Thomas O'Connor (born

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, Ireland; died 30 June 1987), also known as Tommy O'Connor or Tom O'Connor, was an Irish

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 ...

who played for Shamrock Rovers. On 21 September 1949, together with

Con Martin Cornelius Joseph Martin (20 March 1923 – 24 February 2013) was an Irish footballer. Martin initially played Gaelic football for the Dublin county team before switching codes and embarking on a successful soccer career, playing for, among oth ...

Johnny Carey John Joseph Carey (23 February 1919 – 22 August 1995) was an Irish professional footballer and manager. As a player, Carey spent most of his career at Manchester United, where he was team captain from 1946 until he retired as a player in 1953 ...

and Peter Farrell, he was also a member of the

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 ...

team that defeated

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

2–0 at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a association football, football stadium in the Walton, Liverpool, Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area ...

, becoming the first non- UK team to beat England at home. O'Connor first attracted attention while playing for Shamrock Rovers in the early part of the 1948–49 season. His impressive performances for Rovers led him to making four appearances for

in 1949. He made his international debut on 8 September 1949 in a 3–0 win against

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known ...

. The game was a 1950 World Cup qualifier and O'Connor put in an impressive performance, helping the Irish win 3–0. O'Connor was preferred over both

Tommy Eglington Thomas Joseph Eglington (15 January 1923 – 18 February 2004) was an Irish footballer who played as an outside-left for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Everton and Tranmere Rovers. Eglington was also a dual internationalist and played for bo ...

and Jackie O'Driscoll for the game against

. This proved an astute selection as O'Connor set up both of the Irish goals. Ireland took the lead in the 33rd minute when Peter Desmond, after collecting a pass from O'Connor, was brought down in the penalty area;

converted the subsequent penalty kick. In the 85th minute, O'Connor slipped the ball to Peter Farrell and as the English goalkeeper

Bert Williams Bert Williams (November 12, 1874 – March 4, 1922) was a Bahamian-born American entertainer, one of the pre-eminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He is credited as being ...

advanced, Farrell lofted the ball into the unguarded net. He made his third appearance for Ireland on 9 October in the return game against

, which finished as a 1–1 draw, before making his final international appearance on 13 November against Sweden in 3–1 home defeat. Like his debut, both of these games were World Cup qualifiers. After leaving Rovers, O'Connor played in the Leinster Senior League.''The Boys In Green - The FAI International Story'' (1997): Sean Ryan
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Honours

* Inter-City Cup: ** Shamrock Rovers 1949: 1 *

LFA President's Cup The LFA President's Cup was an association football cup competition featuring League of Ireland clubs affiliated to the Leinster Football Association. It was played for between 1930 and 2002. It was a ''de facto'' national super cup and on t ...

: ** Shamrock Rovers 1948-49: 1

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, Tommy Year of birth missing 1987 deaths Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Ireland (FAI) men's international footballers Shamrock Rovers F.C. players League of Ireland players Association footballers from County Dublin League of Ireland XI players Leinster Senior League (association football) players Men's association football forwards