During his managerial tenure, Maley led Celtic to thirty major trophies (16 league championships and 14 Scottish Cups) in forty-three consecutive years as manager.

At the time of his son's birth, Thomas was stationed in Newry as a sergeant in the 21st (Royal North British Fusilier) Regiment of Foot.

[2] In 1869, Thomas took honourable discharge from the British Army and the family moved to Scotland, settling in Cathcart – at that time a village just south of Glasgow.

[3] Maley left school at the age of 13 and worked for a few years in the printworks of Miller, Higginbotham & Co., and then at the Telephone Company of Glasgow.

[citation needed] Maley would not even announce the team: players learned if they were in or out through reading the line-up in the newspaper.

This younger side, which included Patsy Gallacher and the apparently 'ageless' Jimmy McMenemy, won four league titles in succession between 1914 and 1917.

With Celtic at the bottom of the table, Maley finally retired after a meeting with the board of directors in February 1940.