Thomas Herbert Arrowsmith (12 August 1873 – 29 August 1948), also known as Tommy Ryan,No doubt following his father, William Alexander Arrowsmith, the famous Shakespearian actor, known professionally as "William Ryan". as was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Melbourne Football Club and St Kilda Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Family The son of William Alexander Arrowsmith (1827–1911),Deaths: Arrowsmith, The Age, (Saturday, 7 October 1911), p.5. and Henrietta Arrowsmith (1832–1920), née Hull,Deaths: Arrowsmith, The Argus, (Monday, 19 April 1920), p.1. Thomas Herbert Arrowsmith was born in Sydney on 12 August 1873.Births Deaths and Marriages New South Wales: Registration No.2016/1873.

Both his parents were well-regarded, experienced actors; his mother had been known professionally in the 1850s and 1860s as "Henrietta Montrose",Links with the Past: Actresses of the Old School, The (Melbourne) Herald, (Tuesday, 27 April 1920), p.5.Her Last Curtain, Smith's Weekly, (Saturday, 15 May 1920), p.20. and his father, a Shakespearian actor, had been known professionally as "William Ryan".Men and Women, The (Sydney) Sun, (Monday, 9 October 1911), p.6.

He married twice: to Martha Elizabeth Hollman (1878–1936) in 1897 (they were divorced in 1905),Arrowsmith v. Arrowsmith, The Weekly Times, (Saturday, 26 November 1904), p.23. and to Blanche Stella Dolphin (1884–1952), on 15 February 1913.Angry Arrowsmiths, The (Melbourne) Truth, (Saturday, 16 September 1916), p.3.Deaths: Arrowsmith, The Age, (Monday, 12 May 1952), p.7.

Football

Ryan, a rover and forward, spent 1893, 1895 and 1896 playing in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) for both Carlton and Richmond.In 1894 he returned to Richmond City, and resumed his career at Richmond in 1895 (Pennings, 2016, pp. 323, 397, 463).

Melbourne (VFL) On 3 May 1899, he was cleared from Richmond to Melbourne.Football, The Argus, (Thursday, 4 May 1899), p.10.

On his VFL debut, Ryan kicked five goals as Melbourne defeated St Kilda by 93 points at the MCG on 13 May 1899.Melbourne v. St. Kilda, The Age, (Monday, 15 May 1899), p.7.

He was the club's leading goal-kicker in their premiership year of 1900 with 24 goals, one of those in the 1900 VFL Grand Final which he played from a forward pocket.

VFL He was part of the VFL team that played Interstate Football against South Australia, in Adelaide, on 26 June 1902.The Victorian Team (photograph), The Adelaide Observer, (Saturday, 5 July 1902), p.26: Tommy Ryan is second from left, front row.Interstate Football, The (Adelaide) Register, (Friday, 27 June 1902), p.2.

St Kilda (VFL) On 4 May 1904 he was cleared from Melbourne to St Kilda.Migratory Footballers, The Argus, (Thursday, 5 May 1904), p.9.

Death He died on 29 August 1948, at Mont Park, Victoria.Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria: Registration No.12354/1948.Deaths: Arrowsmith, The Age, (Monday, 30 August 1948), p.2.

Notes

References Holmesby, Russell and Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing. Pennings, Mark (2016), Origins of Australian Football: Victoria's early History: Volume 4: Tough Times: Victorian Football loses its Way, 1891 to 1896, Brunswick, Victoria: Grumpy Monks Publishing.

External links

Tommy Ryan, at Demonwiki. Jeremiah "Tommy" Ryan, at Blueseum. Tommy Ryan, at The VFA Project. Thomas Ryan, at Tigerland Archive (VFA PLayers).