Anthony William Lowery (born 6 July 1961) is an English retired

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 spent most of his professional career as a midfielder at

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...

. Lowery, a native of

Wallsend Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne. History Roman Wallsend In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, began his professional career in March 1981, when he was signed by

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

from non-league

Ashington Ashington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 27,864 at the 2011 Census. It was once a centre of the coal mining industry. The town is north of Newcastle upon Tyne, west of the A189 and bordered to the ...

. However, he only played once for the Baggies, and also had a short loan spell at neighbours

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

. In April 1983, he was allowed to join Mansfield Town on a free transfer, and he made his debut for the Stags on 7 May 1983 against

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...

. Through the next five years, Lowery was almost ever-present in Mansfield's lineup, playing 40 or more league matches each season. He was noted for his work-rate and consistency in central midfield, and was a key member of the side that won promotion from

Division Four The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Following the creation of the Premier L ...

in 1985-86, and won the Freight Rover Trophy in 1987. By 1988-89, injuries had started to take their toll, and Lowery only played sporadically in his final seasons at

Field Mill Field Mill, currently known as One Call Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a Football pitch, football ground in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England, and the home of Mansfield Town F.C., Mansfield Town Football Club. It is the oldest ground in ...

. In September 1990, he was loaned to Walsall for the second time in his career, and in the summer of 1991, Mansfield manager George Foster decided not to offer Lowery a new contract. When he left the club, Lowery had played 317 first-team games for Mansfield and scored 27 goals. After leaving Mansfield, Lowery had a short spell at

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They have played their ...

before returning to his native

North East The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A ''compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each ...

, where he joined non-league

Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...

, and later became assistant manager at

Blyth Spartans Blyth Spartans Association Football Club is an association football club based in Blyth, Northumberland. They are currently members of and play at Croft Park. They were founded in September 1899 by Fred Stoker, who was the club's first secre ...

. H was appointed manager of Bedlington Terriers in 1995 alongside Keith Perry and remained at the club until May 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowery, Tony 1961 births Living people English men's footballers English football managers Ashington A.F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Carlisle United F.C. players Gateshead F.C. players Footballers from Wallsend Bedlington Terriers F.C. managers Men's association football midfielders English Football League players