FOOTBALL, TEACHING AND THE ROAD BACK HOME 1960–1966
 
Following the premiership success, Tom's career and education took him away from the Goldfields.
In 1960 and 1961, he attended Claremont Teachers College, preparing for the profession that would become his life's work. Football remained an important part of the journey. In 1962, he spent a brief period playing with the Claremont Reserves. The following year brought another unusual chapter. While based in Perth, Tom travelled to represent Boyup Brook in 1963, an arrangement that demonstrated just how strong his commitment to football remained. His performances earned him selection in the South West Combined Team. But the pull of Boulder was never far away. In 1964, Scotty returned to the Tigers, playing under Ted “Punter” Robinson. Maurie Lee took over the coaching responsibilities in 1965. Then came 1966. Boulder reached the League Grand Final, only to suffer a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of Railways.

For Tom, who had tasted premiership glory seven years earlier, it was a reminder that football could deliver disappointment as readily as triumph. The highs and lows were all part of the journey. And throughout those years, the Tigers remained an important part of his life.

THE TEACHER AND THE TIGER - Lessons Beyond the Boundary

While Tom was contributing to Boulder on the football field, he was also establishing himself in the teaching profession. He taught at Kalgoorlie Central School, working under headmaster Geoff Robinson — himself a devoted Boulder man. It was another example of the close connections between the football club and the wider Goldfields community.

For Scotty, teaching and football shared many of the same principles.
 

• Teamwork

• Respect

• Responsibility

• Humility
   

And the importance of helping others achieve their potential. The qualities that made a good teammate were often the same qualities that made a good teacher. Tom eventually progressed through the education system to become a school principal, building a career founded on leadership and service. He also contributed to football as a coach, extending his involvement beyond his playing years. In both professions, his influence reached beyond immediate results. The real measure was what he could contribute to other people.

THE MEN WHO MADE THE TIGERS - Mentors, Mates and Memories 
Ask Scotty who helped shape his football journey and one name comes immediately to mind. Jack McNally. Among the many respected personalities associated with Boulder during that era, McNally left a lasting impression on the young Tiger. But there were plenty of others. When invited to imagine one more dinner with three figures from his football past, Tom's choices were revealing.
 

• Alan Dowson

• Ted Robinson

• Doug Shepherd
   

Three names that bring back an era of Tiger football when friendships were forged on the field and strengthened around the dinner table. And then there were the characters. Every football generation has them. The men whose stories become larger with every reunion. For Scotty, one particularly memorable scene involved Johnny O'Byrne, standing on the bar at the Main Reef Hotel and entertaining the entire room with jokes. It was the sort of moment that rarely appeared in football records. But it was precisely the sort of memory that made the club special.
 

• The laughter

• The characters

• The friendships

• The stories that were still being told decades later
   

Those memories are every bit as important to Boulder City's history as the premiership scores.

STILL A TIGER - A Lifetime of Black and Gold
Today, Tom Scott lives in Australind. Many years have passed since the young footballer from Lakewood first pulled on a Boulder jumper. The teammates have grown older. The football grounds have changed. Generations of new players have followed. But Scotty's connection to Boulder City remains. He belongs to that remarkable generation of Tigers who helped establish the club's enduring identity during the 1950s and 1960s.
 

• A junior captain

• A League premiership player

• A footballer who represented clubs beyond the Goldfields

• A former coach

• A teacher and school principal

And, above all, a man who never forgot the people and experiences that shaped his early years. His story reminds us that a football club's influence does not end when a player hangs up his boots. The friendships endure. The lessons remain. And the memories become part of the club's history.
 
THE LAST WORD — THE 1959 TIGER
When asked to identify his greatest football memory, Tom Scott didn't nominate an individual achievement.
He remembered a team. A group of men. A premiership. And a moment in 1959 when the Boulder Tigers were the best in the Goldfields. Perhaps that tells us everything we need to know about Scotty.The team always came first. And the club was something to carry with you for life.

TOM “SCOTTY” SCOTT

• 1957 — Boulder Junior Captain

• 1959 — Boulder City League Premiership Player

• 1962 — Claremont Reserves

• 1963 — Boyup Brook and South West Combined Team

• 1964 — Returned to Boulder City

• Boulder City Coach

​A Tiger of the golden era. A gentleman of the game. A Tiger forever.
 
Boulder Tigers — Past, Present & Future