Tommy Randall
Encyclopedia
Tommy Randall was an English footballer who played as a defender
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....

 for West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...

.

Playing career

Randall was born in Barking
Barking
Barking is a suburban town in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, in East London, England. A retail and commercial centre situated in the west of the borough, it lies east of Charing Cross. Barking was in the historic county of Essex until it was absorbed by Greater London. The area is...

, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

  and started his football career with Barking
Barking F.C.
Barking Football Club is am English football club based in Barking, Greater London. The club are currently members of the Essex Senior League and play at Mayesbrook Park in Dagenham.-History:...

 in the South Essex league. Starting for West Ham as an amateur and playing as an inside-forward he scored on his debut against Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...

 on 27 April 1907. Fans took an immediate dislike to Randall because of his slow, methodical approach to the game and he was subjected to constant barracking and was nicknamed Old-Mother Randall.
On the verge of giving the game up he was persuaded to play at left half-back. He was such a success that he signed a full-time contract for 30 shillings a week and gained a reputation as one of the best defenders in the league. Going on to captain West Ham, Randall made 205 appearances in all competitions, scoring ten goals.

He died in 1946.
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