Earle Thomas

{{short description|New Zealand footballer}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2019}}

{{Use New Zealand English|date=June 2019}}

{{similar names|Earl Thomas (disambiguation)}}

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Earle Thomas

| image =

| fullname = William Earle Thomas

| birth_date =

| death_date =

| height =

| currentclub =

| clubnumber =

| position =

| youthyears1 =

| youthclubs1 =

| years1 = 1965–1967

| years2 = 1967–1976

| years3 = 1976

| years4 = 1977

| years5 = 1978–1979

| years6 = 1980

| clubs1 = Hamilton

| clubs2 = Mount Wellington

| clubs3 = Eden

| clubs4 = Mount Wellington

| clubs5 = Eastern Suburbs

| clubs6 = Blockhouse Bay

| caps1 =

| caps2 = 90

| caps3 = 3

| caps4 = 15

| caps5 = 40

| caps6 = 19

| goals1 =

| goals2 = 71

| goals3 = 2

| goals4 = 3

| goals5 = 13

| goals6 = 1

| nationalyears1 = 1967–1976

| nationalteam1 = New Zealand

| nationalcaps1 = 23

| nationalgoals1 = 7

}}

William Earle Thomas more commonly known as Earle Thomas is a soccer player who represented New Zealand at international level.

Thomas' clubs included Hamilton, University-Mount Wellington, Eastern Suburbs AFC, and Blockhouse Bay.

International career

Thomas made his senior All Whites debut in a 3–5 against Australia on 5 November 1967, and scored 2 goals in his first start 3 days later in a 3–1 win over Singapore.{{cite web|url=http://www.ultimatenzsoccer.com/NZRepSoccer/id1559.htm|title=A-International Lineups|author=|publisher=The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website|date=|accessdate=12 February 2009}} He went on to finish his international playing career with 23 A-international caps to his credit,{{cite web|url=http://www.ultimatenzsoccer.com/NZRepSoccer/id1708.htm |title=A-International Appearances — Overall |publisher=The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website |accessdate=2008-07-25 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090501185855/http://www.ultimatenzsoccer.com/NZRepSoccer/id1708.htm |archivedate=2009-05-01 }} his final cap coming in a 1–2 loss against New Caledonia on 2 October 1976.

Thomas scored 7 A-international goals{{cite web|url=http://www.ultimatenzsoccer.com/NZRepSoccer/id1842.htm |title=A-International Scorers — Overall |publisher=The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website |accessdate=2008-07-25 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090912204651/http://www.ultimatenzsoccer.com/NZRepSoccer/id1842.htm |archivedate=2009-09-12 }} and captained his country on numerous occasions.{{fact|date=June 2019}}

Administration career

In 2013, Thomas became a founding committee member of the independent group Friends of Football[http://www.friendsoffootballnz.com/people/ Friends of Football Committee] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701150956/http://www.friendsoffootballnz.com/people/ |date=1 July 2017 }}. Friends of Football. Retrieved 31 December 2014.

References

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