Tom Wilkes (footballer)
Introduction '''Thomas Henry Wilkes''' (19 May 1874 – 1921) was an English footballer who played in the Football League for Aston Villa and Stoke.
Career Wilkes was born in Alcester and played amateur football with Redditch Town before joining Aston Villa in 1894.Wilkes enjoyed a considerable amount of success at Villa, winning the English league title on three occasions as well as earning two FA Cup victories. The best season he enjoyed was in 1895–96 as he only missed once match of Villa's title-winning season. However, he lost his place to Billy George; Wilkes subsequently went on loan to Stoke towards the end of the 1897–98 season.Stoke were struggling at the bottom of the First Division before Wilkes joined; when he became a part of the team and played in the final five matches of the season, Stoke went unbeaten. It mattered little, however, as Stoke still finished bottom on goal average after finishing level on points with four teams. They had to play the end-of-season test matches against the best teams in the Second Division in order to stay up. In the final match against Burnley, both teams went into the match knowing that a draw would see them remain in the First Division, and throughout the 90 minutes, not a single attempt on goal was made; this led to the introduction of automatic promotion and relegation.Wilkes returned to Villa at the end of the season and played four matches in 1898–99 before he rejoined Stoke on a permanent basis in 1899.He played four seasons for Stoke before retiring in 1903.He later owned the Wharf Tavern in Stoke.
Career statistics Source:ClubSeasonLeagueFA CupTest MatchTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAston Villa1894–95First Division20050—2501895–96First Division29010—3001896–97First Division8050—1301897–98First Division5000—501898–99First Division4000—40Total660110—770Stoke (loan)1897–98First Division50004090Stoke1899–1900First Division31020—3301900–01First Division27030—3001901–02First Division8000—801902–03First Division8010—90Total7906040890Career total1450170401660
Honours ; Aston Villa*Football League First Division champion: 1895–96, 1896–97, 1898–99*FA Cup winner: 1894–95, 1896–97
References
External links *  Stoke were in safe hands thanks to keeper Wilkes at thisisstaffordshire.co.uk