Tommy Allen (footballer)

Infobox Football biography
playername = Tommy Allen


fullname = Thomas Allen
dateofbirth = birth date|1897|1|5|df=y
cityofbirth = Moxley
countryofbirth = England
dateofdeath = death date and age|1968|5|10|1897|1|5|df=y
cityofdeath =
countryofdeath =
height = height|ft=6|in=1
nickname =
position = Goalkeeper
currentclub =
youthyears =
youthclubs = Wednesday Old Park Works
Bilston United
Hickman's Institute
Wolverhampton Wanderers "(wartime)"
years = 1919–1920
1920–1928
1928–1932
1932–1933
1933–1934
1934–1936
1936–1938
clubs = Sunderland
Southampton
Coventry City
Accrington Stanley
Northampton Town
Kidderminster Harriers
Cradley Heath
caps(goals) = 019 0(0)
291 0(0)
154 0(0)
035 0(0)
019 0(0)


nationalyears =
nationalteam =
nationalcaps(goals) =
manageryears =
managerclubs =

Thomas "Tommy" Allen (1 May 1897 – 10 May 1968) was an English professional goalkeeper who played for Southampton in the 1920s and later for Coventry City.

Playing career

Early career

He was born in Moxley and played his youth football for various local sides. During World War I he played for Wolverhampton Wanderers before joining First Division side Sunderland in May 1919. At Roker Park he was seen as a fine prospect and during Sunderland's first post-war season he vied for the 'keeper's shirt with Leslie Scott and James Dempster, making 19 league appearances. At the end of the season the Sunderland management failed to include his name on the list of players retained for the following season [citeweb|url=http://hem.passagen.se/accringtonstanley/Players/League%20Appearances/Allen.htm|title=Thomas Allen profile] and he was quickly snapped up by Southampton for their first Football League season.

outhampton

He soon became the backbone of The Saints' defence and in his first season Southampton narrowly missed out on promotion. In the 1921-22 season he kept 26 clean sheets as Southampton took the Division Three South title on goal average from Plymouth Argyle. Saints total of only 21 goals conceded in a 42 match season was a Football League record which stood until 1979 and remains a record for Southampton. Allen did not concede a goal in any of the final seven games of the season and by the time his defence was finally breached by Leeds United on 28 August 1922 he had gone 845 minutes without conceding a goal. [cite book | author=David Bull & Bob Brunskell | title=Match of the Millennium| publisher=Hagiology | year=2000| pages=pp.40-41|id=ISBN 0-9534474-1-3]

He was a tall, slightly built man and according to Holley & Chalk's "Alphabet of the Saints" "his agility was often described as miraculous". [cite book | author=Duncan Holley & Gary Chalk | title=The Alphabet of the Saints| publisher= ACL & Polar Publishing | year=1992|pages=pp.11| id=ISBN 0-9514862-3-3]

Saints struggled to make any impact in the Second Division but enjoyed some exciting runs in the FA Cup. In 1923 they got through each of the first three rounds after replays (over First Division Newcastle United, Chelsea and Bury), before going out to West Ham United after a second replay. In the first Fourth Round match against West Ham at The Dell Allen was injured as he bravely thwarted Vic Watson and was replaced in the replays by veteran 'keeper Herbert Lock. [cite book | title=Match of the Millennium| pages=pp.42-43]

In 1925 the Saints defeated Liverpool 1-0 in Round Four to reach the semi-final where they came up against another First Division side, Sheffield United. In the match played at Stamford Bridge on 28 March1925, Saints' defender Tom Parker had a dreadful afternoon, first scoring an own-goal, then suffering a rare miss from the penalty spot (shooting straight at the 'keeper) before a mix-up between him and goalkeeper Allen gave Sheffield their second goal. [cite book |title=Match of the Millennium|pages=pp.44-45]

In 1927 Saints again reached the semi-final defeating Newcastle United on the way. In the semi-final match, played at Stamford Bridge on 26 March 1927, Saints were eliminated 2-1 by Arsenal with Saints' goal coming from Bill Rawlings. In this match, Saints came up against their former star full-back Tom Parker who had had a nightmare in Saints' previous semi-final appearance two years earlier. This time Parker was on the winning side as Arsenal moved on to Wembley, losing to Cardiff City in the final. [cite book | title=Match of the Millennium| pages=pp.48-49]

Allen spent one more season at The Dell until moving on to Coventry City in June 1928. In his eight seasons with the Saints he made 323 (291 League, 32 Cup) appearances, which remains a club record for a goalkeeper.

Later career

After two seasons at Coventry City, he signed for Accrington Stanley where he spent the 1932-33 season. Now aged 36 he was nearing his 500th League game, a milestone he reached in his first game with next club, Northampton Town, where he remained for the 1933-34 season. This was followed by three years with Kidderminster Harriers and a spell at Cradley Heath before finally hanging up his boots in 1938.

After retiring from football he settled in Coventry; he died at Castle Bromwich on 10 May 1968 shortly after his 71st birthday.

Honours

Southampton
*Football League Third Division South championship: 1921-22

References

External links

* [http://www.thestatcat.co.uk/Mplayers/MPG56.asp Full details of his Sunderland career]