Tommy McLaren

Tommy McLaren

Personal information
Full name	Thomas McLaren
Date of birth	1 June 1949
Place of birth	Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland
Date of death	23 July 1978 (aged 29)
Place of death	Telford, England
Playing position	Midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1966–1967	Berwick Rangers	6	(0)
1967–1977	Port Vale	333	(28)
1975	→ Portland Timbers (loan)[1]	20	(1)
1977–1978	Telford United
Total		359+	(29+)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Thomas "Tommy" McLaren (1 June 1949 – 23 July 1978) was a Scottish footballer who played as a midfielder.

He moved from Berwick Rangers to Port Vale in November 1967. He spent ten years at Vale Park, racking up 369 league and cup appearances. He helped the club to achieve promotion out of the Fourth Division in 1969–70, and also picked up the clubs' Player of the Year award in 1970–71. He also played on loan for the Portland Timbers in summer 1975, helping the club to the North American Soccer League championship final. Given a free transfer to Telford United in May 1977, he went on to commit suicide in July 1978, having never come to terms with leaving Port Vale. He was 29 years old.

Playing career

McLaren began his career with Scottish Second Division club Berwick Rangers. He moved south to England to sign for Port Vale in November 1967. Vale were then in the Fourth Division and managed by Stanley Matthews. McLaren was one of six Scotsmen at the club, though he was the only one not to hail from Edinburgh. He posted thirteen appearances in 1967–68, making his debut against Swansea Town on 25 November, and scoring his first senior goal against Exeter City in a 1–0 win on 25 March. He was selected nineteen times by new manager Gordon Lee in 1968–69, and scored two goals – one against Bradford City and the other against Bradford Park Avenue.

He managed to win himself a regular first team spot in 1969–70, and posted a total of 41 appearances and five goals as the club won promotion. McLaren adapted well to the Third Division, and scored six goals in 38 games in 1970–71, kicking braces against Rochdale and Reading. At the end of the season he was awarded the clubs' Player of the Year award.^[2]

He scored six goals in fifty games in 1971–72, netting a brace against York City, a goal home and away against Tranmere Rovers, as well as striking against Aston Villa and Bristol Rovers. He played a further 45 games in 1972–73, scoring goals against Plymouth Argyle, Scunthorpe United and Chesterfield.

McLaren recovered from damaged ligaments to post 47 appearances in 1973–74, though new manager Roy Sproson cracked his head on the team dugout after celebrating McLaren's winning goal against Shrewsbury Town on 19 January.^[3] He played a further 42 games in 1974–75, his only goal of the season coming against Wrexham.

He went to the United States to play for Portland Timbers on loan from May to August 1975. He played twenty games that summer in the North American Soccer League, and scored a goal against the St. Louis Stars on 19 July. The Timbers made it to the league championship final on 24 August, where they lost 2–0 to the Tampa Bay Rowdies at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, California.

He still maintained a place in the "Valiants" first team on his return to Vale Park, and made 35 appearances in 1975–76, scoring one goal against Bury. He posted a further 39 appearances in 1976–77, and boasted a very strong relationship with the club's supporters.^[4] He played a total of 369 games for the Vale, scoring 29 goals. However, in May 1977 he was given a free transfer to Southern Football League side Telford United. He stayed with the "Stags" for the 1977–78 season. However, his departure from Port Vale had 'shattered' him, and McLaren was found dead in his car in Telford in July 1978, having committed suicide.^[5]

Legacy

McLaren remains something of a legend at Port Vale, and to celebrate sixty years at Vale Park his son Scott McLaren was signed on a Football League contract at the club and given the number 50 shirt for the 2010–11 season.^[6] Former Port Vale team mate Ray Williams commented that "Tommy became a legend at Port Vale not because he was a great player but because he touched everybody that he came in contact with." ^[7]

Statistics

• Sourced from Tommy McLaren profile at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Portland Timbers (loan)	1975	NASL	20	1	–	–	–	–	20	1
Port Vale	1967–68	Fourth Division	13	1	0	0	0	0	13	1
	1968–69	Fourth Division	18	2	0	0	1	0	19	2
	1969–70	Fourth Division	35	4	5	1	1	0	41	5
	1970–71	Third Division	36	6	1	0	1	0	38	6
	1971–72	Third Division	45	6	4	0	1	0	50	6
	1972–73	Third Division	41	3	2	0	2	0	45	3
	1973–74	Third Division	42	4	4	0	1	0	47	4
	1974–75	Third Division	39	1	2	0	1	0	42	1
	1975–76	Third Division	31	1	3	0	1	0	35	1
	1976–77	Third Division	33	0	4	0	2	0	39	0
	Total		333	28	25	1	11	0	369	29

Honours

Individual

• Port Vale F.C. Player of the Year: 1971^[2]

with Port Vale

• Football League Fourth Division fourth place promotion winner: 1969–70^[3]

with Portland Timbers

• North American Soccer League runner-up: 1975

References

1. NASL career stats
2. Kent, Jeff (1990). The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. p. 305. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
3. Kent, Jeff (1990). "Surviving on a Shoestring (1969–1979)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 227–257. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
4. Kent, Jeff (December 1991). Port Vale Tales: A Collection Of Stories, Anecdotes And Memories. Witan Books. p. 84. ISBN 0-9508981-6-3.
5. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 194. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
6. "New Signing". port-vale.co.uk. 3 August 2010. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
7. "Cult Hero: Tommy McLaren". onevalefan.co.uk. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2014.