Thomas "Tucker" Croft was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

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 professionally in Ireland and the United States as an

inside right 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 ...

Club

Born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

, Croft played in his native Ireland for Dundela,

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European t ...

and

Queen's Island Titanic Quarter in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a large-scale waterfront regeneration, comprising historic maritime landmarks, film studios, education facilities, apartments, a riverside entertainment district, and the world's largest Titanic ...

. In 1924, he left Northern Ireland for the United States, joining the

Fall River Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The City of Fall River's population was 94,000 at the 2020 United States Census, making it the tenth-largest city in the state. Located along the eastern shore of Mount H ...

of the American Soccer League. He was under contract to Queen's Island at the time and the move led to his suspension by the IFA. During his time with the 'Marksmen' he was noted for his discipline problems and in 1925, he petitioned the

Irish Football Association The Irish Football Association (IFA) is the governing body for association football in Northern Ireland. It organised the Ireland national football team from 1880 to 1950, which after 1954, became the Northern Ireland national football team. ...

for re-admittance. When this was denied, he returned to Fall River. In 1926, Croft began the season with Fall River, but moved to J & P Coats after fourteen games. Croft was back with Fall River for the start of the 1927–1928 season, but quickly moved to the

Newark Skeeters The Newark Skeeters was an American soccer club based in Newark, New Jersey and was a member of the American Soccer League and the Eastern Soccer League. History In December 1924, Tom Adam, former manager of West Hudson A.A., became the manage ...

. In December 1927, the New York Nationals purchased Croft's contract.15 December 1927 Sports Briefs
/ref> He played only eight games for the Nationals, and was back with the Skeeters for the 1928–1929 season, but played only one game before returning to Northern Ireland. The IFA re-admitted Croft on 7 December 1928 and he played with both Queen's Island and Glentoran, before retiring in 1930.

International

Croft also represented

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

at international level between 1922 and 1924, scoring one goal in three appearances. The goal was the winning goal against England, and marked the first win for Ireland over England following the advent of the partition of Ireland in 1922.

External links

NIFG
*

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Croft, Tucker Year of birth missing 1955 deaths Association footballers from Belfast American Soccer League (1921–1933) players Men's association footballers from Northern Ireland Pre-1950 IFA men's international footballers Fall River F.C. (1922–1931) players Glentoran F.C. players Pawtucket Rangers players New York Nationals (ASL) players Newark Skeeters players Men's association football inside forwards Drumcondra F.C. players Expatriate men's association footballers from Northern Ireland Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Queen's Island F.C. players Expatriate sportspeople from Northern Ireland in the United States