John Thomas Brewis (21 April 1907 – 5 April 1975) was an English

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

inside-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 1930s, spending most of his career with Southampton.

Football career

Early career

Brewis was born in

Tynemouth Tynemouth () is a coastal town in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, North East England. It is located on the north side of the mouth of the River Tyne, hence its name. It is 8 mi (13 km) east-northeast of Newcastle upon T ...

and played his early football with various colliery clubs, including

West Stanley South Moor is a village in County Durham, in England. It is located to the south-west of Stanley, County Durham, Stanley on the northern slope of the Craghead valley. It is a well-developed village, yet still semi-rural, containing a main street ...

(in the

North Eastern League The North Eastern League was an association football league for teams in the North East of England. The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play. Although som ...

, from where he joined Newark Town of the Midland League in 1929. After a year at Newark, now aged 23, Brewis moved into the Football League when he was signed by York City of 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 ...

in July 1930. He spent two seasons at York, mostly used as cover for Tom Fenoughty, making 26 league and two FA Cup appearances.

Southampton

In March 1932, Brewis was signed for Southampton of the Second Division by recently appointed manager George Kay as cover for Bill Fraser and Arthur Wilson. Brewis made his debut on 19 March 1932, replacing Charlie Sillett who had been drafted in at

inside-left Forwards (also known as attackers) are Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring Goal (sport)#Association footbal ...

whilst Wilson was injured, before losing his place on Wilson's return for the following match, although Brewis made a further five appearances in the 1931–32 season. During the summer of 1932, the Saints' worsening financial position resulted in the sales of both Fraser (to

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

) and Wilson (to West Ham United) leaving Brewis as the only recognised inside-right, with

Herbert Coates Herbert James Leopold "Rigger" Coates (29 September 1901 – 25 October 1965) was an English amateur footballer who played as an inside forward for Southampton in the 1920s and 1930s. Royal Navy Coates was born in West Ham, Essex and joined the ...

being recalled at inside-left. Despite the sales in the summer, the Saints' side had a settled look in 1932–33, with ten players making 30 or more appearances. Brewis and Coates became established as the inside-forwards, with Ted Drake in the centre, and Dick Neal and

Johnny Arnold John Arnold (30 November 1907, Cowley, Oxford – 4 April 1984, Southampton, Hampshire) was an English cricketer and Football player. Cricket career John Arnold was an attacking opening batsman for Hampshire for 20 years from 1930, when he qu ...

on the wings. Brewis scored ten goals from 31 League appearances, including a hat-trick in a 4–1 victory over

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 ...

on 3 September 1932. Described as "''not a tall man''", Brewis "''had the knack of hanging in the air to head improbable goals''". Brewis retained his place for the next two seasons, although he missed a substantial part of the 1934–35 season, when he was replaced by

Fred Tully Frederick Charles Arnold Tully (4 July 1907 – 1969) was an English footballer who played as a winger for Southampton and Clapton Orient in the 1930s. Southampton According to Holley & Chalk's ''Alphabet of the Saints'' he was "a winger of th ...

. For the following season, Tully became the settled No.8, and Brewis played less than half the matches, mostly as a half-back. Although Brewis remained at The Dell for a further year, he only appeared three timers in 1936–37, before he was released in the 1937 close season. Brewis then spent two seasons on the Isle of Wight with

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

before joining the Royal Navy in 1939.

Later career

After the war, Brewis became a publican, running the Durham Hotel in Northam, Southampton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brewis, Tom 1907 births 1975 deaths Sportspeople from Tynemouth Footballers from Tyne and Wear English men's footballers English Football League players West Stanley F.C. players York City F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Newark Town F.C. players Newport (IOW) F.C. players Men's association football inside forwards Royal Navy personnel of World War II