Thomas Tallett Callaghan (1905–1993) was a

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 le ...

who played as an

outside forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

in the Scottish League for Third Lanark and Dunfermline Athletic, in the Irish League for

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European t ...

, 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 Engla ...

for

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and in Scottish Junior football for

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Football career

Callaghan played football for junior club

before moving into the senior ranks with Third Lanark in June 1924. He represented the club in off-season five-a-side tournaments, was in their

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 ...

team by September 1925, scored in a 4–3 win against Dunfermline Athletic in November, and later that month, "spelt danger every time he got away" as Thirds beat Armadale 3–0. He helped Thirds take First Division

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

to a

replay Replay may refer to: * Replay (sports), a replayed match between two sport teams Technology * Game replay, a recording of a game session. * Instant replay, in motion pictures and television, a showing again of part of a film * Replay Professional, ...

in the quarter-final of the

1925–26 Scottish Cup The 1925–26 Scottish Cup was the 48th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The tournament began on 23 January 1926 and ended on 10 April 1926. The cup was won by St Mirren, who defeated the previous years cup ...

, was "swift and sharp" in a draw with

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in September 1926, and was often picked out as the best of Thirds' not always top-class forwards. In December, First Division Dunfermline took Callaghan on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut in a draw with

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, controlling the ball well and creating two scoring chances that were not taken. He played regularly, scoring twice in a 4–3 defeat of

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, and creating one goal and scoring another in a 4–4 draw with Dundee United a few days later. At the end of the season, Callaghan went south to England, where he signed for

Football League First Division The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

club

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. He scored in a

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against an Army XI, but never managed to break into the league side, and rejoined Third Lanark, who had been promoted in his absence. He went straight into the first team for the new season, scored in a 4–0 win against Airdrie in early September, and soon afterwards sustained an injury sufficiently serious for his club to sign a replacement. His return to fitness was not accompanied by a return to the first team. He was in and out of the side for what remained of the season, at the end of which he was transfer-listed at a reduced fee. His fee was again reduced in the 1930 close season, but with no takers. He was one of several Scottish players to help

win the 1930–31 Irish League title, and eventually he returned to England, where he signed for

in November 1932. He played twice in the

Third Division North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...

and once in the

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 ...

before losing his place to Charles Coates, and his contract was cancelled in January 1933.

He returned to Scotland, where he played for Raith Rovers then

Brechin City Brechin City Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the townDespite the name of the football club, Brechin is not an official city. Brechin was historically known as a city because it has a cathedral. of Brechin in Angus. The club w ...

for brief spells.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Callaghan, Tom 1905 births Date of birth missing 1993 deaths Date of death missing Scottish men's footballers Footballers from Glasgow People from Govan Men's association football wingers St Anthony's F.C. players Third Lanark A.C. players Nithsdale Wanderers F.C. players Raith Rovers F.C. players Brechin City F.C. players Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Glentoran F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Scottish Junior Football Association players Scottish Football League players NIFL Premiership players English Football League players