Jocky Robertson (21 May 1926 – 2004) was a Scottish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting ...

for

Armadale Thistle Armadale Thistle Football Club are a football club from the town of Armadale, West Lothian in Scotland. Formed in 1936 and nicknamed ''The Dale'', they are members of the Scottish Junior Football Association and presently play in the . The ...

Third Lanark Third Lanark Athletic Club was a Scottish football club based in Glasgow. Founded in 1872 as an offshoot of the 3rd Lanarkshire Rifle Volunteers, the club was a founder member of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) in 1872 and the Scotti ...

and

Berwick Rangers Berwick Rangers Football Club is a football team based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, England, just south of the border with Scotland. Founded in 1881, they currently play in the , the fifth tier of Scottish football, despite hailing f ...

despite being of notably short height.

Early life

Jocky Robertson was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

on 21 May 1926. He grew up on a council estate in the

Prestonfield Prestonfield may refer to the one of following: *Prestonfield, Edinburgh, an area of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland *Prestonfield, Linlithgow Prestonfield is a football stadium in the royal burgh of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland. It is t ...

area of the city, and supported Heart of Midlothian. He sustained a serious injury to his hands while working in a cardboard box factory, but recovered sufficiently to resume playing as a goalkeeper.

Playing career

Robertson played in

junior football Junior football may refer to: * Association football played at the junior level, such as under the auspices of the Scottish Junior Football Association * Association football played in the Scottish Junior Football League (1892-1947) * Canadian ...

for

and represented the

Scotland Junior international team The Scottish Junior Football Association (SJFA) is an affiliated national association of the Scottish Football Association and is the governing body for the junior grade of football in Scotland. The term "junior" refers to the level of football ...

. He joined

in 1951 and after making his senior debut against

Airdrieonians Airdrieonians Football Club is a Scottish professional football team in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, who are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League One. They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie Unite ...

on 2 December 1951 went on to be their first-choice goalkeeper for the next twelve years. He was part of the Third Lanark team that reached the

1959 Scottish League Cup Final The 1959 Scottish League Cup Final was a Association football, football match played on 24 October 1959 at Hampden Park in Glasgow and was the final of the 14th Scottish League Cup competition. The final was contested by Heart of Midlothian F.C. ...

, losing 2–1 against Heart of Midlothian, and then finished third in the

Scottish Football League The Scottish Football League (SFL) was a league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 km so ...

in the 1960–61 season, scoring 100 goals but conceding 80. The team thereafter went into decline as talented players were sold, and Robertson was also allowed to leave, making his final appearance against Dundee in May 1963. A mooted

testimonial match A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...

failed to happen, and Robertson had a short spell with

before retiring.

Style of play

At a height of , Robertson was extremely short for a goalkeeper, but was able to command the

penalty area The penalty area or 18-yard box (also known less formally as the penalty box or simply box) is an area of an association football pitch. It is rectangular and extends 16.5m (18 yd) to each side of the goal and 16.5m (18 yd) in front of it. With ...

due to his ability to judge when to jump for the ball and his reliability in catching. His technique of gathering the ball and going to ground in a single movement helped him cope against aggressive opponents in an era when goalkeepers could be physically challenged when in possession. He was confident facing cross balls, claiming that Charlie Church of Queen's Park was the only opponent to consistently cause him problems.

Personal life

After leaving professional football, Robertson worked as an upholsterer. He was married and had three children, six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. He died in 2004.

References

Notes

External links

* 1926 births 2004 deaths Footballers from Edinburgh Association football goalkeepers Scottish footballers Third Lanark A.C. players Armadale Thistle F.C. players Berwick Rangers F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish Junior Football Association players Scotland junior international footballers {{Scotland-footy-goalkeeper-stub