Tommy Smith (footballer born 1945)
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Smith pictured in October 1966.
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Smith | ||
| Date of birth | 5 April 1945 | ||
| Place of birth | Liverpool, Lancashire, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1960–1962 | Liverpool | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1962–1978 | Liverpool | 467 | (36) |
| 1976 | → Tampa Bay Rowdies (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 1978 | Los Angeles Aztecs | 12 | (0) |
| 1978–1979 | Swansea City | 36 | (2) |
| Total | 532 | (38) | |
| National team | |||
| 1965–1968 | England U23 | 10 | (2) |
| 1971 | England | 1 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1978 | Los Angeles Aztecs | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Thomas "Tommy" Smith MBE (born 5 April 1945) is an ex-England international footballer who played as a defender at Liverpool for 16 years from 1962 to 1978. Known for his uncompromising defensive style, manager Bill Shankly once said of him: "Tommy Smith wasn't born, he was quarried".
Tommy Smith was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, on 5 April 1945; he was an only child. His father died of pneumonia in 1959. Brought up a Catholic, he stopped attending church after witnessing the local priest stagger out of the house drunk after he came to the family home to offer his condolences. Smith joined the groundstaff at Anfield the following year, becoming a schoolboy associate of Liverpool, the club he had supported all his life. Initially a centre-forward, he impressed manager Bill Shankly enough to bypass two of the club's four reserve teams to immediately play for the 'A' team. He further made an impression in the 1961–62 pre-season when he beat imposing centre-half Ron Yeats to a header to score in training. He turned professional in the summer of 1962, on wages of £18-a-week.
He made his first debut for the "Reds" on 8 May 1963, replacing an injured Jimmy Melia, in a 5–1 home victory over Birmingham City. However he made no further appearances throughout the rest of the 1962–63 season, and did not feature in the 1963–64 First Division title winning season. He married Susanne in July 1964, following a four-year courtship.
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