Arsenal: Thomas Cruise Was Not Without Limits

Quite frankly, I don’t want to write about transfer targets and what could happen at Arsenal Football Club this summer. So here is my attempt to write another feature.

Earlier this year, I wrote a feature on Luton Town F.C. goalkeeper James Shea. My tie to the former Arsenal shot-stopper was essentially nonexistent. I had never met him personally, but my parents somehow came in to contact with some of James’ family members. Word of my Arsenal fandom spread quickly, and soon I was the owner of two signed James Shea photos, photos which show a beaming James hoisting the 2009 FA Youth Cup trophy.

However, while James is the sole subject of one photograph, he is accompanied in the other. Standing alongside him in the second photograph was Thomas Daniel Cruise.

Signed to the Arsenal Academy at age seven, the Islington-born defender progressed through the ranks undoubtedly intent on becoming a household name. Capable of playing at left-back, in central defence, and in midfield, the 2007 scholar featured regularly for the Arsenal Reserves during his time in North London, he even started in goal on one occasion after Wojciech Szczesny suffered a dislocated finger during a warm-up. Nonetheless, Cruise’s story is just another example of how easy it is to fall by the wayside in professional football.

He made his one and only competitive appearance in 1-0 defeat against Olympiacos in the final Champions League group stage match of 2009/10 season. Cruise played the entire 90 minutes and was part of an Arsenal starting eleven which was the youngest team (21 years, 215 days) to ever play in a Champions League game. It was announced the day before the game that Thomas would start at left-back, and Arsène Wenger had some reassuring, complimentary words for his young defender;

"For me, there is only one Tom Cruise and it is the one who plays for Arsenal Football Club. I don’t care about headlines. Headlines or not Tom Cruise will play at left-back.If you are in his boots, at the start of the season you would not think for a second that you will play in the Champions League. It is good for him to get an opportunity in these games.I would not like him to be under too much pressure. But I believe he is a very good footballer.Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20091212223953/http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-there-s-only-one-tom-cruise-for-me"

Admittedly, having been an Arsenal fan since the ‘Invincibles’ season, I do not recall an essentially meaningless group stage match from over nine years ago. Cruise supposedly performed admirably, but had some nervy moments;

"It was quite a baptism for Cruise. The 18-year-old left-back had to contend with Olympiakos’s best player, the winger Luciano Galletti, and he was sometimes short of covering assistance.Source: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/dec/09/champions-league-olympiakos-arsenal-match-report"

For what it is worth, Wenger – who was renowned for defending his players – was pretty content post-match;

"I am very proud of the young players, there are a lot of positives. From Barnet to Athens is a big jump, but they did very well. Nobody was disappointing, and it is difficult to single out individual performances.Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8402103.stm"

However, as they often do, things did not work out for Thomas at Arsenal. Although he signed a contract extension two months after that night in Athens, he struggled in his quest for first-team football. He joined Carlisle United on an initial month-long loan in November 2010, which was then extended until January 8th, 2011. Coincidentally, former Arsenal Academy captain and United States right-back Frank Simek – who also made just a singular appearance for Arsenal – was an ever-present for Carlisle during the 2010/11 season.

Cruise had been wanting a loan move for a while. There was plenty of competition in the first team for the starting left-back role; Gaël Clichy, Kieran Gibbs, and Armand Traoré were all above Cruise in the pecking order. There were whispers that he was close to joining Nottingham Forest in January 2010, but nothing ever materialised. Nonetheless, he failed to make a lasting impression during his eight appearances (seven starts) with The Cumbrians. During one particular FA Cup game against Torquay United, it was announced over the public address system mid-game that a taxi – “said to have been requested by a disgruntled Carlisle fan” – was waiting for him. Cruise was only 19 at the time, and one can only imagine how detrimental that incident was for his confidence and self-esteem. The incident occurred during what would be his final game for Carlisle.

I spoke to some Carlisle supporters (@Paddock_Blue, @TheCumbriansNet, and @joncolman) about what they remember from Cruise’s time with The Blues, and let’s just say that the reports were hardly glowing.

New first choice left-back Sean McDaid had succumbed to knee injuries – which would ultimately ruin his career – so we needed short-term cover. Greg Abbott looked to the loan market, and at the time, I think people were quite intrigued by the signing. He got a fairly gentle introduction – his debut came in a 6-0 FA Cup win over minnows Tipton Town – and he also contributed to victories in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.

Coming from Arsenal, the general consensus was that he must have something about him but the reality was that he did not. He seemed technically sound, was likeable enough, and was certainly less haphazard than another left-back who briefly appeared for United that winter, Miguel Comminges. Nonetheless, his unmemorable Carlisle career was defined by a few mistakes, 2 or 3 horror performances, one at home to lowly Dagenham & Redbridge in the league, and then another against Torquay – where his sixth minute slip allowed Eunan O’Kane to score the decisive goal – clearly damaged his confidence, and his failure to adapt to the hectic pace of League One.

Cruise became a free agent in the summer of 2011, but it would take a year for him to find a new club. The England youth international had trials at Sampdoria, Scunthorpe United, and the New England Revolution, but he eventually joined Torquay – the team whom he was facing when the ‘taxi taunt’ occurred – on a one-year deal in June 2012.

It was an opportunity for him to relaunch his career. Two calf operations had prohibited Thomas from playing much football in the 18 months following his Arsenal release, but he was determined to prove himself at the professional level. After all, we are talking about someone who collected 18 caps for England at youth level.

He would go on to make 64 appearances for Torquay over three seasons. Nonetheless, speaking to Gulls supporters (@TORQUAYTALK, and @TalkingTorquay) it is clear that much like his loan spell at Carlisle, Cruise failed to impress during what was clearly a difficult time for the club.

We were all quite excited when we signed him not just because of his name, but he came with a good pedigree. He had made a Champions League appearance and had a trial with Sampdoria before joining us, so we thought we had ourselves a steal. However, it was clear quickly he was not all he was cracked up to be. To be fair to him, he joined us when we were in a bad way. Our manager at the time, Martin Ling, suffered from mental health issues and left us the February after. We brought in Alan Knill to replace him, but it was just a downward spiral for the club from there.

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He looked like he had something about him at times, but he was too fragile and very rarely stood out as a proper player despite his obvious technical ability. He lacked any aggression, was often simply too passive, and after a run of poor form, his confidence was completely shot. Although he did make 64 appearances for us, that was often because we had no one else there, he was very rarely considered a genuine first-choice player. If he had joined at a different time, then it may have been different.

He left us after our first full season in the Conference. We had a number of bang average players on way too much money and the club needed to cut the wage bill fast and Cruise was one of the victims. He had struggled with knee injuries while playing for us, but his terrible form didn’t help his case. Towards the end of his time at the club, he was actually dropped for a 17-year-old academy graduate called Levi Ives. You could blame factors such as dreadful management and a toxic atmosphere off the pitch, but the reality was that he was not good enough.

Cruise was in familiar position following his release in April 2015, but rather than patiently wait for a new club as he had done three years prior, he decided to take the road less travelled. One that he had prepared for himself. Knowing how unpredictable and short the career of a professional footballer can be, Cruise worked towards his Advanced Diploma in Accounting whilst he was still at Torquay. It would seem that he is now a fully trained accountant, but this is where the trail goes cold.

Unlike my features on Calen Carr and James Shea, I was unable to get in touch with Thomas for this piece, despite my best efforts. Furthermore, finding information on his whereabouts (besides news about his new profession) was incredibly difficult. I blame the name.

Cédric Evina had not spoken to Thomas in years, so could not help me, while former academy captain Jay Emmanuel-Thomas did not know much either. This is the email I received from Emmanuel-Thomas’ agent, Lara Southworth, in my request for information;

"As far as Jay knows, Thomas is living in the north of England.  He is married with a family and living a normal, happy life."

It was at this point, that I had to call it a day. I held this piece for the best part of two weeks hoping that someone would respond to my requests with new information, but alas, I felt that there was little point in waiting any longer. It would seem that Thomas is happy being out of the spotlight, and there will always be more stories to tell.

Thomas Cruise was able to live his childhood dream of being a professional footballer, nonetheless, it is clear that he struggled away from N5. He was not the first, and he certainly will not be the last. Sometimes, injuries become too difficult to overcome, and technical ability only gets you so far.

My sincerest thanks to @Paddock_Blue, @TheCumbriansNet, @joncolman, @TORQUAYTALK, and @TalkingTorquay for their contributions to this piece.