Players - Bob Clark

Bob Clark
Birthdate: 6 February 1903
Birthplace: Newburn, England
Date of death: 1970
Other clubs: Spencer's Welfare (1919-20), Hawthorn Leslie (1920-21), Newburn Grange (1921-22), Prudhoe Castle (1922-23), Newcastle United (1923-28), Nottingham Forest (1931-32), North Shields
Signed from: Newcastle United
Signed for LFC: £3,000, 26.01.1928
Liverpool debut: 04.02.1928
Last appearance: 28.03.1931
Debut goal: 03.11.1928
Last goal: 28.03.1931
Contract expiry: 03.07.1931
Win ratio: 40.48% W:17 D:10 L:15
Games/goals ratio: 3.82
League games / goals: 39 / 11
Total games / goals: 42 / 11

Player Profile

John Robert or simply "Bob" Clark, who could feature anywhere up front and was "built like an elephant" weighing over 14 stone, won the League Championship with Newcastle in 1927, a perfect partner for Hughie Gallacher. He played 77 League games and scored 16 goals in five years until he moved to Liverpool in the middle of the 1927/28 season. He was introduced into the Liverpool side when he played in two defeats against West Ham and Portsmouth early February 1928. He played in 32 consecutive League matches the next season, scoring nine goals. Although Clark started the 1929/30 season in the first team and played in the opening three League fixtures, he lost his place and was only called on once more in his last season at the club, on 28 March 1931, although he did sign off with a goal when Liverpool defeated Portsmouth 3-1.

Clark did have his moments in a Liverpool shirt as evident in this report in the Liverpool Echo on Liverpool's 8-0 victory over Burnley on Boxing Day 1928. "That’s Clarky, he would dribble round his own side, the referee and anyone else between him and goal. Dribbling is a joy to watch when Clark is in this mood. Although the crowd at times do not echo my enthusiasm when he goes backward to go around the same player twice or even thrice."
Appearances per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 39 3 0 0 0 42
1927-1928 2 0 0 0 0 2
1928-1929 32 3 0 0 0 35
1929-1930 4 0 0 0 0 4
1930-1931 1 0 0 0 0 1
A more detailed look at the player's appearances
Apps Minutes Opponent
4 390 Bolton Wanderers
4 360 Portsmouth
3 270 Huddersfield Town
3 270 Arsenal
2 180 Birmingham City
2 180 Sheffield Wednesday
2 180 Sunderland
2 180 Cardiff City
2 180 Derby
2 180 Burnley
2 180 Manchester City
2 180 Blackburn Rovers
2 180 West Ham United
2 180 Everton
1 90 Leicester City
1 90 Bristol City
1 90 Middlesbrough
1 90 Aston Villa
1 90 Manchester United
1 90 Leeds United
1 90 Newcastle United
1 90 Bury
Total Venue
22 Home
20 Away
Total Competition
39 League
3 FA Cup
Total W D L Win % Manager
40 17 10 13 42.5% George Patterson (2nd term)
2 0 0 2 0% Matt McQueen
Goals per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 11 0 0 0 0 11
1927-1928 0 0 0 0 0 0
1928-1929 9 0 0 0 0 9
1929-1930 1 0 0 0 0 1
1930-1931 1 0 0 0 0 1
A more detailed look at the player's goalscoring
Total Competition
11 League
Total Goal origin
11 Open play
Milestone Appearances
# Date Against Stadium Competition
1 04.02.1928 West Ham United Anfield League
Milestone Goals
# Minute Date Against Stadium Competition
1 85 03.11.1928 Birmingham Anfield League
Related Articles
Roaring 20s by Wooltonian - part 4

Wooltonian looks at Liverpool matches from 1927-1929.

Related Quotes

"Clark is one of the few footballers who really enjoys his football. He loves to have a lot of the ball, to walk this way and that way, striding and stroking the ball at will. He loves to make a tackle with one foot and, having missed the ball, he completes the boyish trick of putting his other foot out behind foot number one.

But he is seen at his best, when he is bringing a ball down by a trapping movement. Yesterday against Burnley he got his first goal, through charging Lindsay out of the way and dribbling round one of his own players. That’s Clarky, he would dribble round his own side, the referee and anyone else between him and goal. Dribbling is a joy to watch when Clark is in this mood. Although the crowd at times do not echo my enthusiasm when he goes backward to go around the same player twice or even thrice. He has instilled a working spirit into the forward line, and there was a Newcastle stamp on the Anfield slopes yesterday."

Bob Clark's skills described after a sensational performance on 26.12.1928 vs Burnley where he scored two goals in an 8-0 victory.

Scrapbook
Clark in sensational form at Christmas 1928
Clark in sensational form at Christmas 1928
Other Clubs
Club Season Club rank League apps League goals Total apps Total goals
Spencer's Welfare 1919-1920 N/A N/A N/A N/A
Hawthorn Leslie 1920-1921 N/A N/A N/A N/A
Newburn Grange 1921-1922 Northern Football Alliance League N/A N/A N/A N/A
Prudhoe Castle 1922-1923 N/A N/A N/A N/A
Newcastle United 1922-1923 England First Division 5 1 5 1
Newcastle United 1923-1924 England First Division 11 1 11 1
Newcastle United 1924-1925 England First Division 18 4 18 4
Newcastle United 1925-1926 England First Division 21 6 21 6
Newcastle United 1926-1927 England First Division 17 4 17 4
Newcastle United 1927-1928 England First Division 5 0 5 0
Nottingham Forest 1931-1932 England Second Division 5 2 5 2
North Shields 1932- North Eastern League N/A N/A N/A N/A
Total 82 18 82 18