Matt Balunas Explained

Matt Balunas
Fullname:	Matthew Balunas
Position:	Right back
Birth Date:	7 January 1918
Birth Place:	Holytown, Scotland
Death Date:	^[1]
Death Place:	Bellshill, Scotland
Years1:	–
Clubs1:	Newarthill Hearts
Years2:	1944–1955
Clubs2:	Third Lanark
Caps2:	220
Goals2:	0
Years3:	1955–1956
Clubs3:	Stranraer
Years4:	–

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

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]

Notes and References

1. A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players. John Litster. Scottish Football Historian magazine. October 2012.
2. Web site: Lithuanians in Lanarkshire. Legacies: UK history local to you. BBC. 18 January 2021.
3. Web site: Third Lanark: 1946/47 - 1966/67. Neil Brown. Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Transfer Database. 9 January 2021.
4. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6kxAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Z5EMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2663%2C1084942 Exhilarating final at Hampden
5. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Ky01AAAAIBAJ&sjid=7qULAAAAIBAJ&pg=3998%2C896475 Charity Cup For Third Rangers Beaten
6. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VYJDAAAAIBAJ&sjid=aJEMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4730%2C1603960 Third Lanark's Weak Finishing
7. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VWlAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=gpgMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3166%2C1630877 Glasgow Cup for Celtic
8. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9kpAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=XoYMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3491%2C2648134 Easy Hampden Victory For Rangers
9. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12437572.matt-balunas-former-third-lanark-full-back-in-the-post-second-world-war-era/ Matt Balunas Former Third Lanark full-back in the post-Second World War era