Thomas Henry Perry (12 August 1871 – 18 July 1927) was an English international

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 a

right half A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

Early and personal life

Perry was born in

West Bromwich West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area known as the Black Country, in terms of geography, ...

on 12 August 1871, the fifth of nine children. He was one of five brothers to play football, including older brother

Charlie Charlie may refer to: Characters * "Charlie," the head of the Townsend Agency', from the ''Charlie's Angels'' franchise * Charlie, a character on signs for the CharlieCard, a smart card issued by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority * ...

. He worked as a spring balance maker and was married with four daughters.

Career

Perry played locally for Christ Church School, Christ Church, West Bromwich Baptists and

Stourbridge Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The 20 ...

, and professionally for

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 pla ...

and

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

. He was transferred to Aston Villa for £50 for the 1901–02 season. He retired due to injury in 1903. With West Brom he was a runner-up in the

1894–95 FA Cup The 1894–95 FA Cup was the 24th season of the world's oldest association football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (more usually known as the FA Cup). The cup was won by Aston Villa, who defeated West Bromwich Albion 1&nd ...

. He also earned representative honours for the Football League. He earned one cap 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 ...

on 28 March 1898.

References

1871 births 1927 deaths English men's footballers England men's international footballers Stourbridge F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players English Football League players English Football League representative players Men's association football wing halves Footballers from West Bromwich {{England-footy-midfielder-1870s-stub