Thomas "Tom" Butler was an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 footballer who played as an inside-left. He played 60 league games in the Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

, scoring 23 goals. He played for non-league Willenhall

Willenhall F.C.

Willenhall F.C. was an English association football club based in Willenhall in the Black Country. The club was formed by the merger of Willenhall Pickwick F.C. and Willenhall Swifts F.C. and competed in the Birmingham & District League, one of the country's strongest semi-professional leagues,...

, before spending the 1921–22 season at Walsall

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

. He joined Port Vale

Port Vale F.C.

Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...

 via Darlaston

Darlaston Town F.C.

Darlaston Town F.C. are a football club based in Darlaston, West Midlands, England. For the 2011-12 season, they are members of the West Midlands League Premier Division.-History:...

 in December 1922. He broke his arm in a game on 3 November 1923, and died eight days later from a subsequent tetanus

Tetanus

Tetanus is a medical condition characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin, a neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani...

 infection.

Playing career

Butler started his career at Birmingham & District League side Willenhall

Willenhall F.C.

Willenhall F.C. was an English association football club based in Willenhall in the Black Country. The club was formed by the merger of Willenhall Pickwick F.C. and Willenhall Swifts F.C. and competed in the Birmingham & District League, one of the country's strongest semi-professional leagues,...

, before joining Walsall

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

 in 1921. He played 28 Third Division North

Football League Third Division North

The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...

 games for the "Saddlers" in 1921–22, scoring 12 goals. He then returned to semi-professional football with Darlaston

Darlaston Town F.C.

Darlaston Town F.C. are a football club based in Darlaston, West Midlands, England. For the 2011-12 season, they are members of the West Midlands League Premier Division.-History:...

.

He had a one month trial at Second Division

Football League Second Division

From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...

 Port Vale

Port Vale F.C.

Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...

 in December 1922, and manager Joe Schofield

Joe Schofield

Joseph Alfred Schofield was an English footballer and later football manager.A winger, he played for Stoke between 1891 and 1899, winning himself three England caps in the process. He was later appointed as Stoke's manager in 1915, before he left the post in 1919 to take up the reigns at nearby...

 signed him permanently for £100 the following month. Butler was a huge success in the 1922–23

1922–23 Port Vale F.C. season

The 1922–23 season was Port Vale's fourth consecutive season of football in the Football League. For the third successive the season the club finished just out of the relegation zones, and for the second successive season were unable to find a regular goalscorer following the sale of Bobby Blood...

 season, becoming top scorer with nine goals in 26 games. At the end of the season he played in a defeat to local rivals

Potteries derby

The Potteries derby is the football local derby in Stoke-on-Trent between Port Vale and Stoke City. The fans of each club both consider the other to be their main rivals; this has led to a heated atmosphere at these matches, especially with the rise of football hooliganism and the 'Naughty Forty'...

 Stoke

Stoke City F.C.

Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...

 in the North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup.

He started 1923–24

1923–24 Port Vale F.C. season

The 1923–24 season was Port Vale's fifth consecutive season of football in the Football League. Another season of slow and steady progress saw the club finish one point, and one place higher than the previous campaign. The club still lacked a regular goalscorer since selling Bobby Blood, however...

 by scoring in a defeat to Stoke at The Old Recreation Ground

The Old Recreation Ground

The Old Recreation Ground was a football stadium, located in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent and home to Port Vale for almost 40 years. The Rec had been Vale's home between 1913 and 1950 and was the sixth ground the club used.-Structure and facilities:...

. However, after scoring in a 1–1 draw with Clapton Orient

Leyton Orient F.C.

Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...

 on 3 November he suffered a compound fracture

Bone fracture

A bone fracture is a medical condition in which there is a break in the continuity of the bone...

 of the left arm; he died from tetanus

Tetanus

Tetanus is a medical condition characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin, a neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani...

 (also called lockjaw) eight days later in Hackney Hospital

Homerton University Hospital

Homerton University Hospital is an NHS-run University Hospital in Homerton, Hackney- East London.-Overview:The hospital is run by the Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which was established on 1 April 2004 and is one among the first ten foundation trusts established in England...

after complications had set in.