Martin Dobson
{{short description|English footballer and manager}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2012}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name= Martin Dobson
| fullname = John Martin Dobson
| image =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1948|2|14|df=y}}
| birth_place = Rishton, England
| position = Midfielder
| youthyears1 =
| youthclubs1 =
| years1 = 1966–1967
| years2 = 1967–1974
| years3 = 1974–1979
| years4 = 1979–1983
| years5 = 1983–1985
| clubs1 = Bolton Wanderers
| clubs2 = Burnley
| clubs3 = Everton
| clubs4 = Burnley
| clubs5 = Bury
| caps1 = 0
| caps2 = 224
| caps3 = 190
| caps4 = 186
| caps5 = 61
| totalcaps = 661
| goals1 = 0
| goals2 = 43
| goals3 = 29
| goals4 = 20
| goals5 = 4
| totalgoals = 96
| manageryears1 = 1984–1989
| manageryears2 = 1991
| manageryears3 = 1991
| manageryears4 = 1998–2000
| manageryears5 = 2010
| managerclubs1 = Bury
| managerclubs2 = Bristol Rovers
| managerclubs3 = Northwich Victoria
| managerclubs4 = Bolton Wanderers Academy
| managerclubs5 = Burnley (Caretaker)
| nationalyears1 = 1970
| nationalteam1 = England U23
| nationalcaps1 = 1
| nationalgoals1 = 0
| nationalyears2 = 1974
| nationalteam2 = England
| nationalcaps2 = 5
| nationalgoals2 = 0
}}
Martin Dobson (born 14 February 1948) is an English former professional football player and coach. A midfielder who was an England international, he was the first player to be transferred for £300,000, when Everton bought him from Burnley in August 1974.
Club career
He was born in Rishton and attended Clitheroe Royal Grammar School. He was signed as youngster by Bolton Wanderers who spotted him playing for Lancashire Grammar Schools. However he was given a free transfer and moved on to Burnley.Burnley v Sheffield United football programme, 11 March 1978, p8 He played for almost 20 years and totalling over 600 league appearances while playing for Burnley, Everton and Bury.
International career
He won five England caps overall, four while at Burnley and one while at Everton. His first England cap was awarded to him by manager Sir Alf Ramsey (because of FA Cup commitments of other players) on 3 April 1974, a 0–0 draw against Portugal. However, he impressed enough to win four more caps that year.
Coaching career
As well as finishing his playing career with Bury, Dobson became their manager until 1989. During this period they were promoted from the old Fourth Division and became an established Third Division side.Bury F.C.#Past managers
Dobson was appointed manager of Bristol Rovers in July 1991, but was sacked after only 12 games in charge in October of the same year.{{cite book |last=Byrne |first=Stephen |author2=Jay, Mike |title=Bristol Rovers Football Club – The Definitive History 1883–2003 |year=2003 |publisher=Tempus |location=Stroud |isbn=0-7524-2717-2}} On 10 January 2010 he was appointed joint caretaker manager of Premier League side and former club Burnley, with Terry Pashley, after Owen Coyle left the club for Bolton Wanderers. However, Dobson and Pashley never managed a game due to the rapid appointment of Brian Laws. Laws kept Dobson on his coaching staff in the short-term as he built up his backroom staff. Dobson then returned full-time to his role as Burnley's director of youth development.{{cite web |url=http://www.burnleyfootballclub.com/page/LatestHeadlines/0,,10413~1931940,00.html |title=Laws Keeps Dobson And Pashley United |date=14 January 2010 |website=burnleyfootballclub.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120820064813/http://www.burnleyfootballclub.com/page/LatestHeadlines/0,,10413~1931940,00.html |archive-date=20 August 2012}}
Dobson left his post as director of youth at Burnley in October 2011 after his contract was not renewed by manager Eddie Howe who instead appointed his reserve team manager Jason Blake, from former club AFC Bournemouth, as academy manager. Dobson became the professional development co-ordinator at Everton in February 2018.
=Managerial statistics=
| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
|+ Managerial record by team and tenureManagers: [https://www.soccerbase.com/managers/manager.sd?manager_id=930 Martin Dobson], Soccerbase. Retrieved: 18 September 2023. | ||||
| rowspan=2|Team
!rowspan=2|From !rowspan=2|To !colspan=5|Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| {{abbr|P|Matches played}} | {{abbr|W|Matches won}} | {{abbr|D|Matches drawn}} | {{abbr|L|Matches lost}} | {{abbr|Win %|Win percentage}} |
| align=left|Bury
|align=left|1 March 1984 |align=left|31 March 1989 {{WDL|269|96|76|97|decimals=1}} | ||||
| align=left|Bristol Rovers
|align=left|2 July 1991 |align=left|4 October 1991 {{WDL|8|1|1|6|decimals=1}} | ||||
| colspan=3|Total
{{WDL|277|97|77|103|decimals=1}} |
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20100528162008/http://www.englandfc.com/Profiles/php/PlayerProfileByName.php?id=321 Profile at EnglandFC.com]
References
{{reflist}}
{{1981–82 Football League Third Division PFA Team of the Year}}
{{1984–85 Football League Fourth Division PFA Team of the Year}}
{{Bury F.C. managers}}
{{Bristol Rovers F.C. managers}}
{{Northwich Victoria F.C. managers}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobson, Martin}}
Category:English men's footballers
Category:England men's international footballers
Category:England men's under-23 international footballers
Category:Bolton Wanderers F.C. players
Category:Bolton Wanderers F.C. non-playing staff
Category:Bristol Rovers F.C. managers
Category:Northwich Victoria F.C. managers
Category:Men's association football midfielders
Category:English Football League players
Category:English Football League representative players
Category:English football managers