Robert Louis "Bobby" Svarc (born 8 February 1946) is an English former professional

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 le ...

who played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

Career

Svarc, born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

, England, began his career at

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

, making 13 appearances, scoring two goals before moving to Lincoln City in 1968. He scored 16 goals in 45 appearances, and during this time scored 3 goals in 15 appearances on loan at Barrow. Svarc signed for non-league

Boston United Boston United Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. The club participates in the National League North, at the sixth tier of the English football league system. The club is known ...

for £2,000 in 1971, and it seemed that his days as full professional were over. However, when his manager Jim Smith took over the reins at

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...

, he insisted that he bring with him his star player for a transfer fee of £6,000. At Boston, he had scored 21 goals in 28 matches. Unfortunately, his first season at Colchester was marred by injury, but he soon became a crowd favourite there and their leading scorer. After the most consistently successful time of his career, Svarc followed Smith again, this time to

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

in 1975, becoming Rovers' top scorer in the 1976–77 season. He scored some great goals and probably would have got more but for a knee injury which curtailed his playing days. He also made a single appearance for

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

Svarc's playing style depended on close control, quick turns, and sharp shooting. Not particularly tall, he was nevertheless a good header of the ball.

Outside football

After retiring from football, he set up his own burglar alarm business in

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

. Svarc is mentioned in the

Half Man Half Biscuit Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...

song "Fear My Wraith" on the 1995 album ''

Some Call It Godcore ''Some Call It Godcore'' is the fifth album released by UK rock band Half Man Half Biscuit in 1995. Track listing # "Sensitive Outsider" # "Fretwork Homework" # "Faithlift" # "Song for Europe" # "Even Men with Steel Hearts" # "£24.99 from Arg ...

''.

References

External links

*
Player Profile - Bobby Svarc
{{DEFAULTSORT:Svarc, Bobby 1946 births Living people Footballers from Leicester English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Leicester City F.C. players Lincoln City F.C. players Barrow A.F.C. players Boston United F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players Watford F.C. players English Football League players