Tom Collins (footballer)

Thomas Collins (16 April 1882 – 30 July 1929) was a Scottish footballer who played for Heart of Midlothian, Bathgate, East Fife and Tottenham Hotspur.^[3][4]

Tom Collins

Personal information
Full name	Thomas Collins
Date of birth	(1882-04-16)16 April 1882
Place of birth	Leven, Scotland
Date of death	30 July 1929(1929-07-30) (aged 47)
Place of death	London, England[1]
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Position(s)	Full back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Leven Thistle
1903–1905	Heart of Midlothian	22	(0)
1905	→ Bathgate (loan)
1905–1906	East Fife
1906–1910	Heart of Midlothian	136	(1)
1910–1915	Tottenham Hotspur	113	(1)
International career
1909	Scotland	1	(0)
1909–1910[2]	Scottish League XI	2	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

The full back transferred to Tottenham from Hearts (where he had featured on the losing side in the 1907 Scottish Cup Final) in 1910 for a fee of £825.^[5] Collins made a total of 122 appearances in all competitions for Spurs between 1910 and 1915 and scored a solitary goal for the club.^[6] English football was then suspended; Collins spent time back in Scotland and made some guest appearances for East Fife.^[1]

International career

While with Hearts, Collins represented Scotland on one occasion, a 1909 British Home Championship match against Wales.^[7] He was selected for the Home Scots v Anglo-Scots trial match twice after he moved to Tottenham, but did not gain another full cap.^[8]

Military service

Collins served in the Royal Field Artillery during World War I; he saw active service in France and in 1917 suffered near-fatal injuries in a shell blast, with his left arm and leg having to be amputated (he later had an artificial leg fitted).^[1]

Career statistics

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Scotland	1909	1	0
Total		1	0