Bobby Roberts



Bobby RobertsBorn in Edinburgh on the 2nd September 1940, Bobby Roberts followed a similar path to that of what Willie Hunter did two years previously in that he was plucked straight from Junior football as he had been turning out for Edinburgh Norton. Arriving at Fir Park, Bobby had caught the eye of club officials as he had scored an impressive 93 goals in a single season.

He was a slender player who was deceptively quick with a fantastic engine. Roberts was originally earmarked to play as an outside-left but was often deployed as a centre forward. On one such occasion he filled in the position for an absent Ian St John and he would net a fine double in a 2-0 win at Fir Park against French outfit Toulouse in the Anglo-Franco-Scottish Friendship trophy.

Bobby would show a real flexibility as he was often used in other forward roles covering where necessary but eventually he would settle in a wing-half role which he would make his own. He became a real favourite amongst the Motherwell support and he was voted the Player of the Year in 1962.

Capped by Scotland at U23 level and having represented the Scottish League versus the Irish League, Bobby was sold to Leicester City in 1963 for approximately £40,000.

While at Filbert Street he made well over 200 appearances and was a runner up in the 1965 League Cup when the Foxes lost a two legged affair against Chelsea. In 1969 he had more cup misery when he had to settle for a runners up medal in the FA Cup when the side lost 1-0 to Manchester City in front of 100,000 at Wembley.

Roberts would serve Mansfield Town before moving onto Highfield Road where he was named a player/coach at Coventry City. He would dabble in management upon retiring serving the likes of Colchester United, Wrexham and Grimsby Town.

Name:
Robert Roberts
Height:
5′ 9″
Weight:
10st 5lbs
Date of Birth:
2nd September 1940
Place of Birth:
Edinburgh
Position:
Forward
Nationality:
Scottish

Football Career:

Edinburgh Norton 1959
Motherwell 1959 1964
Leicester City 1963 1970
Mansfield Town 1970 1972
Coventry City 1972 1973

Well Career:

Apps Goals
League:
91 27
Scottish Cup:
9 4
League Cup:
28 11
Other:
0 0
Total:
128 42