Thomas Sloan (born 24 August 1964), is a Scottish former
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 lea ...
who played as a striker for several clubs in the
Scottish Football League
The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4&nbs ...
. He is currently the manager of Auchinleck Talbot with whom he has won the
Scottish Junior Cup
The Scottish Junior Cup is an annual football competition organised by the Scottish Junior Football Association (SJFA). The competition has been held every year since the inception of the SJFA on the 2nd October 1886 and, as of the 2023–24 ed ...
on seven occasions.
Career
Born in Irvine, Sloan began his career at Junior level with his hometown club Annbank United. After a single appearance for
Stranraer
Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; ), also known as The Toon or The Cleyhole, is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, on Loch Ryan and the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland. Stranraer is Dumfries ...
as a trialist, he joined Ayr United for a spell before dropping back into Junior football with Annbank. Stepping up a second time in 1988, this time to Queen of the South, Sloan later moved to
Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock ( ; ; , ), meaning "the church of Mernóc", is a town and former burgh in East Ayrshire situated in southwest Scotland. The town has served as the administrative centre of East Ayrshire Council since 1996 and is the region's main ...
before joining Stranraer on a permanent basis in 1991 under manager Alex McAnespie. During a successful six years at
Stair Park
Stair Park is a public park and football stadium in the town of Stranraer, Scotland and is the home of Stranraer F.C. It is owned by Dumfries and Galloway Council and is situated next to the London Road and the railway line in the town. The par ...
, he made over 200 league appearances, helping the club to the Scottish League Division Two title in 1993–94, and winning the 1996–97 Scottish Challenge Cup. These were Stranraer's first ever league promotion and national cup honour respectively.
Dropping back again to Junior level, he joined Kilwinning Rangers in 1997, winning the Scottish Junior Cup in 1999. Sloan later moved to Ardrossan Winton Rovers, where he played alongside his son Tommy Jr. With his playing career winding down, Sloan was assisting Campbell Money with youth coaching at Ayr United and turned down his first opportunity to become manager of Auchinleck. He eventually joined the club as player-coach in 2003 under Tam McDonald, and stepped up to the managers role the same year. After avoiding relegation in 2003 on the last day of the season, he has guided Talbot to five Scottish Junior Cup victories and five
Super League
Super League (also known as the Betfred Super League for sponsorship reasons, and legally Super League Europe Ltd.) is a professional rugby league competition, and the highest level of the British rugby league system, which consists of twelve t ...
titles, including the league and cup double in 2006 and 2015.
Throughout his career, he has been known by the nickname ''"Tucker"''.
Playing honours
Stranraer
Scottish Challenge Cup
The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup,Scottish League Division Two
* 1993–94
Kilwinning Rangers
Scottish Junior Cup
The Scottish Junior Cup is an annual football competition organised by the Scottish Junior Football Association (SJFA). The competition has been held every year since the inception of the SJFA on the 2nd October 1886 and, as of the 2023–24 ed ...
* 1998–99
Managerial honours
Auchinleck Talbot
Scottish Junior Cup
The Scottish Junior Cup is an annual football competition organised by the Scottish Junior Football Association (SJFA). The competition has been held every year since the inception of the SJFA on the 2nd October 1886 and, as of the 2023–24 ed ...