Bob Roberts (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Robert John Roberts better known as Bob Roberts, was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 football goalkeeper
Goalkeeper (football)
In association football, the goalkeeper occupies a position that represents the last line of defence between the opponent's offence and his own team's goal. The primary role of the goalkeeper is to defend his team's goal and prevent the opposition from scoring a goal...

. He spent the majority of his career at West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion F.C.
West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...

, with whom he won an FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

 winner's medal, and also played for Sunderland Albion
Sunderland Albion F.C.
Sunderland Albion Football Club was an English association football club based in Sunderland, England formed in 1888 as a rival to Sunderland A.F.C.-Summary:...

 and Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...

. He won three caps for England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

 and is the first West Bromwich Albion player to have appeared at international level. He was nicknamed Long Bob and The Prince of Goalkeepers.

Amateur years

Roberts was born in West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...

 as one of five children to James Roberts. After leaving Christ Church school Bob became a plasterer
Plasterer
A plasterer is a tradesman who works with plaster, such as forming a layer of plaster on an interior wall or plaster decorative moldings on ceilings or walls...

 by trade, while his interest in sport led him to join the George Salter's Spring Works
Salter Housewares
Salter Housewares is a British manufacturer of consumer weighing scales for personal and kitchen use, and other kitchen accessories...

 football team, the West Bromwich Strollers
West Bromwich Albion F.C.
West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...

. On 23 November 1878 Roberts played in the first recorded Strollers game, a 12-a-side friendly against Hudson's soap factory that finished 0–0. Roberts continued to play for the club after they changed their name to West Bromwich Albion in 1880. He played in various positions, including full-back, half-back and forward, and there is record of him scoring against Smethwick Holy Trinity in February 1880 in a 3–0 victory. However he was generally not a success as an outfield player, one observer describing him thus:
Roberts kept goal for the first time during the 1880–81 season
1880-81 in English football
The 1880–1881 season was the tenth season of competitive football in England.-National team:England played their first home match outside London when they hosted Wales at Alexandra Meadows in Blackburn.* England score given firstKey...

. His first match between the posts appears to have taken place on either 18 December 1880 against Wednesbury Royal George, or else on 29 January 1881 against Hockley Belmont. He helped Albion reach the semi-final of the Birmingham Senior Cup
Birmingham Senior Cup
The Birmingham Senior Cup is a football competition for Birmingham County FA club teams, organized by the Birmingham County Football Association...

 in both 1881–82
1881-82 in English football
The 1881–1882 season was the 11th season of competitive football in England.-National team:England played Ireland for the first time. Their 13–0 victory is still the team's largest ever win.* England score given first...

 and 1882–83
1882-83 in English football
The 1882–1883 season was the 12th season of competitive football in England.-National team:* England score given firstKey* H = Home match* F = Friendly-Honours:...

. In the latter season the club won their first trophy, the Staffordshire Senior Cup
Staffordshire Senior Cup
The Staffordshire Senior Challenge Cup is a football cup tournament based in the county of Staffordshire in England first competed for in 1877-78. Organised by the Staffordshire Football Association, it is competed for by a mix of clubs from Staffordshire and the surrounding areas. Both...

, beating Stoke
Stoke City F.C.
Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...

 3–2 in the final. According to the newspaper The Athlete, Roberts could take "a lot of credit for the win by his fine keeping". In 1885 Albion reached the FA Cup quarter-final, but lost 2–0 to Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....

; Roberts was unable to participate in the match due to "rheumatics".

Professional era

With the legalisation of professionalism in the summer of 1885, Roberts and his team mates all became professional players in 1885-86
1885-86 in English football
The 1885–1886 season was the 15th season of competitive football in England.-National team:England were joint winners of the 1886 British Home Championship with Scotland.* England score given firstKey* A = Away match...

, and proceeded to win both the Birmingham and Staffordshire cups. Albion lost to Blackburn Rovers (via a replay) in the 1886 FA Cup Final
1886 FA Cup Final
The 1886 FA Cup Final was contested by Blackburn Rovers and West Bromwich Albion at the Kennington Oval. The match finished goalless, Albion wanted to play extra time but Blackburn Rovers declined, meaning a replay was necessary....

, the first of three successive FA Cup Final
FA Cup Final
The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. With an official attendance of 89,826 at the 2007 FA Cup Final, it is the fourth best attended domestic club championship event in the world and the second most...

s in which Roberts played. He received another runners-up medal the following year as Albion were defeated 1–0 by rivals Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...

 in the 1887 final
1887 FA Cup Final
The 1887 FA Cup Final was contested by Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion at the Kennington Oval. Aston Villa won 2–0, with goals by Archie Hunter and Dennis Hodgetts.-Teams:*Played 2 April 1887*Attendance: 15,500*Referee: Major Francis Marindin...

. During the cup run he is credited with scoring a goal from a long kick downfield against Derby Junction
Derby Junction F.C.
Derby Junction F.C. were an amateur football club in Derby, England. They were active in the 1880s and 1890s, notably being founder members of the Midland League in 1890 and FA Cup semi-finalists in 1888. They played at Derby Arboretum....

. Twelve months later he helped his team to victory in the 2–1 win over Preston North End
Preston North End F.C.
Preston North End Football Club is an English professional football club located in the Deepdale area of the city of Preston, Lancashire, currently playing in the third tier of English league football, League One...

 in the 1888 final
1888 FA Cup Final
The 1888 FA Cup Final was contested by West Bromwich Albion and Preston North End at the Kennington Oval. Preston were strong favourites for the Cup, having set a record which still stands today by beating Hyde 26-0 in the first round, and were so confident of overcoming West Bromwich Albion in the...

. His performance for Albion was described as "most remarkable" by The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

, while The Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...

said that his keeping was "brilliant all through the game". Later that year Roberts played in the "Championship of the World" match, which pitted the English FA Cup holders against the winners of the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

. Albion lost the game 4–1 to Renton
Renton F.C.
Renton Football Club was a prominent team in the early history of Scottish football. The club was based in the village of Renton, West Dunbartonshire...

 at Hampden Park
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...

.

Roberts played in Albion's first ever Football League match on 8 September 1888, keeping a clean sheet in the 2–0 victory over Stoke. His appearance made him one of only two players (alongside Ezra Horton
Ezra Horton
Ezra Horton was an English footballer who played at right-half, he had the nickname Ironsides. His younger brother Jack was also a footballer.- Biography :...

) to have played in both Albion's first FA Cup game and their first league game. He was ever-present in that first league season of 1888–89
1888-89 in English football
The 1888–1889 season was the 18th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:A new competition, The Football League, started this season...

, making 22 appearances and keeping four clean sheets. In October 1889 he was suspended by the FA
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...

 for four matches, after he took part in an unsanctioned match at Walsall. Roberts made 84 appearances in the league and the FA Cup during his Albion career; taking into account friendlies and local cup competitions, he appeared around 400 times for the club.

In May 1890 Roberts moved on a free transfer to Sunderland Albion
Sunderland Albion F.C.
Sunderland Albion Football Club was an English association football club based in Sunderland, England formed in 1888 as a rival to Sunderland A.F.C.-Summary:...

; their offer of 50 shilling
Shilling (United Kingdom)
The British shilling is an historic British coin from the eras of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the later United Kingdom; also adopted as a Scot denomination upon the 1707 Treaty of Union....

s per game was one that West Bromwich were unable to match. He failed to settle in the North East
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...

, enduring homesickness as well as his wife's illness. On the pitch however, he helped Sunderland Albion finish as runners-up in the Football Alliance
Football Alliance
The Football Alliance was an association football league in England which ran for three seasons, from 1889–90 to 1891–92.It was formed by 12 clubs as a rival to the Football League, which had begun in the 1888–89 season, also with 12 member clubs...

 and was ever-present in the league. He returned to West Bromwich Albion on another free transfer in May 1891, and was initially given his place back, at the expense of Joe Reader
Joe Reader
Josiah "Joe" Reader was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He spent his entire professional career with West Bromwich Albion and served the club as a player, coach and steward for a total of 65 years....

. By this time however, Roberts' wife was seriously ill and she died in October 1891. Goalkeeping duties were alternated, and as Roberts' form declined further, Reader won his place back permanently. Roberts thus played no part in Albion's 1892 FA Cup Final
1892 FA Cup Final
The 1892 FA Cup Final was contested by West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa at the Kennington Oval. West Bromwich Albion won 3–0, with goals by Jasper Geddes, Sammy Nicholls and Jack Reynolds...

 win over Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...

, and left Albion to join Villa at the end of the season, again for no transfer fee. Villa director William McGregor said that Roberts was "Unquestionably the finest goalkeeper of his time". After playing in just four games for Villa, Roberts retired from playing football in June 1893. He moved back to the North East, where he settled for the remainder of his life, working as a plasterer, and died in Byker
Byker
Byker is an inner city electoral ward in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne in Tyne and Wear, England. It is in the east of the city, south of the Heaton area and north of St Peter's. Byker Metro station serves the area.The area also contains the Byker Wall estate. The population of the ward is...

 on 20 October 1929.

International career

On 19 March 1887, Roberts made his debut for England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

; in doing so he became West Bromwich Albion's first ever international player. England lost 3–2 to Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...

 in the match, which was played at Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....

' Leamington Road
Leamington Road
Leamington Road was an English football stadium situated in Blackburn, Lancashire. Blackburn Rovers played there from 1881 until 1890, when they relocated to Ewood Park, where they have remained ever since....

 ground. He was so proud of winning his first England cap
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...

 that he wore it in every subsequent match in which he played. He won two further caps for his country in 1888 and 1890 respectively, on both occasions lining up against Ireland in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...

. England were victorious in both matches, in the latter by a 9–1 scoreline.

Roberts won various other representative honours during his career, including an appearance for the Birmingham FA
Birmingham County Football Association
The Birmingham County Football Association, also simply known as Birmingham FA, is the governing body of football in the counties of West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The Birmingham FA run 13 cup competitions at different levels for teams in the West Midland region...

 in their 4–1 win against the Sheffield FA. He also turned out for the Players v Gentlemen match at the Kennington Oval and played in a county match for Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...

, against Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

. When he represented Birmingham for a match against Glasgow, such was his popularity that "dozens, possibly even hundreds" of West Bromwich Albion supporters neglected their own team's match against Walsall Swifts
Walsall F.C.
Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

 in order to watch him play.

Honours

West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion F.C.
West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...

  • FA Cup
    FA Cup
    The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

     winners: 1888
    1888 FA Cup Final
    The 1888 FA Cup Final was contested by West Bromwich Albion and Preston North End at the Kennington Oval. Preston were strong favourites for the Cup, having set a record which still stands today by beating Hyde 26-0 in the first round, and were so confident of overcoming West Bromwich Albion in the...

  • FA Cup
    FA Cup
    The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

     runners-up: 1886
    1886 FA Cup Final
    The 1886 FA Cup Final was contested by Blackburn Rovers and West Bromwich Albion at the Kennington Oval. The match finished goalless, Albion wanted to play extra time but Blackburn Rovers declined, meaning a replay was necessary....

     and 1887
    1887 FA Cup Final
    The 1887 FA Cup Final was contested by Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion at the Kennington Oval. Aston Villa won 2–0, with goals by Archie Hunter and Dennis Hodgetts.-Teams:*Played 2 April 1887*Attendance: 15,500*Referee: Major Francis Marindin...


Career statistics

Club Season League
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion F.C.
West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...

1883–84
1883-84 in English football
The 1883–1884 season was the 13th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:1883–1884 saw the world's first international tournament begin. The British Home Championship pitted the UK's four national teams against each other in a league competition in which each played the other three...

0 0 1 0 1 0
1884–85
1884-85 in English football
The 1884–1885 season was the 14th season of competitive football in England.-National team:England finished second in the British Home Championship, which was won by Scotland.* England score given firstKey* H = Home match...

0 0 5 0 5 0
1885–86
1885-86 in English football
The 1885–1886 season was the 15th season of competitive football in England.-National team:England were joint winners of the 1886 British Home Championship with Scotland.* England score given firstKey* A = Away match...

0 0 8 0 8 0
1886–87
1886-87 in English football
The 1886–1887 season was the 16th season of competitive football in England.-Events:* Dial Square FC are founded by workers at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, and play their first match on 11 December...

0 0 8 1 8 1
1887–88
1887-88 in English football
The 1887–1888 season was the 17th season of competitive football in England.-National team:England won the 1888 British Home Championship, their first victory in the tournament, with comfortable victories over all three other home nations, in each of which England scored five goals.Albert Allen,...

0 0 7 0 7 0
1888–89
1888-89 in English football
The 1888–1889 season was the 18th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:A new competition, The Football League, started this season...

22 0 4 0 26 0
1889–90
1889-90 in English football
The 1889–90 season was the 19th season of competitive football in England. Preston North End were Football League champions for the second successive season while The Wednesday finished top of the newly formed Football Alliance. Blackburn Rovers won the FA Cup....

18 0 2 0 20 0
Subtotal 40 0 35 1 75 1
Sunderland Albion
Sunderland Albion F.C.
Sunderland Albion Football Club was an English association football club based in Sunderland, England formed in 1888 as a rival to Sunderland A.F.C.-Summary:...

1890–91
1890-91 in English football
The 1890–91 season was the 20th season of competitive football in England.-Events:Everton started the 1890–91 season in superb form with five straight victories, with Fred Geary scoring in each of the first six matches...

? ? ? ? ? ?
Subtotal ? ? ? ? ? ?
West Bromwich Albion 1891–92
1891-92 in English football
The 1891–92 season was the 21st season of competitive football in England.-Events:Three new clubs joined the Football Alliance, following the expansion of the Football League to 14 teams, and the defection of Sunderland Albion to the Northern League...

9 0 0 0 9 0
Subtotal 9 0 0 0 9 0
Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...

1892–93
1892-93 in English football
The 1892–93 season was the 22nd season of competitive football in England.-Events:The Football League and the Football Alliance formally merged, and so the Football League Second Division was formed, consisting mostly of Football Alliance clubs...

4 0 0 0 4 0
Subtotal 4 0 0 0 4 0
Total ? ? ? ? ? ?

External links

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