Tommy Hutchison
Encyclopedia
Thomas "Tommy" Hutchison (born 22 September 1947 in Cardenden
, Fife
) is a Scottish
former footballer.
in the Scottish Second Division, being spotted by Archie McPherson
. He showed enough potential and promise to attract the attention of larger clubs, and he joined Stan Mortensen
's Blackpool
in February 1968 for just over £10,000. Almost immediately, he took the place of Graham Oates at outside-left, making his debut against Plymouth
on March 30 in the English Second Division. In the Blackpool
team that day was long-term club stalwart and former England International, Jimmy Armfield
.
The Scot was brought in to bolster the Seasiders' flagging promotion drive, and out of the final nine games of the 1967-68 season, they won eight. Promotion was missed on the final day, but 'Hutch' had been impressive throughout.
Les Shannon
took over from Mortensen as manager, and in his first season achieved promotion to the First Division in 1970 - but it only lasted one season. When Bob Stokoe
took over from Shannon in June 1971, he worked on Hutchison's crossing ability, believing it to be his only weak spot.
In 1972, Coventry City
manager Joe Mercer
offered £140,000 cash plus Billy Rafferty
for Hutchison's services. He signed for the Midlands club, leaping at the chance to play in the First Division on a regular basis. 'Hutch' remained at Highfield Road
for eight years, playing 355 games and scoring 30 goals. During his Time at Coventry he played probably the best football of his career, winning all of his 17 Scottish caps while at the club. Nicknamed "Mr Magic" by the club chairman, Derrick Robins
, he was voted supporter's Player of the Season three times during his eight year spell at Highfield Road
- a feat no other Sky Blues player has yet equalled.
Hutchison joined Manchester City
for a fee of £47,000 in October 1980, becoming John Bond
's first signing at Maine Road
. In May 1981, he scored for both sides in the FA Cup
Final, as Tottenham Hotspur
drew 1-1 with Manchester City. He was not the first to do this — Bert Turner
had done so in the 1946 final for Charlton
and Derby
, and Gary Mabbutt
would do same in the 1987 final for Coventry City
and Tottenham Hotspur
. He had initially put City in the lead, but his own goal (deflecting a free-kick) meant that the final would go to a replay, which City lost 3-2 five days later.http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/top10s/2384100/Top-10-greatest-FA-Cup-finals.html?offset=5
Hutchison later played for Bulova of Hong Kong
and Seattle Sounders
(US) before returning to the UK, re-joining John Bond
at Burnley
in 1983 and moving to Swansea City
in 1985 to be managed by John Bond
at a third different club in his career. When Bond departed, Hutchison served as manager for six months after the club went into liquidation. Come September 1989, Hutchison - now just shy of his forty-second birthday - made his debut in European club competition. Having won the Welsh FA Cup the season before, Swansea entered the European Cup Winners Cup, and were drawn against Greek giants Panathinaikos
. They were eliminated at the First Round stage, but not before giving the Greek team a scare losing 3-2 in Athens and drawing 3-3 at Vetch Field
. He is in the record books as the oldest player to have played for Swansea, playing against Southend United
in March 1991 at the age of 43 years, five months and 19 days.
In late May and early June 1984, Hutchison made three guest appearances for Manchester United
on their summer tour of Australia, playing against Australia, Nottingham Forest
and Juventus
. He then made another guest appearance for the club the following May, when he played in Peter Foley's testimonial against an Oxford United XI.
He left Swansea near the end of the 1990-91 season, and joined Southern League side Merthyr Tydfil
, where he spent another three years before finally retiring from the game in May 1994, at the age of 46, having played more than a thousand first-team games in his career.
in April 2006. Organised by the Blackpool Supporters Association, Blackpool fans around the world voted on their all-time heroes. Five players from each decade are inducted; Hutchison is in the 1970s.
, Hutchison appeared at the 1974 World Cup
, though was surprisingly omitted from the 1978 World Cup squad in Argentina when he was arguably playing the finest football of his career.
. He still lives in south Wales and worked as a football development officer for Bristol City
. A poll by the Coventry Evening Telegraph
voted him the most popular Coventry player of the club's First Division
era.
Seattle Sounders
Manchester City
Bulova SA
Swansea City
Cardenden
Cardenden is a Scottish town located on the South bank of the River Ore in the parish of Auchterderran, Fife. It is approximately North-West of Kirkcaldy. Cardenden was named in 1848 by the Edinburgh and Northern Railway for its new railway station...
, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
) is a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
former footballer.
Club career
Beginning his professional career with Alloa AthleticAlloa Athletic F.C.
Alloa Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Alloa, Clackmannanshire. They are members of the Scottish Football League and currently play in the Third Division....
in the Scottish Second Division, being spotted by Archie McPherson
Archie McPherson (footballer)
Archie McPherson was a Scottish footballer. McPherson began his career with Rangers before moving south of the border to join Liverpool, after just one year. He was to be a regular in Liverpool's first-team for the next five years, playing as an inside-left, and forming a partnership with Fred...
. He showed enough potential and promise to attract the attention of larger clubs, and he joined Stan Mortensen
Stan Mortensen
Stanley Harding "Stan" Mortensen was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final , in which he became the only player ever to score a hat-trick in a Wembley FA Cup Final...
's Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
in February 1968 for just over £10,000. Almost immediately, he took the place of Graham Oates at outside-left, making his debut against Plymouth
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
on March 30 in the English Second Division. In the Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
team that day was long-term club stalwart and former England International, Jimmy Armfield
Jimmy Armfield
James Christopher "Jimmy" Armfield, CBE, DL is an English former professional football player and manager who currently works as a football pundit for BBC Radio Five Live. He played the whole of his Football League career at Blackpool, usually at right back...
.
The Scot was brought in to bolster the Seasiders' flagging promotion drive, and out of the final nine games of the 1967-68 season, they won eight. Promotion was missed on the final day, but 'Hutch' had been impressive throughout.
Les Shannon
Les Shannon
Leslie "Les" Shannon was an English football player and manager.-Playing career:Shannon was born in Liverpool; a centre-forward, he started his playing career with his hometown club of Liverpool in November 1944...
took over from Mortensen as manager, and in his first season achieved promotion to the First Division in 1970 - but it only lasted one season. When Bob Stokoe
Bob Stokoe
Robert "Bob" Stokoe was an English footballer and manager who was able, almost uniquely, to transcend the traditional north-east rivalry between the region's footballing giants, Newcastle United and Sunderland....
took over from Shannon in June 1971, he worked on Hutchison's crossing ability, believing it to be his only weak spot.
In 1972, Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
manager Joe Mercer
Joe Mercer
Joseph 'Joe' Mercer, OBE was an English football player and manager.-Playing career:Mercer was born in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, the son of a former Nottingham Forest and Tranmere Rovers footballer, also named Joe. Joe Mercer senior died, following health problems resulting from a gas attack...
offered £140,000 cash plus Billy Rafferty
Billy Rafferty
William "Billy" Rafferty is a former Scottish footballer who played as a forward. He is most notable for a two-year spell spearheading the attack for Plymouth Argyle alongside Paul Mariner in the 1970s....
for Hutchison's services. He signed for the Midlands club, leaping at the chance to play in the First Division on a regular basis. 'Hutch' remained at Highfield Road
Highfield Road
The Highfield Road Stadium was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. until the club moved to the new Ricoh Arena after the 2005-06 season...
for eight years, playing 355 games and scoring 30 goals. During his Time at Coventry he played probably the best football of his career, winning all of his 17 Scottish caps while at the club. Nicknamed "Mr Magic" by the club chairman, Derrick Robins
Derrick Robins
Derrick Harold Robins, often known as D. H. Robins was an English cricketer and sports promoter, at one time chairman of Coventry City Football Club. He was born in Bexleyheath, Kent....
, he was voted supporter's Player of the Season three times during his eight year spell at Highfield Road
Highfield Road
The Highfield Road Stadium was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. until the club moved to the new Ricoh Arena after the 2005-06 season...
- a feat no other Sky Blues player has yet equalled.
Hutchison joined Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
for a fee of £47,000 in October 1980, becoming John Bond
John Bond (footballer)
John Frederick Bond is an English former professional football player and manager. His son Kevin Bond is also a former footballer.-Playing career:...
's first signing at Maine Road
Maine Road
Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England that was home to Manchester City F.C. from its construction in 1923 until 2003...
. In May 1981, he scored for both sides in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
Final, as Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
drew 1-1 with Manchester City. He was not the first to do this — Bert Turner
Bert Turner (footballer born 1909)
Herbert Gwyn "Bert" Turner was a Welsh international footballer who played as a full back for Charlton Athletic. He was best known for scoring for both sides in the 1946 FA Cup Final, becoming the first player to do so....
had done so in the 1946 final for Charlton
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
and Derby
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
, and Gary Mabbutt
Gary Mabbutt
Gary Mabbutt MBE is an English former professional footballer who made more than 600 appearances in the Football League and Premier League playing for Bristol Rovers and Tottenham Hotspur, and won 16 caps for the England national team. He was most regularly seen in central defence but was a...
would do same in the 1987 final for Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
and Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
. He had initially put City in the lead, but his own goal (deflecting a free-kick) meant that the final would go to a replay, which City lost 3-2 five days later.http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/top10s/2384100/Top-10-greatest-FA-Cup-finals.html?offset=5
Hutchison later played for Bulova of Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
and Seattle Sounders
Seattle Sounders (NASL)
The Seattle Sounders were a U.S. professional soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1974, the team belonged to the North American Soccer League where it played both indoor and outdoor soccer. The team folded after the 1983 NASL outdoor season.-Stadium:The Sounders played at Memorial...
(US) before returning to the UK, re-joining John Bond
John Bond (footballer)
John Frederick Bond is an English former professional football player and manager. His son Kevin Bond is also a former footballer.-Playing career:...
at Burnley
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...
in 1983 and moving to Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
in 1985 to be managed by John Bond
John Bond (footballer)
John Frederick Bond is an English former professional football player and manager. His son Kevin Bond is also a former footballer.-Playing career:...
at a third different club in his career. When Bond departed, Hutchison served as manager for six months after the club went into liquidation. Come September 1989, Hutchison - now just shy of his forty-second birthday - made his debut in European club competition. Having won the Welsh FA Cup the season before, Swansea entered the European Cup Winners Cup, and were drawn against Greek giants Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos is a multi-sport club based in Athens, Greece. It has the shamrock as its official emblem and green and white as its colours...
. They were eliminated at the First Round stage, but not before giving the Greek team a scare losing 3-2 in Athens and drawing 3-3 at Vetch Field
Vetch Field
The Vetch Field was a multi-purpose stadium in Swansea, Wales. It was used mostly for football matches and was the home ground of Swansea City until the Liberty Stadium opened in 2005. Opened in 1912, the ground held around 12,000 at the time of its closure, but upwards of 30,000 at its peak...
. He is in the record books as the oldest player to have played for Swansea, playing against Southend United
Southend United F.C.
Southend United Football Club is an English football club based at Roots Hall Stadium, Prittlewell, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, who play in Football League Two. Their home ground is Roots Hall, and the club plan to move into a new 22,000-seater stadium located at Fossetts Farm.-Stadium:The club has had...
in March 1991 at the age of 43 years, five months and 19 days.
In late May and early June 1984, Hutchison made three guest appearances for Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
on their summer tour of Australia, playing against Australia, Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest F.C.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship...
and Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...
. He then made another guest appearance for the club the following May, when he played in Peter Foley's testimonial against an Oxford United XI.
He left Swansea near the end of the 1990-91 season, and joined Southern League side Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil F.C.
Merthyr Tydfil Football Club was a Welsh football club based at the Penydarren Park ground in Merthyr Tydfil. In 2010 the club was liquidated and reformed under the name Merthyr Town, which was accepted into Division One of the Western League.-History:...
, where he spent another three years before finally retiring from the game in May 1994, at the age of 46, having played more than a thousand first-team games in his career.
Blackpool F.C. Hall of Fame
Hutchison was inducted into the Hall of Fame at Bloomfield Road, when it was officially opened by former Blackpool player Jimmy ArmfieldJimmy Armfield
James Christopher "Jimmy" Armfield, CBE, DL is an English former professional football player and manager who currently works as a football pundit for BBC Radio Five Live. He played the whole of his Football League career at Blackpool, usually at right back...
in April 2006. Organised by the Blackpool Supporters Association, Blackpool fans around the world voted on their all-time heroes. Five players from each decade are inducted; Hutchison is in the 1970s.
International career
Capped 17 times for ScotlandScotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
, Hutchison appeared at the 1974 World Cup
1974 FIFA World Cup
The 1974 FIFA World Cup, the tenth staging of the World Cup, was held in West Germany from 13 June to 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, created by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, was awarded...
, though was surprisingly omitted from the 1978 World Cup squad in Argentina when he was arguably playing the finest football of his career.
Retirement
On retiring from league football at the age of 43, he joined non-league Merthyr TydfilMerthyr Tydfil F.C.
Merthyr Tydfil Football Club was a Welsh football club based at the Penydarren Park ground in Merthyr Tydfil. In 2010 the club was liquidated and reformed under the name Merthyr Town, which was accepted into Division One of the Western League.-History:...
. He still lives in south Wales and worked as a football development officer for Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
. A poll by the Coventry Evening Telegraph
Coventry Evening Telegraph
The Coventry Telegraph is a local English tabloid newspaper. Originally called The Midland Daily Telegraph, it was founded in 1891 by William Isaac Iliffe as Coventry's first daily newspaper, a four-page broadsheet newspaper originally sold for a half penny...
voted him the most popular Coventry player of the club's First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
era.
Honours
Blackpool- Anglo-Italian CupAnglo-Italian CupThe Anglo-Italian Cup is a defunct European football competition that was played intermittently between 1970 and 1996 between clubs from England and Italy. Founded by Gigi Peronace in 1970, following the success of the Anglo-Italian League Cup, it was played as a professional tournament until 1973...
Winner: 19711970-71 in English footballThe 1970–71 season was the 91st season of competitive football in England.-First Division:Arsenal won the league championship at the end of a season which would soon be followed by their FA Cup final tie with Liverpool. Arsenal secured the league title at White Hart Lane, the home of bitter rivals...
Seattle Sounders
- North American Soccer LeagueNorth American Soccer LeagueNorth American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
National Conference Western Division Champions 1980
Manchester City
- FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
Finalist: 19811980-81 in English footballThe 1980–81 season was the 101st season of competitive football in England.-Overview:The Football League introduced a three points for a win system in place of the two points for a win system which had operated since the league's formation in 1889...
Bulova SA
- Hong Kong FA CupHong Kong FA CupHong Kong FA Cup is a knockout cup competition in Hong Kong football, run by and named after The Hong Kong Football Association. The first edition of the competition was held in 1975, before then the cup was known as the Golden Jubilee Cup. The current season is the 33rd edition of the event...
Winner: 1983 - Hong Kong Viceroy CupHong Kong Viceroy CupHong Kong Viceroy Cup is an abandoned football competition in Hong Kong. It was the first footabll competition in Hong Kong which allowed business sponsorship. Together with First Division League, FA Cup and Senior Shield, they were at the time considered as Big Four compeititons in Hong Kong...
Winner: 1983
Swansea City
- Welsh FA Cup Winner: 1989