Thomas Boyle (21 February 1901 – 9 January 1972) was an English footballer who played as an inside right or

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 boundari ...

. He played for Sheffield United,

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

and Northampton Town, winning the FA Cup with Sheffield United in

1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...

. He later spent a season as player-manager of Scarborough.

Playing career

Born in Sheffield, Boyle was spotted playing for the

Bullcroft Colliery Bullcroft Colliery was a coal mine situated by the village of Carcroft north of Doncaster. The Bullcroft Colliery Company was formed in April 1908 and sinking of the shafts commenced immediately. In January 1909, at a depth of , a water course y ...

team and signed for Sheffield United in 1921. He initially found it difficult to establish himself in the first team, but over time his form improved, particularly his heading, which was a factor in him being selected for the

1925 FA Cup Final The 1925 FA Cup Final was an association football match contested by Sheffield United and Cardiff City on 25 April 1925 at Wembley Stadium in London, England. The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the ...

ahead of the more experienced

Tommy Sampy Thomas Sampy (14 March 1899 – 1978) was an English footballer who played as a midfielder. Born in Backworth, Northumberland, he played for the majority of his career at Sheffield United, making nearly 400 appearances for the Blades. Playing c ...

. He left the Blades in 1929 after making over 140 appearances and scoring 40 goals. Boyle signed for

for £2,000, but failed to settle and spent only one relatively unproductive season at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

in which he made just 17 starts. He was registered as a player by Macclesfield Town in May 1930 but by July of the same year had left for Northampton Town where he spent a successful five seasons, starting over 140 games for the Cobblers. In 1935, Boyle was appointed player-manager of non-league Scarborough where he spent a reasonably successful season before retiring.

Personal life

Boyle was the son of Irish international

Peter Boyle Peter Lawrence Boyle (October 18, 1935 – December 12, 2006) was an American actor. Known as a character actor, he played Frank Barone on the CBS sitcom ''Everybody Loves Raymond'' and the comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof ''Young Fra ...

who had also lifted the FA Cup trophy with Sheffield United in both

1899 Events January 1899 * January 1 ** Spanish rule ends in Cuba, concluding 400 years of the Spanish Empire in the Americas. ** Queens and Staten Island become administratively part of New York City. * January 2 – **Bolivia sets up a c ...

and

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's f ...

. After leaving Scarborough, Boyle became the licensee of the Plough Inn in nearby Scalby, North Yorkshire.

Honours

;Sheffield United * FA Cup: 1924–25

References

External links

Profile
at StretfordEnd.co.uk

at MUFCInfo.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Boyle, Tommy 1901 births 1972 deaths Footballers from Sheffield English footballers Men's association football inside forwards Bullcroft Main Colliery F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Scarborough F.C. players English Football League players English football managers Scarborough F.C. managers People from the Borough of Scarborough English people of Irish descent FA Cup final players