Jack Robinson
Robinson pictured whilst with the England national team
Personal information
Full name John William Robinson[1]
Date of birth (1870-04-22)22 April 1870[1]
Place of birth Derby, England[1]
Date of death 28 October 1931(1931-10-28) (aged 61)[1]
Place of death Derby, England[1]
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1886 Derby St Neots
1887 Derby Midland
1888–1891 Lincoln City
1891–1897 Derby County 163 (0)
1897–1898 New Brighton Tower
1898–1903 Southampton 116 (0)
1903–1905 Plymouth Argyle 50 (0)
1905 Exeter City
1905–1907 Millwall
1907 Green Waves
1908–1909 Exeter City
1909–1912 Stoke 55 (0)
1912 Rochester City
Total 384+ (0)
International career
1897–1901 England 11 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

John William Robinson (22 April 1870 – 28 October 1931) was a professional footballer who played for, among others, Derby County, Southampton and England.

Football career

Robinson was born in Derby and began playing football for local sides Derby St Neots and Derby Midland before moving to Lincoln City in 1888.[2] After helping the Imps win the Midland Football League in 1890 he returned to his hometown and signed for Football League side Derby County. Robinson spent six seasons at Derby, making over 180 appearances, and was a key player in their 1895–96 campaign which saw them finish as runner-up to Aston Villa.[2] He left Derby in 1897 and spent a season with New Brighton Tower before joining South Coast club Southampton.[2]

He enjoyed a successful time with Southampton helping them to dominate the Southern League at the turn of the 20th century.[3] As goalkeeper, Robinson was instrumental in a string of victories over top-flight sides in the F A Cup during this period, especially in getting to the 1900 FA Cup final where infighting over the selection of an out of form English forward over the in-form Roddy McLeod of Scotland led to fighting between the English and Scottish factions and ultimately led to a very disjointed team performance and a heavy defeat.[4]

Robinson was noted, during his playing career, for his reliability and was, according to author Francis Hodgson, among the first goalkeepers to dive full length to make saves.[5] Touring eastern Europe with Southampton, Robinson played a notable role in introducing modern goalkeeping techniques to Austria and Hungary. In Prague, Southampton beat local Slavia 3–0 and Robinson's novel goalkeeping style of diving saves gave rise to the Czech term, "robinsonáda".[6] Gyula Grosics, the Hungarian international of the 1950s, observed that "it was Moon of the Corinthians, Robinson, and many other world-famous England goalkeepers who have been the pioneers of this art, and they showed the way for all Europe's goalkeepers."[5] Hugo Meisl, the noted coach of the Austrian "Wunderteam" of the 1930s, went further, recalling:

"In that year (1899)a the first English professionals came over, Southampton F.C. They beat the Viennese city eleven 6–0 and their goalkeeper, Robinson, showed for the first time how to tackle low shots by flying through the air with the greatest of ease. Until this day (1930) that type of save is called a 'Robinsonade' in Austria and Central Europe. After the match, Robinson gave an exhibition. His goal was bombarded simultaneously with six balls and he blocked most of the shots.[5]"

Robinson left Southampton in 1903 and went on to play for fellow Southern League clubs Plymouth Argyle, Exeter City, Millwall and Stoke.[2]

Professional baseball

In 1890 Robinson played professional baseball for Derby Baseball Club in the National League of Baseball of Great Britain. Robinson played alongside Steve Bloomer and helped them become British champions twice in the 1890s.[7]

Career statistics

Club

Source:[8]

Club Season League FA Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Derby County 1891–92 The Football League 2501000260
1892–93 First Division 3003000330
1893–94 First Division 2504000290
1894–95 First Division 230101[lower-alpha 1]0250
1895–96 First Division 3005000350
1896–97 First Division 3004000340
Total 1630180101820
Southampton 1898–99 Southern League 2403000270
1899–1900 Southern League 2106000270
1900–01 Southern League 2201000220
1901–02 Southern League 2608000280
1902–03 Southern League 2300000230
Total 1160260001420
Plymouth Argyle 1903–04 Southern League 4007000470
1904–05 Southern League 1000000100
Total 5007000570
Stoke 1909–10 Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two 270602[lower-alpha 2]0350
1910–11 Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two 2803000310
Total 5509020660
Career total 3840340304400
  1. ↑ Appearance in Football League test matches
  2. ↑ Appearances in Birmingham League Cup

International

Source:[1]

National teamYearAppsGoals
England
189720
189830
189920
190030
190110
Total110

Honours

Footballer

Derby County

Southampton

England

Baseball player

Derby County

Footnotes

  • ^a According to the Southampton F.C. histories, the club's first tour of Europe was in April 1901.[9][10][11] Among their opponents on that tour were Vienna Cricket & Football Club, who were defeated 7–0 and a Vienna Combined XI who were defeated 8–0.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jack Robinson profile". England Players. EnglandFootballOnline. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Jack Robinson". Greens on Screen. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  3. ↑ Holley & Chalk 1992, p. 286.
  4. ↑ Giant Killers 1900
  5. 1 2 3 Hodgson 1998, pp. 155–157.
  6. ↑ "Slavia.cz". Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  7. ↑ "The Last Game". chapters.sabr.org. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  8. ↑ Jack Robinson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  9. ↑ Holley 2012, p. 26.
  10. ↑ Chalk & Holley 1987, p. 28.
  11. ↑ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 162.
  12. ↑ Chalk & Holley 1987, p. 212.

Bibliography

  • Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan (1987). Saints – A complete record. Breedon Books. ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
  • Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan; Bull, David (2013). All the Saints: A Complete Players' Who's Who of Southampton FC. Southampton: Hagiology Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9926-8640-6.
  • Hodgson, Francis (1998). Only the Goalkeeper To Beat. Macmillan. ISBN 0-333-68693-4.
  • Holley, Duncan (2012). Suited and Booted. Bristol: Hagiology Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9534474-9-7.
  • Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (1992). The Alphabet of the Saints. ACL & Polar Publishing. ISBN 0-9514862-3-3.
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