Thomas James Quinn (11 August 1908 – 11 November 1969) was a leading

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er of the 1920s and 1930s, playing for

Port Adelaide Football Club Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where they are nicknamed ...

and

Geelong Football Club The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed the Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition, and are the 2022 ...

. Born in Birkenhead, South Australia, the son of former Port Adelaide captain

John Quinn, Sr. John Michael Quinn Sr. (died 5 August 1954) was an Australian rules footballer for the Port Adelaide Football Club, captaining the club from 1904 to 1905. Early life John was the eldest of 7 children born to Michael Quinn and Mary Sidoli. ...

and the older brother of dual Magarey Medallist Bob, Quinn showed aptitude for football from a young age, and standing 170 cm tall and built like a tank, Quinn made his South Australian National Football League (SANFL) debut for Port as a rover in 1928. Quinn immediately made his mark, becoming a key member of the 1928 Port premiership team. Quinn played 59 matches for Port in three seasons plus six for South Australia before finding himself unemployed in the wake of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Quinn had attracted interest from Victorian Football League (VFL) clubs at the

1930 Adelaide Carnival The 1930 Adelaide Carnival was the seventh edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition. It was held from 30 July to 9 August and was the second carnival to be hosted by the South Austr ...

with his performances for South Australia, and when Geelong offered Quinn employment with the Ford Motor Company, a club sponsor, as a machine operator, Quinn leapt at the opportunity and transferred to Geelong for the

1931 VFL season The 1931 VFL season was the 35th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 2 May until 10 October, and comprised an 18- ...

. Gaining the nickname "Maggie" for his Port Adelaide heritage, Quinn immediately proved a success in the VFL, being a key player in Geelong's 1931 premiership team and became a firm favorite with Geelong fans. Quinn won Geelong's best and fairest awards in

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

and

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

and was appointed club vice-captain for the 1937 season, captaining Geelong for seven matches when captain

Reg Hickey Reginald Joseph Hickey (27 March 1906 – 13 December 1973) was an Australian rules footballer who was a player, the captain, the captain-coach, and the non-playing coach for the Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) ...

was injured. Quinn capped off 1937 with a best on ground performance in Geelong's 1937 Grand Final win, gaining 31 possessions and six marks in a performance considered "completely error free". Quinn retired early in the

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

season after having been dropped to the reserves. He had played 168 games for Geelong, kicking 169 goals. In

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

Quinn was appointed coach of Geelong but was sacked from the position at the end of the

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

season after failing to raise Geelong above 7th place.Stephens, R. (1996) ''The Road to Kardinia: the Story of the Geelong Football Club'', Publishing Pty. Ltd: Sydney. In 2001 Quinn was selected as an Emergency in Geelong's official 'Team of the Century'.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Quinn, Tommy 1908 births 1969 deaths Geelong Football Club players Geelong Football Club Premiership players Geelong Football Club coaches Australian rules footballers from Adelaide Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL) players Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions) Carji Greeves Medal winners Australian people of Italian descent Australian people of Irish descent Two-time VFL/AFL Premiership players