Jimmy Rimmer
Encyclopedia
John James "Jimmy" Rimmer (born 10 February 1948) is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the Football League
for Manchester United
, Swansea City
, Arsenal
and Aston Villa
. He was capped once for England
.
Born in Southport
, Lancashire
, Rimmer joined Manchester United
as a schoolboy in 1963, turning professional two years later. He spent eleven years at Old Trafford
, chiefly as Alex Stepney
's understudy — he was on bench in the 1968 European Cup
final. With Stepney prevalent between the sticks, Rimmer only played 46 times for United in total. In October 1973 he was loaned to Swansea City
. With the Swans he impressed as first-team goalkeeper, enough so that Arsenal
signed him from United in February 1974, eyeing him as a long-term replacement for Bob Wilson.
Rimmer made only one appearance in 1973-74
(keeping a clean sheet on his debut against Liverpool
). After Wilson announced his retirement at the end of that season, Rimmer became Arsenal's No. 1 for the next three seasons, and was a near ever-present for the Gunners. During his time at Arsenal he also won his one and only England
cap, although it was not an auspicious match — against Italy
in a friendly, Rimmer let two goals in and was substituted at half-time; England went on to recover and win 3-2.
After Tottenham Hotspur
manager Terry Neill
took over at Arsenal, he signed Pat Jennings
from his old club and Rimmer was duly sold to Aston Villa
. In all he played 146 games for Arsenal. At Villa, Rimmer was No. 1 for the next six seasons, winning a First Division
winners' medal in 1981. The following year Villa reached the European Cup final
, but Rimmer was injured after only nine minutes and had to be replaced by the young Nigel Spink
. Villa nevertheless beat Bayern Munich 1-0, meaning Rimmer became the second(after Saul Malatrasi
) player in history to get a European Cup winners' medal at two different clubs, despite the fact that he only played in one match.
Rimmer left Villa in 1983 to rejoin old club Swansea City. After retiring from playing, he became Swansea's goalkeeping coach, having a brief spell as manager following the sacking of Kevin Cullis
, before being replaced by Jan Molby. He then spent several years in China
, to work as goalkeeping coach for the Chinese national team
and Dalian Shide. He now coaches in Canada
.
Aston Villa
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...
for Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
, Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
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 was capped once 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...
.
Born in Southport
Southport
Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. During the 2001 census Southport was recorded as having a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England...
, 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...
, Rimmer joined Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
as a schoolboy in 1963, turning professional two years later. He spent eleven years at Old Trafford
Old Trafford (football)
Old Trafford is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 75,811, Old Trafford is the second-largest football stadium in England after Wembley, the third-largest in the United Kingdom and the eleventh-largest in Europe...
, chiefly as Alex Stepney
Alex Stepney
Alexander Cyril "Alex" Stepney is a former English football player who was Manchester United's goalkeeper when they became the first English club to win the European Cup.-London beginnings:...
's understudy — he was on bench in the 1968 European Cup
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
final. With Stepney prevalent between the sticks, Rimmer only played 46 times for United in total. In October 1973 he was loaned to Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
. With the Swans he impressed as first-team goalkeeper, enough so that Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
signed him from United in February 1974, eyeing him as a long-term replacement for Bob Wilson.
Rimmer made only one appearance in 1973-74
1973-74 in English football
The 1973–74 season was the 94th season of competitive football in England.-First Division:Don Revie marked his last season as Leeds United's manager by guiding them to league championship glory, before taking over from Sir Alf Ramsey as the England national football team manager, with England...
(keeping a clean sheet on his debut against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
). After Wilson announced his retirement at the end of that season, Rimmer became Arsenal's No. 1 for the next three seasons, and was a near ever-present for the Gunners. During his time at Arsenal he also won his one and only 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...
cap, although it was not an auspicious match — against Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
in a friendly, Rimmer let two goals in and was substituted at half-time; England went on to recover and win 3-2.
After Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
manager Terry Neill
Terry Neill
William John Terence "Terry" Neill is a Northern Ireland former football player and manager.-Playing career:Born in Belfast, Neill played as a youth for Bangor, before moving in December 1959 to Arsenal. He spent a year in Arsenal's youth side, before making his debut against Sheffield Wednesday...
took over at Arsenal, he signed Pat Jennings
Pat Jennings
Patrick Anthony "Pat" Jennings OBE is a Northern Ireland former football player. He played 119 games for Northern Ireland as a goalkeeper, a figure which at the time was a world record and is still a Northern Ireland record, in an international career which lasted for over 22 years...
from his old club and Rimmer was duly sold to 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 all he played 146 games for Arsenal. At Villa, Rimmer was No. 1 for the next six seasons, winning a First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
winners' medal in 1981. The following year Villa reached the European Cup final
1982 European Cup Final
The 1982 European Cup Final was played on 26 May 1982. English champions Aston Villa defeated West German league winners Bayern Munich 1–0 at De Kuip in Rotterdam, Netherlands to win the European Cup for the first time, and continue the streak of English teams winning the competition, being the...
, but Rimmer was injured after only nine minutes and had to be replaced by the young Nigel Spink
Nigel Spink
Nigel Philip Spink is a former football goalkeeper who made his name at Aston Villa and also made one appearance for England at international level on the tour of Australia in 1983.-Career:...
. Villa nevertheless beat Bayern Munich 1-0, meaning Rimmer became the second(after Saul Malatrasi
Saul Malatrasi
Saul Malatrasi is a former Italian football player and coach who played for Inter Milan and A.C. Milan and was part of their European Cup victories in 1965 and 1969 respectively, thus becoming the first player to participate in the European Cup campaigns of two different winning teams...
) player in history to get a European Cup winners' medal at two different clubs, despite the fact that he only played in one match.
Rimmer left Villa in 1983 to rejoin old club Swansea City. After retiring from playing, he became Swansea's goalkeeping coach, having a brief spell as manager following the sacking of Kevin Cullis
Kevin Cullis
Kevin Cullis is a former English football manager and a convicted fraudster.Cullis' brief managerial career at the professional level came when he was appointed manager of Third Division Swansea City on 7 February 1996 by prospective new chairman Michael Thompson...
, before being replaced by Jan Molby. He then spent several years in China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, to work as goalkeeping coach for the Chinese national team
China national football team
The China PR national football team is the national association football team of the People's Republic of China and is governed by the Chinese Football Association...
and Dalian Shide. He now coaches in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Club
Manchester United- European CupUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: 19681968 European Cup FinalThe 1968 European Cup Final was the 13th European Cup Final and the culmination of the 1967–68 European Cup, a club football tournament for the champions of European leagues. The match was held at Wembley Stadium, London, on 29 May 1968, between Manchester United of England and Benfica of Portugal...
Aston Villa
- Football League First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
: 1980–81 - Charity ShieldFA Community ShieldThe Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
: 19811981 FA Charity ShieldThe 1981 FA Charity Shield was the 59th FA Charity Shield, an annual football match played between the winners of the previous season's Football League and FA Cup competitions. The match was played on 22 August 1981 at Wembley Stadium and played between 1980–81 Football League champions Aston Villa... - European CupUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: 19821982 European Cup FinalThe 1982 European Cup Final was played on 26 May 1982. English champions Aston Villa defeated West German league winners Bayern Munich 1–0 at De Kuip in Rotterdam, Netherlands to win the European Cup for the first time, and continue the streak of English teams winning the competition, being the... - European Super Cup: 1982