Tommy Coakley

Last updated

Tommy Coakley
Personal information
Full name Thomas Coakley [1]
Date of birth (1947-05-21) 21 May 1947 (age 77)
Place of birth Bellshill, Scotland
Position(s) Right winger
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
Possilpark Juniors
0000–1963 Bellshill Athletic
1963–1966 Motherwell 22 (1)
1966–1967 Arsenal 9 (1)
1968 Detroit Cougars 20 (0)
1968–1970 Greenock Morton 44 (8)
1970–1976 Chelmsford City
Managerial career
1976–1983 Maldon Town
1983–1986 Bishop's Stortford
1986–1988 Walsall
Blakenall
Telford United
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Thomas Coakley (born 21 May 1947) is a Scottish former football player and coach. Coakley, who played as a right winger, made 95 league appearances in a professional career which saw him play in Scotland, England, and the United States. After retiring as a player, Coakley became a football coach.

Contents

Playing career

Born in Bellshill, Coakley began his career with local side Possilpark Juniors, later moving to Bellshill Athletic, before making his debut in the Scottish Football League with Motherwell.

Coakley later played in the Football League for Arsenal,. [2] Following the departure of Alan Skirton, Coakley became a mainstay of the Arsenal first team for the start of the 1966–67 season when he made 13 consecutive starts under new manager Bertie Mee. On 8 October 1966. Coakley made his final appearance in an Arsenal shirt in a 2–0 victory over Newcastle United at Highbury. [3] Coakley subsequently moved to the United States, to play in the North American Soccer League for the Detroit Cougars, [4] before returning to Scotland to play with Greenock Morton. In total, Coakley made 95 league appearances for Morton, scoring 10 goals. [5]

In 1970, Coakley signed for Chelmsford City, scoring on his debut in a 1–0 Southern League Cup win against Hereford United on 2 December 1970. In the 1971–72 season, Coakley made 45 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals, as Chelmsford won the Southern League and Non-League Champions Cup double. Coakley retired in 1976, having scored 20 goals in 276 appearances in all competitions for Chelmsford. [6]

Managerial career

Coakley's management career began in the English non-league system, managing clubs including Maldon Town and Bishop's Stortford. [7] When Alan Buckley was dismissed within 90 minutes of Third Division club Walsall being taken over by Terry Ramsden in the 1986 close season, Coakley was a surprise replacement. [7] [8] He led the club to an eighth-place finish in his first season, and promotion via the playoffs in 1988, but was dismissed in December 1988 after a ten-game losing streak. [9] Coakley later managed Telford United, before leaving football in 1993. [6]

After football

After an unsuccessful investment in betting shops, Coakley started a golf business with David Kelly, who had played for him at Walsall. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Walker (footballer, born 1897)</span> English footballer (1897–1964)

William Henry Walker was a prominent English footballer of the 1920s and 1930s. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest footballers to ever play for Aston Villa and England. As a manager he won the FA Cup with each of Sheffield Wednesday and Nottingham Forest, some 24 years apart, a record which still stands.

Hugh Kilpatrick Gallacher was a Scottish football player in the 1920s and 1930s. In 624 senior games, Gallacher scored 463 goals, playing senior league football for Airdrieonians, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Derby County, Notts County, Grimsby Town and Gateshead. Prior to this he also played and scored for then non-league Queen of the South.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex James (footballer)</span> Scottish footballer

Alexander Wilson James was a Scottish international footballer. He is mostly noted as a playmaking lynchpin at Arsenal with whom he won six trophies from 1930 to the 1936 season. James featured as a deep-lying creative midfielder who provided a link between defence and attack. He was famed for his high level of footballing intelligence, outstanding ball control and supreme passing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Jeffers</span> English association football player and coach

Francis Jeffers is an English football coach and former player, who was most recently a first-team coach at Oldham Athletic.

Richard Sbragia is a Scottish football coach and former player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlie Cooke</span> Scottish footballer

Charles Cooke is a Scottish former footballer. He played as a winger for Aberdeen, Dundee, Chelsea and Crystal Palace, before ending his career in the United States.

David Thomas Kelly, also known by the nickname Ned Kelly, is a former Republic of Ireland international footballer and football coach who now is an assistant head coach at club Forest Green Rovers. He scored nine goals in 26 international games for the Republic of Ireland and was a squad member for UEFA Euro 1988, the 1990 FIFA World Cup, and the 1994 FIFA World Cup. A forward, he scored a total of 250 goals in 744 league and cup appearances in a 19-year career in professional football.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simeon Jackson</span> Canadian professional soccer player (born 1987)

Simeon Alexander Jackson is a Canadian semi-professional soccer player who plays as a forward for A.F.C. Sudbury.

Kevin William Gallacher is a Scottish football pundit and co-commentator, and former professional player.

James Gillen Robertson is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a winger for Cowdenbeath, St Mirren, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Ipswich Town, Stoke City, Seattle Sounders, Walsall and Crewe Alexandra. He was capped once for Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Eastham</span> English footballer (born 1936)

George Edward Eastham, OBE is an English former footballer. He is known for playing for Newcastle United, Arsenal and Stoke City, as well as a member of England's 1966 World Cup-winning squad. However, he is also notable for his involvement in a 1963 court case which proved a landmark in improving players' freedom to move between clubs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Smith (footballer)</span> English footballer (born 1987)

Christian Daniel Smith is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He scored 53 goals in 464 league and cup appearances during a sixteen-year playing career.

Brian Hornsby is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Arsenal, Shrewsbury Town, Sheffield Wednesday and Carlisle United in the English league. He also had short spells playing abroad for Edmonton Drillers (Canada), IK Brage (Sweden) and Falu BS (Sweden) for whom he was player-manager. Hornsby played 222 English league games and scoring 48 goals. His career was seriously curtailed by a hamstring injury when playing for Sheffield Wednesday in 1980.

Patrick Howard is an English former professional footballer who played as a central defender.

Brian Uriel Palgrave is an English former footballer who played as a forward for Alvechurch, Walsall, Port Vale, Nuneaton Borough, Bromsgrove Rovers, and Stafford Rangers.

James Henry "Jack" Southam, also known as Jimmy Southam, was an English professional footballer who played as a full-back in the Football League for Newport County, Birmingham City, and most notably Northampton Town, where he amassed 145 league appearances between 1949 and 1955.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jay Emmanuel-Thomas</span> English footballer (born 1990)

Jay Aston Emmanuel-Thomas is an English professional footballer who last played for Scottish Championship club Greenock Morton. A product of the Arsenal Academy, he is a versatile forward and can play as a winger or striker.

Thomas Black was a Scottish footballer who played as a left half in the Football League for Plymouth Argyle and Southend United. He also appeared for Arsenal in the FA Cup.

Gerald Sweeney is a Scottish former football player and manager. Sweeney was born in Renfrew, but spent the majority of his time in football with Bristol City.

Philip James Roberts is an Irish footballer who last played for Margate. He began his career at Arsenal, although he never made an appearance for the club. He spent time on loan at Inverness Caledonian Thistle, then signed for Falkirk. He signed for Dundee in the summer of 2014 and spent the second half of the 2014–15 season on loan at Alloa Athletic.

References

  1. "Tommy Coakley". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  2. "Tommy Coakley". Arsenal F.C. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  3. "Arsenal v Newcastle United, 08 October 1966".
  4. "NASL career stats". NASL Jerseys. Dave Morrison. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  5. "Tommy Coakley". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  6. 1 2 David Selby (19 August 2024). The Claret. Chelmsford City F.C. pp. 24–25.
  7. 1 2 "Past Managers". Walsall F.C. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  8. "My Century: Big shake up at Saddlers". Express & Star. Wolverhampton. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  9. 1 2 Scott, Ged (16 May 1998). "Coakley driven to distraction with little help from his friend" (reprint hosted at The Free Library (Farlex)). Birmingham Post. Retrieved 23 March 2012.