Thomas Butler

Sunderland

Butler started his career at Sunderland, and as a youngster forged himself a reputation as one of the Republic of Ireland's brightest stars and he gained acclaim when he was named the Republic of Ireland's Under-15 Player of the Year in 1997. By the time he was 18, he had travelled to South Africa to play in the 1999 World Youth Cup for his country. Butler was then signed to a professional contract by Peter Reid for Sunderland. Shortly thereafter, Butler made his debut during Sunderland's 3–2 win over Walsall during the 1999–2000 season after coming on as a substitute. Butler was on the verge of breaking into the first team and was successful for the reserves. This earned him a chance to make his first league appearance after once again coming on as a substitute against West Ham. He would soon earn praise, being considered by some as the Irish version of Joe Cole. However, the following season saw Butler struggling to make an impact and he was loaned to Darlington to gain match practice. His loan spell with Darlington would be extended for another month. He made ten appearances for Darlington, but despite his popularity among the fans his loan move was not extended and Butler returned to Sunderland. The following seasons saw Butler make just 17 starts and 12 substitute appearances. In a match against Charlton Athletic on 27 April 2002, Butler helped the club make a comeback just after Charlton scored, when he provided assist for Kevin Kilbane, which both…

Club

International

Swansea City

Football League One: 2007–08