Robert Anthony Thomson (5 December 1943 – 19 August 2009) was an English 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 ...

. He made 478 appearances in the

English 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, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

and won eight

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for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Something of a legend at his first club –

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

, he is considered to be one of the finest full-backs ever to have played for the team. Departing Wolves in 1969, he then moved on to

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

and then

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

. He was promoted out of the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

with all three clubs. His later career involved moving between numerous clubs, both at home and abroad. He spent time as

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

Connecticut Bicentennials The Connecticut Bicentennials were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1977. Originally founded as the Hartford Bicentennials, the team relocated to New Haven, Connecticut after the 1 ...

and

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

of Stafford Rangers.

Early and personal life

Robert Anthony Thomson was born on 5 December 1943 in

Smethwick Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire. In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider bu ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

. He married to Janice Llewellyn in 1966 and had three children. After retiring from playing, he ran a sports shop in

Sedgley Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...

in the

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

. He was known to take part in Wolves All Stars charity games from his retirement up until his last years, as well as help

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

youngsters in Oldbury. He died of

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

Russells Hall Hospital Russells Hall Hospital is an NHS general hospital located in Dudley, West Midlands, England, managed by the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust. The hospital is south-west of the town centre on the A4101 road, which connects to the Kingswinfo ...

Dudley Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...

at the age of 65. He had apparently recovered from a first occurrence of the illness, only to succumb after suffering a relapse.

Club career

Thomson was born in

, which was then in

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

. He joined local side

in 1959 upon leaving Lyndon High School in

Solihull Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe i ...

. He signed professional forms in July 1961, before making his senior debut on 27 January 1962 in an

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

tie against Black Country rivals

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

. Between his debut in 1962 to 1967 he missed just 11 first team games. Unfortunately for Thomson, he was too late for the glory years, and instead came through under the tail-end of

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Stan Cullis' sixteen-year reign. Their best finish during Thomson's time was fifth in the First Division in 1962–63. The club fell to the

in 1964–65. They won

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

at the second time of asking – in 1966–67, as runners-up. In Summer 1967 he was part of the Wolves side that played in the United States, guesting as the Los Angeles Wolves, under which guise they won the

United Soccer Association The United Soccer Association was a professional soccer league featuring teams based in the United States and Canada. The league survived only one season before merging with the National Professional Soccer League to form the North American S ...

league championship. In March 1969, Thomson moved on to

for £40,000, teaming up with his former boss Stan Cullis, though Cullis retired early the next year. He played 44 games of the 1969–70 campaign, in a settled back four made up of Thomson, Dave Robinson, Garry Pendrey, and Ray Martin. However, he fell out of favour under new boss

Freddie Goodwin Freddie Goodwin (28 June 1933 – 19 February 2016) was an English professional football player and manager. He also played county cricket for Lancashire. Career A wing half, Goodwin was signed as a trainee from Cheshire Schoolboys by Manchest ...

, and featured just 15 times in 1970–71. In 1971–72, Birmingham gained promotion to the top tier, as runners-up behind

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

. He did not play any first team games however, and instead spent part of 1971 on

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

at nearby Third Division club

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands County, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east ...

. In 1972, he moved on to

, another Second Division side with ambitions of top-flight football. Thomson's teams had a knack of finishing second in the second tier, as the "Hatters" achieved this in 1973–74, as they watched

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

sprint away with the title. Luton were unfortunate to go back down in 1974–75, finishing a mere point from the safety of

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

in 19th. In 1976, his career drawing to a close and his best days behind him, Thomson went back to the States, spending a short period with

Hartford Bicentennials The Connecticut Bicentennials were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1977. Originally founded as the Hartford Bicentennials, the team relocated to New Haven, Connecticut after the 19 ...

. He returned to the

, and the

, with Third Division

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...

in October 1976. He made an 'impressive' debut in a 3–2 defeat to

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

Vale Park Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950. The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...

on 16 October 1976 and earned himself both a regular first team spot and the captaincy. He played 24 games for

Roy Sproson Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Vale ...

's team in 1976–77, before he returned to the re-branded

in March 1977. He stayed with the Connecticut Bicentennials for two years, before returning to England with

non-League Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

Worcester City Worcester City Football Club is an English football club based in Worcester, Worcestershire. The club play in the Midland Football League, the ninth tier of English football. Established in 1902, the club play at Claines Lane. Worcester City's ...

. He later became player-manager of Stafford Rangers. Another spell in the US with

Memphis Rogues The Memphis Rogues were a professional soccer team in the former North American Soccer League. They operated in the 1978, 1979, and 1980 seasons and played their home games in Memphis' Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. They also played indoor ...

in the NASL followed, before he joined Brewood, Solihull Borough and then Tipton Town.

International career

Thomson won eight full

with the senior team between 1963 and 1964. He was selected by

Alf Ramsey Sir Alfred Ernest Ramsey (22 January 1920 – 28 April 1999) was an English football player and manager. As a player, he represented the England national team and captained the side, but he is best known for his time as England manager fr ...

and made his full international debut on 20 November 1963 in an 8–3 Home International victory over

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. His final international appearance came in December 1964. He also played fifteen games for the England under-23 team, which was a record.

Style of play

Thomson was an exceptionally fast full-back and was also extremely adept at back-pedalling.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Wolverhampton Wanderers *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

second-place promotion: 1966–67 Luton Town *Football League Second Division second-place promotion: 1973–74 England *

British Home Championship The British Home Championship * sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp * gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta * cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...

: 1963–64 (shared), 1964–65

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomson, Bobby Footballers from Smethwick English men's footballers England men's international footballers England men's under-23 international footballers Men's association football fullbacks English Football League players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Birmingham City F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Luton Town F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Worcester City F.C. players Willenhall Town F.C. players Solihull Borough F.C. players United Soccer Association players Los Angeles Wolves players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Connecticut Bicentennials players Memphis Rogues players Stafford Rangers F.C. players Tipton Town F.C. players English Football League representative players English expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States English expatriate men's footballers Association football coaches Men's association football player-managers English football managers Stafford Rangers F.C. managers Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in England 1943 births 2009 deaths