Bob Thomson
From TheChels.info - The Chelsea Football Club Wiki
| Bob Thomson | |
| |
| Full Name | Robert John Thomson |
| Date of Birth | 29 December 1890 |
| Place of Birth | Croydon |
| Position | Centre forward |
| Chelsea career | 1911-1922 |
| Debut | 21 October 1911 |
| Games (goals) | 95 (30) |
| Other clubs | Croydon Common Charlton Athletic |
Robert "Bob" Thomson was an English centre forward who played for Chelsea during the early 20th century, mainly prior to the First World War.
Career
Thomson carved out a career in the game despite having only one eye, resulting from a childhood accident with a firework. When asked how he dealt with a ball coming to him on his blind side, Bob would answer: "I just shut my other eye and play from memory."
He started out with his local side Croydon Common before joining Chelsea in September 1911. His most successful season with Chelsea came in 1914-15, when his six goals in eight 1914-15 FA Cup games helped his team reach the final, where they lost to Sheffield United.
When competitive football was abandoned in Britain in 1915, Thomson continued to turn out for Chelsea in unofficial wartime matches, scoring 100 goals in three seasons 1915-17. He played twice more for the club when hostilities ended.
He signed for Charlton Athletic in 1921, having made a total of 95 appearances and scored 30 goals for Chelsea.
Statistics
- See also: List of Bob Thomson goals
| Season | League | FA Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |
| 1911-12 | 21 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 8 |
| 1912-13 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 |
| 1913-14 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| 1914-15 | 30 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 38 | 18 |
| 1920-21 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 2 |
| Total | 83 | 25 | 12 | 5 | 95 | 30 |
Honours
- Runner-up: 1915
