Tommy Traynor
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| Tommy Traynor | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Joseph Traynor | |
| Date of birth | July 22, 1933 | |
| Place of birth | Dundalk, Ireland | |
| Date of death | September 20, 2006 (aged 73) | |
| Place of death | Southampton, England | |
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | |
| Playing position | Left back | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
1952-1966 |
Dundalk Southampton |
434 (7) |
| National team | ||
| 1954-1964 | Ireland | 8 (0) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Tommy Traynor (born Dundalk 22 July 1933, died 20 September 2006) was a footballer who played his entire professional career for Southampton between 1952 and 1966.
During his 14 years at The Dell he became virtually an institution, and by the end of his career he held the record for appearances for Southampton.
Contents |
[edit] Playing career
He originally played for his local team Dundalk, and had represented the Republic of Ireland at Amateur level, when he came to the notice of several English clubs. He turned down offers from Chelsea and Manchester City to join Southampton in June 1952; he made his debut on 11 October 1952 away to Brentford making 10 appearances as Saints went on to be relegated from Division 2 at the end of that season.
The following season, in Division 3, he became the club’s regular left-back and his merciless sliding tackles and deceptive turn of pace stood him in good stead as Saints began the long haul back to Division 2. Although he was not the most athletic player, he had a super football brain and a great left foot.
Tommy won 8 Republic of Ireland national football team caps between 1954 and 1964.
By the time of Southampton’s promotion season in 1966, age was catching up with him and he only made 1 appearance in his final season, at home to Preston on 27 November 1965.
During his time at The Dell he amassed 487 appearances for the club, scoring 8 goals.
[edit] After football
He was also a founder member of the Southampton Tyro League in the late 1960s.
After finally retiring at the end of the 1965-66 season, he briefly ran an off-licence and worked in Southampton Docks.
He died in September 2006 at the age of 73 after a short illness.
[edit] References
- Duncan Holley & Gary Chalk (2003). In That Number - A post-war chronicle of Southampton FC. Hagiology. ISBN 0-9534474-3-X.
- Duncan Holley & Gary Chalk (1992). The Alphabet of the Saints. ACL & Polar Publishing. ISBN 0-9514862-3-3.
