Stuart Roberts (footballer, born 1967)
{{short description|Welsh footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Stuart Roberts
| image =
| fullname = Stuart William Roberts
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1967|3|25|df=y}}
| birth_place = Chirk, Wales
| death_place = St Martin's, Shropshire, England
| death_date = {{death date and age|2023|6|2|1967|3|25|df=y}}
| position = Goalkeeper
| years1 = 1983 | clubs1 = Oswestry Town |caps1 = |goals1 =
| years2 = 1984–1985 | clubs2 = Stoke City |caps2 = 3 |goals2 = 0
| years3 = 1986–1988 | clubs3 = Derry City |caps3 = |goals3 =
}}
Stuart William Roberts (25 March 1967 – 2 June 2023) was a Welsh footballer who played in the English Football League for Stoke City.{{cite book|last=Matthews|first=Tony|title=The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City|year=1994|publisher=Lion Press|isbn=0-9524151-0-0}}
Career
Roberts was born in Chirk and played with Oswestry Town in the Welsh league, impressing enough to earn a move to First Division side Stoke City as a teenager. He made his Football League debut on 8 December 1984 against Ipswich Town becoming Stoke City's youngest goalkeeper at the age of 17 years, 258 days. Stoke lost 2–0 and Roberts played in four more matches during a woeful 1984–85 campaign which saw them relegated with a record low points tally. At the end of the season he was released and joined Irish club Derry City. He spent two seasons at the Brandywell Stadium and won the League of Ireland First Division in 1986–87. His last game was the 1988 FAI Cup Final.
Death
Roberts was found dead at his home in St Martin's, Shropshire on 2 June 2023. The inquest recorded a conclusion of suicide.{{cite web|url= https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/local-hubs/oswestry/st-martins/2023/12/16/former-stoke-city-footballer-from-shropshire-took-his-own-life-after-tinnitus-caused-mental-health-to-suffer/|title= Ex-Stoke City footballer from Shropshire took own life after tinnitus hit his mental health |publisher=Shropshire Star|date=16 December 2023|accessdate=21 December 2023}}
Career statistics
| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" | ||||||||
| rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|FA Cup !colspan="2"|League Cup !colspan="2"|Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Stoke City
|3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| colspan="3"|Career Total
!3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
Honours
;Derry City
- League of Ireland First Division champions: 1986–87
References
{{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Stuart}}
Category:Welsh men's footballers
Category:Stoke City F.C. players
Category:Derry City F.C. players
Category:League of Ireland players
Category:Men's association football goalkeepers
Category:Oswestry Town F.C. players
Category:English Football League players
Category:Sportspeople from Chirk