Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Thomas Butler | ||
Place of birth | Darlaston, England | ||
Date of death | 11 November 1923 | ||
Place of death | Hackney, England | ||
Playing position | Inside-left | ||
Youth career | |||
Willenhall | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1921–1922 | Walsall | 28 | (12) |
1922 | Darlaston | ||
1922–1923 | Port Vale | 32 | (11) |
Total | 60 | (23) | |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
Thomas Butler (died 11 November 1923) was an English footballer who played as an inside-left. He played 60 league games in the Football League, scoring 23 goals. He played for non-league Willenhall, before spending the 1921–22 season at Walsall. He joined Port Vale via Darlaston in December 1922. He broke his arm in a game on 3 November 1923, and died eight days later from a subsequent tetanus infection.
Butler started his career at Birmingham & District League side Willenhall, before joining Walsall in 1921. He played 28 Third Division North games for the "Saddlers" in 1921–22, scoring 12 goals. He then returned to semi-professional football with Darlaston.
He had a one-month trial at Second Division Port Vale in December 1922, and manager Joe Schofield signed him permanently for £100 the following month. Butler was a huge success in the 1922–23 season, becoming top scorer with nine goals in 26 games. At the end of the season he played in a defeat to local rivals Stoke in the North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup.