 Born in Castlewellan, County Down, Toner played for Belfast United before joining Arsenal in August 1919, making his debut for the side against Everton on 11 October 1919.An outside-left, he was a semi-regular in his first two seasons before breaking through properly in 1921-22.He won his first Ireland cap on 4 April 1922 against Wales in Belfast; the match finished 1-1.