Tomlinson was recruited by Greater Western Sydney with their seventh selection and ninth overall in the 2011 national draft.

[2] In his second season, he was the round 17 nominee for the AFL Rising Star where he recorded twenty-three disposals, nine marks, four tackles and a goal in the thirty-nine-point loss against Essendon at Škoda Stadium.

[4] Tomlinson had to wait until round 19, 2013, to experience his first win in an AFL match, when the Greater Western Sydney Giants defeated Melbourne by 37 points.

Tomlinson played in the Giants' 2019 Grand Final team,[5] which lost to Richmond by 89 points.

[10] Notes Tomlinson currently studies a Bachelor of Property and Real Estate/Bachelor of Commerce at Deakin University.