Football boss's 'major concerns' about top striker and son-in-law's daily health battle

Although Thomson withdrew from last Saturday’s 4-0 league loss at Arniston Rangers due to being sick, that illness pales into insignifance compared to the main welfare issues which the 34-year-old forward – who is married to Gilbert’s daughter Danielle – copes with from day to day.

Boss Gilbert told the Fife Free Press: “Garry has not been there for a few weeks and he was meant to be there on Saturday but called off sick.

"Previously he had a blood clot in his arm which kept him out for a few weeks.

"That was very concerning because he’s got an underlying heart condition as it is which means that sometimes he has to stop playing football.

"When he’s running his heart just suddenly goes 100 miles an hour.

"So he has to stop, lie on his back and put his legs up to try and calm the situation.

"He knows how to reset it, but it’s very alarming when it happens to him.

“He’s had that for all the 15 years we’ve known him.

"Garry has been taken to hospital so many times, but they don’t know what it is.

"Garry is a very gutsy guy and it says a lot for him that he keeps playing football despite these problems.”

On Thornton’s third straight 4-0 loss in the East of Scotland Football League first division – which left them sixth with 20 points from 13 matches after first half Arniston goals by Mikey Hamilton and Jordan Daly (3) – Gilbert added: “It was certainly a below par performance.

"We had to make four changes from the previous week because of circumstances.

"It was poor defending from us and we were poor all over the pitch. I made four substitutions at half-time and I could have taken 11 of them off they were that bad, but you get games like that.”

Thornton – for whom Nathan Laird, Max Coleman and Shaun Keatings returned from injury last weekend – have no game this Saturday and Gilbert said his squad will be rested with no friendly match planned.