John William Robinson (22 April 1870 – 28 October 1931) was a professional footballer who played for, among others, Derby County, Southampton and England.
 Robinson pictured whilst with the England national team | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John William Robinson[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 22 April 1870[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Derby, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 28 October 1931 (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 | |||
Football career
editRobinson 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
editIn 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
editClub
editSource:[8]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Derby County | 1891–92 | The Football League | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 |
| 1892–93 | First Division | 30 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 0 | |
| 1893–94 | First Division | 25 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 | |
| 1894–95 | First Division | 23 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| 1895–96 | First Division | 30 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | |
| 1896–97 | First Division | 30 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 0 | |
| Total | 163 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 182 | 0 | ||
| Southampton | 1898–99 | Southern League | 24 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| 1899–1900 | Southern League | 21 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 | |
| 1900–01 | Southern League | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | |
| 1901–02 | Southern League | 26 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | |
| 1902–03 | Southern League | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 | |
| Total | 116 | 0 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 142 | 0 | ||
| Plymouth Argyle | 1903–04 | Southern League | 40 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 0 |
| 1904–05 | Southern League | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Total | 50 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 0 | ||
| Stoke | 1909–10 | Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two | 27 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 35 | 0 |
| 1910–11 | Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two | 28 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 0 | |
| Total | 55 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 66 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 384 | 0 | 34 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 440 | 0 | ||
- ^ Appearance in Football League test matches
- ^ Appearances in Birmingham League Cup
International
editSource:[1]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | |||
| 1897 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1898 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1899 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1900 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1901 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 11 | 0 | |
Honours
editFootballer
editDerby County
- Football League First Division runners-up: 1895–96
Southampton
- FA Cup finalists: 1900, 1902
- Southern League champions: 1898–99, 1900–01, 1902–03
England
- British champions: 1898, 1899, 1901, 1903 (shared)
Baseball player
editDerby County
- British Champions: 1895, 1897
Footnotes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f "Jack Robinson profile". England Players. EnglandFootballOnline. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Jack Robinson". Greens on Screen. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ Holley & Chalk 1992, p. 286.
- ^ Giant Killers 1900
- ^ a b c Hodgson 1998, pp. 155–157.
- ^ "Slavia.cz". Retrieved 3 September 2019.
- ^ "The Last Game". chapters.sabr.org. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ Jack Robinson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
- ^ Holley 2012, p. 26.
- ^ Chalk & Holley 1987, p. 28.
- ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 162.
- ^ Chalk & Holley 1987, p. 212.
Bibliography
edit- 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.
External links
edit- Jack Robinson at Englandstats.com
- Robinson and baseball
- Robinson at Plymouth Argyle fansite
