| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Lawrence Hamlett[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1917-01-24)24 January 1917[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Stoke-on-Trent, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 22 May 1986(1986-05-22) (aged 69)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Milton,Stoke-on-Trent, England[1] | ||
| Position | Right back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Cornhill White Star | |||
| Chell Heath | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1937–1938 | Congleton Town | 42 | (0) |
| 1938–1949 | Bolton Wanderers | 72 | (9) |
| 1949–1952 | Port Vale | 109 | (0) |
| 1952–1954 | Congleton Town | 66 | (0) |
| Total | 289 | (9) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| Congleton Town | |||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Thomas Lawrence Hamlett (24 January 1917 – 22 May 1986) was an Englishfootballer who played atright-back forCongleton Town,Bolton Wanderers, andPort Vale. He scored nine goals in 181 league appearances in the six seasons of theFootball League immediately followingWorld War II. He later spent 25 years on thecoaching staff at Port Vale, from July 1958 to March 1983.
Hamlett became an apprentice joiner. He played football for Cornhill White Star and Chell Heath, as well as representing the North Staffordshire Schoolboys team.[2] He had trials atBlackpool andStoke City.[2] He was signed toCongleton Town, before joiningBolton Wanderers for aCheshire County League recordtransfer fee of £750.[3]World War II devastated his career, limiting him to guest appearances forStoke City andManchester United. Playing for Stoke, he scored two goals in 35 games in1941–42, one goal in 34 games in1942–43, and then played ten games in the1943–44 season. A brief 19 game spell in the Cheshire League withMossley followed in the first post-war season of 1945–46 before he returned to Bolton.[4] That season he was also called up to theEngland team as a reserve for the games againstSwitzerland andFrance.[5]
He returned to theVictoria Ground with Bolton on 19 March 1949 and scored anown goal in a 4–0 win for the "Potters".Walter Rowley's "Trotters" meanwhile finished 18th in theFirst Division in1946–47, and then 17th in1947–48 and 14th in1948–49. In his three years atBurnden Park, he scored nine goals in 72 league and 13FA Cup appearances.[6] He was present at theBurnden Park disaster on 9 March 1946, where 33 spectators were killed.[7]
He signed withGordon Hodgson'sPort Vale in May 1949.[1] He went straight into the "Valiants" first-team, making 40Third Division South and four FA Cup appearances in the1949–50 season.[1] He then played 45 league and four FA Cup games in the1950–51 campaign, as the club moved grounds from theOld Recreation Ground toVale Park.[1] He lost his first-team place after an injury in November 1951 and was released by new bossFreddie Steele in May 1952 after 25 league and cup games in the1951–52 season.[1] He returned to Congleton asplayer-manager, before retiring as a footballer.[1]
Hamlett returned toPort Vale as the trainer-coach in July 1958.[1] He gave up his coaching responsibilities in May 1960, remaining as a trainer until March 1983 when he retired due to illness.[1] A religious man, he refused to usebad language, and thus used to motivate his players with words of encouragement.[8] Instead of swearing he used say "fizzing" a lot,[9] as in "the opposition are a fizzing tough bunch". He served the club under 10 differentmanagers:Norman Low,Freddie Steele,Jackie Mudie,Stanley Matthews,Gordon Lee,Roy Sproson,Bobby Smith,Dennis Butler,Alan Bloor, andJohn McGrath. He was given atestimonial match on 8 November 1976, Port Vale playing aDon Revie XI.[10]
In addition to his career in football, Hamlett also served as a lay preacher in the Methodist church.[3] He married Audrey, who was from Bolton and had two sons: Gordon and David.[2]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bolton Wanderers | 1945–46 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| 1946–47 | First Division | 42 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 45 | 8 | |
| 1947–48 | First Division | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 | |
| 1948–49 | First Division | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Total | 72 | 9 | 13 | 0 | 85 | 9 | ||
| Port Vale | 1949–50 | Third Division South | 40 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 44 | 0 |
| 1950–51 | Third Division South | 45 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 49 | 0 | |
| 1951–52 | Third Division South | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| Total | 109 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 118 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 181 | 9 | 22 | 0 | 203 | 0 | ||