| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Cochran Turner Fleming | ||
| Date of birth | (1890-01-15)January 15, 1890 | ||
| Place of birth | Beith, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | March 19, 1965(1965-03-19) (aged 75) | ||
| Place of death | Quincy, Massachusetts, USA | ||
| Position | Outside Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1901–1906 | Beith | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1906–1907 | Beith | ||
| 1907– | Fore River | ||
| Morton | |||
| 1914–1921 | Bethlehem Steel | ||
| 1921–1922 | →Philadelphia Field Club | 24 | (15) |
| 1922–1924 | J&P Coats | 49 | (41) |
| 1924–1928 | Boston Soccer Club | 161 | (38) |
| 1928–1929 | Fall River | 0 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| Quincy High School | |||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Thomas "Tommy" or "Whitey" Fleming (January 15, 1890 inBeith, Scotland – March 19, 1965 inQuincy, Massachusetts) was aScottish Americansocceroutside forward who began his career in Scotland and finished it in the United States. During hisHall of Fame career, Fleming won fiveAmerican Cups, fourNational Challenge Cups and at least eight league titles.
Nickname "Whitey" due to his white hair, Fleming began his career as an apprentice withScottish Football League Third Division clubBeith F.C. when he was eleven. Three years later, he quit school to devote himself full-time to his athletic career. In 1907,Beith F.C. won theAyrshire Cup, but Fleming was becoming dissatisfied with the club. When it refused to raise his wages or release him from his contract, he decided to move to the United States.[1]
In September 1907, Fleming arrived inQuincy, Massachusetts, and went to work in theFore River Shipyard, signing withthe company team, of the New England League. The team won the 1908 league and league cup titles. At some point, Fleming returned to Scotland where he signed withMorton. In 1913, he left Scotland for good to sign withBethlehem F.C. of the amateur Allied American Football Association of Philadelphia. His move was again prompted by the issue of money. Bethlehem Steel offered players both $15 per week to play soccer and a position in the steel yard.[1] The first game in which Fleming appears in a Bethlehem line up was a November 17, 1913 victory over Schuylkill Falls.[2] In May, Bethlehem won the league cup.[3] It also won the league title, giving Fleming a double. Over the next seven seasons, Fleming won fourNational Challenge Cups (1915, 1916, 1918, 1919). They also won the league cup in 1915. In 1917, the Steelmen joined the professionalNational Association Football League (NAFBL), winning the league's last three titles (1919, 1920, 1921). They also won the defunctAmerican Cup in1914,1916,1917,1918 and1919. The America Cup was theAmerican Football Association cup, played from 1884 to 1920.
In 1921, theAmerican Soccer League was created by the merger of teams from the NAFBL and theSouthern New England Soccer League in order to provide a more stable professional league. The Bethlehem Steel ownership decided for financial reasons to move the team to Philadelphia, renaming the team thePhiladelphia Field Club for the new league's first season. Philadelphia won the first league championship. At the end of the season, Philadelphia returned to Bethlehem. In July 1922, Fleming, surprising the team management and fans, announced his intention to pursue other playing opportunities.[4] He signed withJ&P Coats soon after. That season, J&P Coats won the league championship as Fleming scored twenty-two goals. Many of Flemings goals came from the penalty spot as he was the team's preferred penalty kick taker.[5] This was in line with his time at Bethlehem when he made 39 of 40 penalty kicks.[6] In August 1924, Fleming signed with theBoston Soccer Club.[7] He spent the next five seasons in Boston, winning the 1928 league championship. In 1929, he played one league cup game with theFall River.
When he retired from playing professionally, Fleming became a coach withQuincy High School.
The U.S.National Soccer Hall of Fame inducted Fleming in 2005 as part of a process of recognizing significant pre-1950s players. According to the Hall of Fame, "We were aware that in the early decades of the Hall of Fame a number of outstanding players had slipped through the cracks of the selection process. In order to correct these oversights we established a Blue Ribbon panel consisting of historians Colin Jose, Roger Allaway and Hall of FamerWalter Bahr, to review the credentials of all Veterans from the pre-NASL era. Out of a total of 150 players who met the eligibility criteria, the panel unanimously recommended, and the Board approved, the special induction of these five players." Fleming was among the five selected.[8][9]
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