitive football by Southampton, and the club's second in the Football League. After finishing second in the league the previous season, Southampton achieved promotion to the Second Division as champions of the newly regionalised Third Division South. Following a false start to the campaign, the Saints quickly asserted their dominance in the league when they went on a club record 19-game unbeaten run until the end of 1921. The club also remained unbeaten at The Dell for the entirety of the league season, as well as conceding a Football League record low 21 goals in 42 games, which remained in place until the 1978–79 season. Southampton finished atop the league table with 23 wins, 15 draws and four losses, ahead of runners-up Plymouth Argyle only on goal average.

During the 1905–06 English football season, New Brompton F.C. competed in the Southern League Division One. It was the 12th season in which the club competed in the Southern League and the 11th in Division One. The team began the season in poor form; they failed to score any goals in six of their first eight Southern League games. By the midpoint of the season, the team had won only three times and were close to the bottom of the league table. The team's form improved in the new year, with three wins in the first seven Southern League games of 1906, but they ended the season in similar fashion to how they had started it, failing to score in eight of the final nine league games. New Brompton finished the season in 17th place out of 18 teams in the division.

During the 1950–51 English football season, Gillingham F.C. competed in the Football League Third Division South, the third tier of the English football league system. It was the first season of Gillingham's second spell in the Football League; prior to this season the club was elected back into the competition having lost its place in 1938. Gillingham's results in the first half of the season were poor, including a 9–2 defeat to Nottingham Forest, the highest number of goals the team had conceded for more than 20 years; at the end of 1950 they were second bottom of the Third Division South league table. In January and early February Gillingham climbed to 19th in the 24-team division after winning five times in six games, including a 9–4 victory over Exeter City, a new record for the club's highest Football League score which would stand for more than 30 years. After this they won only once in ten matches; the team finished the season 22nd in the division.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Watford Football Club archive 1881–2017 – Players – Stuart to Trotter" (PDF). Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData. p. 257. ISBN   1-899468-67-6.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Knight, Brian (1989). Plymouth Argyle: A Complete Record 1903–1989. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 114. ISBN   978-0-907969-40-2.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Dave Thomas". GoS–DB. Greens on Screen. Retrieved 9 March 2012.
  5. Jones, Trefor (1998). Watford Season by Season. T.G. Jones. ISBN   0-9527458-1-X.
  6. Brown, Tony (2003). The Definitive Gillingham F.C.: A Complete Record. Nottingham: SoccerData. pp. 60–61. ISBN   1-899468-20-X.
  7. Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. p. 316. ISBN   0-7524-2243-X.