Rob Jones (footballer born 1971)
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Robert Marc Jones (born 5 November 1971) is an English football coach and 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 ...
. As a player he was a defender from 1987 to 1999. After starting his career with
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
, he went on to make a name for himself with
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
where he won both the
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
and
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
before finishing his career with a brief spell with
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
. He was capped eight times by
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. In 2013 he turned to coaching and was part of the Liverpool Academy coaching staff for several seasons.


Early life

Jones, who grew up in
Ellesmere Port Ellesmere Port ( ) is a port town in the Cheshire West and Chester borough in Cheshire, England. Ellesmere Port is on the south eastern edge of the Wirral Peninsula, north of Chester, south of Birkenhead, southwest of Runcorn and south of ...
, Cheshire, is the grandson of former Liverpool player Bill Jones.


Club career


Crewe Alexandra

Jones began his career with
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
, signing professional forms at the age of 17 on 20 December 1988 when Crewe were in
Division Four The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...
. The right-back settled quickly, quietly going about his defensive duties until being spotted during the 1991–92 season, accidentally, by Liverpool manager
Graeme Souness Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit. A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...
who was at
Gresty Road Gresty Road or the Alexandra Stadium, currently known as the Mornflake Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Crewe, Cheshire, England. The home ground of Crewe Alexandra, it has an all-seated capacity of 10,153. History Cre ...
looking at a different player. Souness put in an offer of £300,000 which was accepted, and on 4 October 1991, a month before his 20th birthday, he became a Liverpool player.


Liverpool

His debut for the Reds came on 6 October 1991, just 48 hours after he had signed on at
Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
, with a game at
Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
, where he excelled against United winger
Ryan Giggs Ryan Joseph Giggs (né Wilson; 29 November 1973) is a Welsh association football, football coach and former player. Regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, Giggs played his List of one-club men in association football, entir ...
and was named Man Of The Match in a goalless league draw. By the end of the season, Jones had won over the coach, become a regular in the starting line-up, had gained his first international cap, as well as helped the Reds to the final of the
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
at
Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...
– a final that saw Liverpool beat
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
2–0. He was also named in the 1991/92 PFA Team of the Year. However, he was ruled out of England's
Euro 92 The 1992 UEFA European Football Championship was hosted by Sweden between 10 and 26 June 1992. It was the ninth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and supported by UEFA. Denmark won the 1992 championship, having qualifi ...
squad due to shin splints. Over the next four seasons he was a regular member of the Liverpool starting line-up and in the sides that beat
Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
2–1 in the 1995
Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
final and lost 1–0 to Man United in the 1996 FA Cup Final. He was once more named in the PFA Team of the Year (1994/95). When Liverpool signed midfielder
Jason McAteer Jason Wynne McAteer (born 18 June 1971) is a former professional footballer. His primary position was in centre midfield, though he was also an able right winger and full-back. During his professional career from 1992 to 2007, McAteer played ...
, who arrived in
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
,
Roy Evans Roy Quentin Echlin Evans (born 4 October 1948) is an English former footballer who played as a defender for Liverpool. He eventually rose through the coaching ranks to become the team manager. While predominantly plyi ...
converted McAteer to right-back and employed Jones on the left-side in a wingback role as Liverpool changed from their normal
4–4–2 In association football, the formation of a team refers to the position players take in relation to each other on a pitch. As association football is a fluid and fast-moving game, a player's position (with the exception of the goalkeeper) in a ...
to an attack-minded 5–3–2 formation. After the 1996 FA Cup Final, Jones was advised to take a six-month break from football due to back problems. He returned to action, but the next two seasons were plagued by injuries, and in April 1998 he played what was to be his last game for Liverpool against
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
. An injury in his left knee could not be fixed, despite three operations, and at the end of the 1998–99 season, in which he had not played a game, he was released on a free transfer by new coach that year,
Gerard Houllier Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this ca ...
, who was ushering in a new era at the club to eliminate the club's Spice Boys public image and stereotype.


West Ham United

Jones joined
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
, on non-contract terms, on 17 July 1999. He was named in the side that began the
Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
third round second leg tie against
FC Jokerit FC Jokerit was a Finnish professional football club based in Helsinki, Finland. History It was founded in 1999. The club was known for its wild supporters, 116% Boys, and for its owner, Hjallis Harkimo who is also the owner of Jokerit, an ice ...
, but was substituted after the first half as a result of aggravating his knee injury. This proved to be his last senior appearance, as he retired in August 1999.


International career

At international level Jones was eligible to play for
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
, as he was born in
Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, but it was
Graham Taylor Graham Taylor (15 September 1944 – 12 January 2017) was an English football player, manager, pundit and chairman of Watford Football Club. He was the manager of the England national football team from 1990 to 1993, and also managed Lincoln C ...
who selected him and gave him his international debut for
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in the 2–0 win over
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
at Wembley on 19 February 1992 – just four months after he had made the move from Fourth Division football to the First Division. Injury forced Jones to miss the 1992 European Championships where he would have been the first choice right-back, but he went on to win eight international caps over the next few years.


Style of play

Jones played 243 times for the Reds, earned several accolades and man of the match awards, although he famously never scored a goal for Liverpool. Teammates
Steve McManaman Steven McManaman (born 11 February 1972) is an English former footballer who played as a winger for Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester City. McManaman is one of the most decorated English footballers to have played for a club abroad and is ...
described him to ''
FourFourTwo ''FourFourTwo'' is a football magazine published by Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4-4-2. In 2008, it was announced that ''FourFourTwo'' had e ...
'' magazine as the best defender he ever played with, naming him in his all time perfect XI alongside the likes of
Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached Spanish club Real Madrid and is one of the most ...
,
Luís Figo Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo (; born 4 November 1972) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a winger for Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan. He won 127 caps for the Portugal national team, a one-ti ...
, and
Roberto Carlos Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), commonly known as Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who now works as a football ambassador. He started his career in Brazil as a forward but spent most of his care ...
. Younger teammate
Jamie Carragher James Lee Duncan Carragher (; born 28 January 1978) is an English football pundit and former footballer who played as a defender for Premier League club Liverpool during a career which spanned 17 years. A one-club man, he was Liverpool's vic ...
also once said of Jones: "I played with Rob Jones a few times and he was a bit unfortunate with injuries and his best form was probably before I got into the team, when he was as good as probably anything in Europe at the time ... He was playing out of his skin and I think if he'd have stayed fit he probably would have gone on to win 70 or 80 caps for England instead of
Gary Neville Gary Alexander Neville (born 18 February 1975) is an English football pundit and former player. He is also a co-owner of English Football League club Salford City. After retiring from football in 2011, Neville went into punditry and was a comm ...
." After failing to get over a knee injury that had severely affected him since late 1996, Jones announced his retirement on 28 August 1999, aged just 27.


Coaching career

In October 2013 it was announced that Jones would be taking up a coaching role with Liverpool F.C. Academy, where his eldest son Declan is a trainee.


Personal life

Jones lives in
Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
, with his wife Sue and their three children. In 2012, he released his autobiography, titled ''Robbed''. Since his retirement, Jones and his wife have built-up Kids Academy, a
franchise Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...
-based business of children's nurseries across the UK, but now called Evolution Childcare which also now extends into the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
. On 3 September 2014 Rob and his wife were seen in Abu Dhabi promoting the nursery opened at Abu Dhabi airport by Etihad.


Honours

Crewe Alexandra *
Football League Fourth Division The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...
promotion: 1988–89 Liverpool *
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
: 1991–92 *
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
: 1994–95


See also

*
List of England international footballers born outside England This is a list of England international footballers who were born outside England. For the purposes of international football the football world governing body, FIFA, considers England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to be distinct and indiv ...


References


External links


Profile
a
LFCHistory.netThisisanfield.com Forgotten Heroes

Rob Jones index at Sporting-heroes.net
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Rob 1971 births Living people Footballers from Wrexham Association football fullbacks Crewe Alexandra F.C. players Liverpool F.C. players West Ham United F.C. players Premier League players England under-21 international footballers England international footballers 21st-century English businesspeople English footballers English people of Welsh descent People from Ellesmere Port Footballers from Cheshire FA Cup Final players English autobiographers