Thomas Bowman (26 October 1873 – 27 August 1958) was a Scottish professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a half back in the 1902 FA Cup final for

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

Playing career

Bowman began his professional career at

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

in 1896, making his debut in the club's first-ever game in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

, a 3–1 defeat at Lincoln City on 5 September. His thirty league appearances in 1896–97 made him an ever-present in the team. He joined

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

the following season where he gained a reputation as a strong, determined centre-half. He went on to make one hundred league appearances for the club (plus thirteen in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

) in four years, helping them to the League titles in 1898–99 and 1899-1900. Bowman was also in the Villa side that lost a 1900 FA cup quarter final against Millwall Athletic that stunned the football world at the time.Match report Aston Villa vs Millwall Athletic
/ref> In 1901, Southern League champions Southampton, anxious to replace

Arthur Chadwick Arthur Chadwick (July 1875 – 21 March 1936) was a professional footballer whose playing career as a centre-half included spells at Portsmouth and Southampton, before going on to be manager at Exeter City, Reading and Southampton. He also mad ...

, who had moved to

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, signed Bowman. In his first season at The Dell, Bowman helped Saints to the

FA Cup final The FA Cup Final is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official attendance of 89,472 ...

, whilst finishing only third in the Southern League. In 1902–03 he was a key member of the team that claimed the Southern League title, a feat repeated the following season when Bowman appeared in all 34 matches. In his three years with the Saints he was a fixture in the half back line and missed only five league games, making eighty-eight league and thirteen FA Cup appearances, scoring three goals. Although he never received full international honours, he represented the Anglo-Scots against the Scots in 1902. In 1904, he joined Chadwick at

. In five years at

Fratton Park Fratton Park is a association football, football ground in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and is the home of Portsmouth F.C., Portsmouth Football Club. Fratton Park's location on Portsea Island is unique in English professional football, as it ...

, he made a total of 144 appearances, scoring five goals. He finished his career with Eastleigh Athletic in 1912. After retirement from football, he returned to his original trade as a boiler scaler, where he worked in Southampton Docks for many years.

Honours

Aston Villa *

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

: 1898–99, 1899–1900 Southampton *

runner-up: 1901–02 * Southern League: 1902–03, 1903–04

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowman, Tommy 1873 births People from Tarbolton 1958 deaths English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Blackpool F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Southern Football League players Eastleigh Athletic F.C. players Footballers from South Ayrshire