Fifty years ago this month Coventry City signed arguably the club's finest player of the modern era, Tommy Hutchison. The Blackpool winger had been on the radar of many top clubs but Gordon Milne, the Sky Blues new manager, knew that his former team-mate 'Hutch' was the man to spark the club's rejuvenation and paid a club record £140,000 to bring him to Coventry. In Coventry City fan's eyes Tommy was a football genius.
Now Tommy has published his autobiography with the assistance of City fan Kevin Shannon. Entitled 'Hutch, Hard Work and Belief' is published by Pitch Publishing. Tommy is in Coventry this weekend and will be signing copies in Waterstones on Saturday morning, at the home game with Blackpool, in the G Casino after the game and at Walking Football on Monday.
Tommy grew up in an austere background – his father was a miner in the Fife coalfields – and readily admits he wasn't that good a footballer in his schooldays. His hard work and persistence earned him part-time football with Alloa Athletic and from there Blackpool spotted him.
Few players have had the immediate impact that 'Hutch' had on coming to Coventry. His arrival, a few days after another Scot, Colin Stein had signed from Rangers, triggered a eight-match unbeaten run with Tommy terrorising a clutch of top full backs in the autumn of 1972. A good number of his markers were booked for persistently fouling the long legged winger including Tony Book, Pat Rice, Mick Mills and Paul Reaney. Rice was one of the Arsenal defenders he left trailing in his wake as he slalomed through the Gunners' defence to score one of City's greatest goals and one mentioned in Nick Hornby's book Fever Pitch.
The 1972-73 season gave City fans so much pleasure and but for an under par performance in the FA Cup sixth round at Molineux the team could well have reached Wembley. Hutch's performances earned him a Scotland call-up early the following season and he realised his boyhood dream of pulling on the Navy Blue jersey. But for an injury he would have made more than two substitute appearances for his country at the 1974 World Cup in West Germany. There were a couple of seasons in the mid 1970s when the football got a bit boring at Highfield Road but you could always rely on Tommy to lift the gloom on the darkest days with his skilful dribbling, turn of speed and great crossing ability. His consistent performances for City should have guaranteed a regular international place and his total of 17 caps was a travesty.
In 1977-78 we saw Gordon Milne's finest team that played thrilling, attacking football and narrowly missed out on a European place. 'Hutch' had another magnificent season setting up many of Ian Wallace and Mick Ferguson's tremendous haul of goals and it was a travesty that he didn't go to the Argentina World Cup. His departure from Coventry in 1980 was sad for him and the fans but a move to Manchester City seemed to give him a new lease of life and although his stay at Maine Road was short he did help his new club to the 1981 FA Cup final and became only the second player to score for both teams in a final. Sadly he had to be content with a loser's medal.
His career took him to Seattle Sounders and later to Hong Kong to play for Bulova before a return to England with two seasons at Burnley and six years at Swansea ending up at Merthyr Tydfil at the age 46 having made over 1000 competitive games. At every club he was adored by the fans and achieved legendary status wherever he played.
What few football fans know about is Tommy's career as a Football Development Officer in Wales and later at Bristol City. Testimonials from his colleagues from this part of his working life illustrate the love he had of football and inspiring youngsters many of them disadvantaged to play the game.
I am always grateful to him personally with helping me launch one of my first books and for supporting the Former Players Association with regular visits from North of the border where he is now retired.
I might be biased but this is one of the most inspiring football biographies I have read and I recommend it to all Sky Blue fans as well as football fans in general. Tom and his ghost writer Kevin Shannon deserve credit for a welcome addition to the Coventry City library of books.
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