Ronnie Rooke

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Ronnie Rooke

| image =

| fullname = Ronald Leslie Rooke{{Hugman|17102|access-date=16 March 2018}}

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1911|12|7}}

| birth_place = Guildford, Surrey, England

| death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|1985|6|9|1911|12|7}}

| death_place = Bedford, Bedfordshire, England

| height = {{height|ft=5|in=10}}

| position = Centre forward

| years1 = 1931–1933

| clubs1 = Guildford City

| years2 = 1932–1933

| caps1 = 19

| goals1 = 20

| clubs2 = Woking

| years3 = 1933–1936

| caps2 = 25

| goals2 = 29

| clubs3 = Crystal Palace

| caps3 = 18

| goals3 = 6

| years4 = 1936–1946

| clubs4 = Fulham

| caps4 = 105

| goals4 = 70

| years5 = 1946–1949

| clubs5 = Arsenal

| caps5 = 88

| goals5 = 68

| years6 = 1949–1950

| clubs6 = Crystal Palace

| caps6 = 45

| goals6 = 26

| years7 = 1950–1953

| clubs7 = Bedford Town

| caps7 = 103

| goals7 = 79

| years8 = 1954–1956

| clubs8 = Haywards Heath Town

| caps8 = 71

| goals8 = 67

| years9 = 1956–1957

| clubs9 = Addlestone

| caps9 = 23

| goals9 = 13

| years10 = 1959–1961

| clubs10 = Bedford Town

| caps10 = 50

| goals10 = 22

| totalcaps = 547

| totalgoals = 400

| nationalyears1 = 1942

| nationalteam1 = England (wartime)

| nationalcaps1 = 1

| nationalgoals1 = 0

| manageryears1 = 1949–1950

| managerclubs1 = Crystal Palace (player-manager)

| manageryears2 = 1951–1953

| managerclubs2 = Bedford Town (player-manager)

| manageryears3 =

| managerclubs3 = Haywards Heath Town (player-manager)

| manageryears4 =

| managerclubs4 = Addlestone (player-manager)

| manageryears5 = 1959–1961

| managerclubs5 = Bedford Town (player-manager)

}}

Ronald Leslie Rooke (7 December 1911 – 9 June 1985) was an English footballer who played as a centre forward.{{cite web |title=Ronnie Rooke |url=http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/player5/ronnierooke.html |access-date=18 March 2018 |website=UK A–Z Transfers |publisher=Neil Brown |archive-date=24 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224173203/http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/player5/ronnierooke.html |url-status=live }} During his three decades' playing career, he scored at least 931 goals in 1029 official matches, among which more than 765 league goals at all levels. According to the RSSSF, he is the best league goalscorer of all time, and the third overall behind Erwin Helmchen and Josef Bican.{{Cite web |last=Kolos |first=Vladimir |url=https://www.rsssf.org/players/prolific.html |title=Prolific Scorers Data |website=RSSSF |access-date=7 February 2022 |archive-date=26 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240826154803/https://www.rsssf.org/players/prolific.html |url-status=live }}

Playing career

Rooke was born in Guildford, Surrey, and began his playing career with local club Guildford City.{{cite book |first=Ian |last=King |title=Crystal Palace: The Complete Record 1905–2011 |publisher=Derby Books |date=2011 |pages=204–05 |isbn=9781780910468}} He then had a spell with Woking in 1932–33 during which he scored 29 goals from 16 appearances in all competitions.{{cite news |url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/arsenal-fulham-england-star-ronnie-12284647.amp |title=Arsenal, Fulham and England star Ronnie sets benchmark for Woking FC's Gozie Ugwu |first=Clive |last=Youlton |website=GetSurrey |date=7 December 2016 |access-date=16 March 2018}} In 1933, he joined Crystal Palace, who were at the time in the Third Division South. He played mainly for the Palace reserve side, only playing eighteen league matches and scoring six goals between 1933 and 1936.{{cite book |first=Ian |last=King |title=Crystal Palace: The Complete Record 1905–2011 |date=2011 |pages=284–91}} He then moved to Second Division club Fulham for a £300 fee in November 1936. He was the club's leading scorer for three consecutive seasons and contributed all six goals in a 6–0 FA Cup demolition of Bury, which is still ({{as of|2013|lc=y}}) a club record.{{cite web |url=http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/july/04/throwback-thursday |title=Throwback Thursday |publisher=Fulham F.C. |date=4 July 2013 |access-date=16 March 2018 |archive-date=17 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170717061636/http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/july/04/throwback-thursday |url-status=live }}

He had scored 57 goals in 87 league matches for Fulham before the outbreak of the second world war. However, Rooke's career did not stop, serving as a physical training instructor in the RAF, enabled him to continue playing, where he made 199 appearances in the wartime games for Fulham, scoring 212 goals. He also won a Wartime International cap for England in 1942, against Wales. In 1945, Rooke had guested for Arsenal in a match against the touring Dynamo Moscow team.{{cite journal |url=http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A54611189/GPS?u=wikipedia&sid=GPS&xid=f2ebc941 |title=Moscow Dynamo's British Tour 1945 |first1=Ronald |last1=Kowalski |first2=Dilwyn |last2=Porter |journal=History Review |date=March 1999 |page=9 |via=General OneFile |url-access=subscription }} The resumption of league football in 1946 saw Rooke score a further 13 goals in 18 appearances for Fulham, before a surprising transfer to the first division strugglers Arsenal in December that year. Rooke left Fulham after scoring 70 goals in 105 league appearances for the club.{{Cite web |title=DT92 ~ Ronnie Rooke |url=http://www.doingthe92.com/display_player.asp?step=61&ID=1&pid=40340&ptag=Ronnie_Rooke |access-date=19 January 2023 |website=www.doingthe92.com |archive-date=19 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119225837/http://www.doingthe92.com/display_player.asp?step=61&ID=1&pid=40340&ptag=Ronnie_Rooke |url-status=live }} Despite being 35 years old and never having played in the top flight, the Gunners paid £1,000 with two players, Cyril Grant and Dave Nelson, moving to Craven Cottage.{{cite web |url=https://www.arsenal.com/historic/players/cyril-grant |title=Cyril Grant |publisher=Arsenal F.C. |access-date=16 March 2018}}

However surprising the signing may have been, Rooke made an immediate impact: he scored the winner on his debut, against Charlton Athletic on 14 December 1946, and by the end of the season had taken his total to 21 goals from 24 league matches and helped Arsenal finish in mid-table.{{cite book |first=Jeff |last=Harris |editor-first=Tony |editor-last=Hogg |title=Arsenal Who's Who |publisher=Independent UK Sports |location=London |date=1995 |pages=219–20 |isbn=978-1-899429-03-5}} He scored 33 league goals in 1947–48, a total that made him that season's First Division top scorer,{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablese/engtops.html |title=English League Leading Goalscorers: Football League Div 1 & 2 Leading Goalscorers 1947–92 |first=James M. |last=Ross |date=8 June 2017 |website=RSSSF |access-date=16 March 2018 |archive-date=28 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628202228/http://www.rsssf.com/tablese/engtops.html |url-status=live }} and helped propel the Gunners to their sixth League title.{{cite web |url=http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/ggm-44-whittaker-leads-arsenal-to-sixth-title |title=Whittaker leads Arsenal to sixth title |publisher=Arsenal F.C. |date=10 May 2017 |access-date=18 March 2018 |archive-date=16 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160316025507/http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/ggm-44-whittaker-leads-arsenal-to-sixth-title |url-status=live }} He remains ({{as of|2020|lc=y}}) Arsenal's all-time record-holder for the most goals scored in a postwar season. Rooke scored another 15 goals in 1948–49, including one in Arsenal's 4–3 victory over Manchester United in the 1948 FA Charity Shield.{{cite web |url=http://www.thearsenalhistory.com/stat/aftlu.htm |title=Arsenal first team line-ups |first=Andy |last=Kelly |website=The Arsenal History |access-date=3 November 2017 |archive-date=2 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202213854/http://www.thearsenalhistory.com/stat/aftlu.htm |url-status=dead }} Select season required. For the Gunners Rooke scored 70 goals in 94 matches in all competitions.{{cite web |url=https://www.arsenal.com/historic/players/ronnie-rooke |title=Ronnie Rooke |publisher=Arsenal F.C. |access-date=16 March 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219195033/https://www.arsenal.com/historic/players/ronnie-rooke |url-status=live }}

In total he scored 170 goals from 256 appearances in the Football League for Crystal Palace, Fulham and Arsenal. His goal exploits continued in non-league football, becoming a player-manager for various clubs before his eventual retirement, ending a career that stretched over thirty years.

Managerial career

Rooke left Arsenal in the summer of 1949, to rejoin former club Crystal Palace as player-manager. His first season as manager was moderately successful as Palace finished seventh in the Third Division South. The next season began poorly, and in November 1950 he moved on to Bedford Town, having increased his appearances and goals totals for Palace to 63 and 32 respectively. He initially featured as a player for Bedford, before being appointed player-manager in February 1951, a job he held until December 1953.{{cite web |url=https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/the-rest/the-managers |title=Managers and Coaches, 1945–82 |website=Bedford Old Eagles |publisher=David Williams |access-date=27 June 2017 |archive-date=21 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021231621/https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/the-rest/the-managers |url-status=live }} During this spell at the club Rooke scored 97 goals from 136 appearances in all competitions.

He then moved on to become player-manager at Haywards Heath Town and Addlestone, before returning to Bedford in 1959. Although his second spell saw him appointed only as a manager, he made two first team appearances when the club were lacking players.{{cite web |url=https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/best-years-introduction-page/introduction/best-years-players-j-r |title=Best Years Players J–R |website=Bedford Old Eagles |publisher=David Williams |access-date=18 March 2018 |archive-date=26 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026081747/https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/best-years-introduction-page/introduction/best-years-players-j-r |url-status=live }} He was sacked after the club lost an FA Cup match against Hitchin Town in September 1961.

Personal life

Rooke later worked at Heathrow Airport and Whitbread brewery.{{cite book |first1=Mike |last1=Purkiss |first2=Nigel |last2=Sands |title=Crystal Palace: A Complete Record 1905–1989 |year=1990 |publisher=Breedon Books |location=Derby |page=50 |isbn=0907969542}} He died of lung cancer in Bedford, Bedfordshire, in June 1985.

Honours

=As player=

Arsenal

=As manager=

Bedford Town

Huntingdonshire Premier Cup: 1951–52{{cite web |url=https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/best-years-introduction-page/commentary-season-by-season-1950-67/1951-2-summary |title=1951/2 Summary |website=Bedford Old Eagles |publisher=David Williams |access-date=18 March 2018 |archive-date=2 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002013948/https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/best-years-introduction-page/commentary-season-by-season-1950-67/1951-2-summary |url-status=dead }}

=Individual=

First Division top scorer: 1947–48
Daily Express Footballer of the Season: 1947–48{{cite news |url=https://www.afchistory.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/ronnie-rooke-crowned-footballer-of-the-season-on-this-day-3rd-may-1948/amp/ |title=Ronnie Rooke: Express Soccer star of season |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=3 May 1948 |via=afchistory.wordpress.com |archive-date=26 January 2022 |access-date=1 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126215825/https://afchistory.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/ronnie-rooke-crowned-footballer-of-the-season-on-this-day-3rd-may-1948/amp/ |url-status=dead }}