Thomas Vallance
Thomas Henshall Wilson Vallance (28 March 1924 – July 1980) was an English footballer who played as an outside-left. He was born in Stoke-on-Trent and was the son of Jimmy Vallance, who trained at Stoke City.
Vallance began his career with Stoke City during World War II. In 1945 he moved to Torquay United and played in an FA Cup first-round tie against Newport County, which Torquay lost 2–1 on aggregate. He left Torquay before playing a league game and joined Arsenal in 1947.
At Arsenal, Vallance spent most of his time in the reserves. He made his league debut on 4 September 1948 in a 1–1 draw with Sheffield United after Arsenal’s regular left winger, Denis Compton, was injured. That season he shared the left wing with Ian McPherson, making 14 appearances and scoring 2 goals. The following season he played only once as McPherson and Compton dominated the position.
After several more seasons in Arsenal’s reserves, Vallance left the club on a free transfer in 1953. He was the brother-in-law of England international Stanley Matthews—his sister Betty had married Matthews in 1934.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:53 (CET).