Tábuas came through the youth system at Vitória Setúbal. He was loaned out to Desportivo Beja of the Segunda Divisão de Honra for the 1996–97 season. He was sent off on his first team debut on 13 October, after receiving two yellow cards in a 3–2 defeat to Varzim at the Estádio do Varzim SC. He went on to play a total of 12 games for Beja. He made his first team debut for Vitória Setúbal on 26 October 1997, in a 4–2 defeat at Varzim in the fourth round of the Taça de Portugal. He made his Primeira Divisão debut for the club on 20 September 1998, in a 1–1 draw with Beira-Mar at the Estádio Mário Duarte. He went on to play a total of 28 league and six cup games in the 1998–99 season. He featured 27 times in the 1999–2000 relegation campaign, and played once in the UEFA Cup, a 7–0 defeat to A.S. Roma at the Stadio Olimpico on 16 September. He played 21 league games in the 2000–01 season, as Vitória Setúbal won promotion at the first attempt after securing a third-place finish. However, he played only 11 times in the 2001–02 season, and was sent off after receiving two yellow cards in a 3–2 win over Santa Clara on 14 April. He featured 19 times in the 2002–03 relegation campaign, and was sent off for the third and final time in his career in a 2–0 defeat by Paços de Ferreira on 4 May; he was shown a red card on 73 minutes despite being an unused substitute. Vitória Setúbal again won promotion at the first attempt in 2003–04, though Tábuas played only three league games as the club secured the second automatic promotion place. He played a total of 20 matches in the 2004–05 season, and was an unused substitute at the club won the Taça de Portugal with a 2–1 victory over league champions Benfica. He was also an unused substitute in the 2005 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira at the Estádio Algarve, where Benfica achieved some revenge over Vitória Setúbal with a 1–0 victory. He was appointed as the club's second captain, and spoke in defence of the club after a financial crisis meant the players considered strike action after wages went unpaid at the Estádio do Bonfim for months on end. He played 11 games in the 2005–06 season, and was an unused substitute in the 2006 Taça de Portugal Final at the Estádio Nacional, as Porto defeated Vitória Setúbal 1–0. He started the 2006 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira match at the Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, as new signing Nikola Milojević was unable to secure a work permitin time; Vitória Setúbal were beaten 3–0 by Porto. He went on to feature in just four further matches in the 2006–07 and 2007–08 seasons, including a second appearance in the UEFA Cup, as Vitória Setúbal lost 3–0 at home to Heerenveen on 14 September 2006. In July 2008, Tábuas was released by Vitória Setúbal and joined Torreense in the Segunda Divisão - Série D. He made 29 league and cup appearances in the 2008–09 campaign, before he returned to Alentejo to play for Aljustrelense. He played 15 Segunda Divisão Zona Sul games in the 2009–10 season, and announced his retirement at the end of the campaign.
