Tommy Gore - Player Profile

Midfield Dynamo Thomas John Gore quickly became a fans favourite following his signing from Tranmere Rovers.

Tommy was born in Liverpool and attended Liverpool institute Grammar School. He signed for Liverpool on schoolboy forms and stayed at the club for four years before signing his first professional contract with local neighbours Tranmere.

He stayed with the Prenton Park club for eighteen months before being snapped up on loan by Les Rigby, the then Latics manager.

The loan deal that saw Tommy wearing the Latics colours in January 1974 ended when he went to play summer football in America and he joined the Dallas Tornadoes playing against the star-studded New York Cosmos side that included Pele in their line-up. At the end of the game Tommy managed to acquire Pele’s shirt and the memento has remained a prized possession in the Gore household ever since.

Tommy returned to Latics to become a regular starter in the Northern Premier League clocking up a total of 185 appearances in the team and claiming a champions medal in the 1974-75 season.

Tommy was an ever-present in the first League campaign clocking up a total of 51 appearances in that first season and netting on four occasions, including a last-minute stunner against Tranmere Rovers in the clubs first competitive match as a member of the Football League pyramid.

Tommy’s non-stop style and powerful shooting earned him the Player of the Season award in that first historic League season.

Tommy went on to play for Bury and Port Vale before eventually retiring to become a regular summariser on Latics TV and a regular, and still very popular, figure around the ground.