Matt Balunas

Matthew Balunas (7 January 1918 – 1 February 2006) was a Scottish footballer who played as a right back.

Matt Balunas

Personal information
Full name	Matthew Balunas
Date of birth	7 January 1918
Place of birth	Holytown, Scotland
Date of death	1 February 2006 (aged 88)[1]
Place of death	Bellshill, Scotland
Position(s)	Right back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
–	Newarthill Hearts
1944–1955	Third Lanark	220	(0)
1955–1956	Stranraer
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

A member of North Lanarkshire's Lithuanian immigrant community,[2] Balunas spent almost his entire senior career (which only began in his mid 20s due to World War II) with Third Lanark,[3] winning two Glasgow Merchants Charity Cups[4][5] and featuring on the losing side in four Glasgow Cup finals.[6][7][8] He was considered to be a reliable, uncomplicated and defensive-minded player.[9]

References

1. John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
2. "Lithuanians in Lanarkshire". Legacies: UK history local to you. BBC. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
3. Neil Brown. "Third Lanark: 1946/47 - 1966/67". Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Transfer Database. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
4. Exhilarating final at Hampden, Glasgow Herald, 12 May 1952
5. Charity Cup For Third | Rangers Beaten, The Glasgow Herald, 8 May 1954
6. Third Lanark's Weak Finishing, The Glasgow Herald, 1 October 1946
7. Glasgow Cup for Celtic, The Glasgow Herald, 28 September 1948
8. Easy Hampden Victory For Rangers, The Glasgow Herald, 29 September 1953
9. Matt Balunas | Former Third Lanark full-back in the post-Second World War era, The Herald, 20 February 2006