Bruce Grobbelaar facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Bruce Grobbelaar

Grobbelaar in 2008
Personal information
Date of birth	(1957-10-06) 6 October 1957 (age 67)
Place of birth	Durban, South Africa
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1973–1974	Highlanders	2	(0)
1975	Chibuku Shumba	13	(0)
1976	Highlands Park	0	(0)
1977–1978	Durban City	23	(0)
1979–1981	Vancouver Whitecaps	24	(0)
1979–1980	→ Crewe Alexandra (loan)	24	(1)
1981–1994	Liverpool	440	(0)
1993	→ Stoke City (loan)	4	(0)
1994–1996	Southampton	32	(0)
1996–1997	Plymouth Argyle	36	(0)
1997	Oxford United	0	(0)
1997	Sheffield Wednesday	0	(0)
1997–1998	Oldham Athletic	4	(0)
1998	Chesham United	4	(0)
1998	Bury	1	(0)
1998	Lincoln City	2	(0)
1999	Northwich Victoria	1	(0)
2002	Hellenic	1	(0)
2007	Glasshoughton Welfare	1	(0)
Total		574	(1)
National team
1977–1998	Zimbabwe	33	(0)
2018	Matabeleland	1	(0)
Teams managed
1997	Zimbabwe
1998	Zimbabwe
1999–2001	SuperSport United
2001–2002	Hellenic
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Bruce David Grobbelaar (born 6 October 1957) is a former professional footballer from Zimbabwe. He was a goalkeeper and is best known for playing for the English team Liverpool from 1981 to 1994. He also played for the Zimbabwean national team. People remember him for his amazing athletic skills, his confidence, and his unique, exciting style of play. He was also good at rushing out of his goal, which reminds some experts of modern "sweeper-keepers."

Bruce was born in South Africa but grew up in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He served in the Rhodesian Army before joining the Vancouver Whitecaps in 1979. Liverpool noticed him when he was on loan at Crewe Alexandra. He joined Liverpool in 1981. Over 13 years, he played 628 games for Liverpool. He helped them win the League championship six times, three FA Cups, three League Cups, and the 1983–84 European Cup.

After Liverpool, Grobbelaar played for Southampton and Plymouth Argyle. He also played for several other smaller English teams. In 2014, he became a goalkeeper coach for Ottawa Fury FC. In 2018, he became the goalkeeper coach for the Matabeleland football team.

Club Career Highlights

Starting His Football Journey

When Bruce was a teenager, he was very good at cricket. He even had a chance to play baseball in the United States. But his biggest dream was to play football. He started his football career with a team called Highlanders FC in Bulawayo, Rhodesia. Later, he joined Durban City Football Club in South Africa. After this, he served in the Rhodesia Regiment during the Rhodesian Bush War for almost a year.

Playing in North America and England

In 1979, Bruce joined the Vancouver Whitecaps in the NASL. He played under the guidance of former England goalkeeper Tony Waiters. Bruce then went to England and had a trial with West Bromwich Albion. He couldn't get a work permit, so he joined Crewe Alexandra on loan in December 1979.

While at Crewe, Bruce played 24 league games. He even scored his only professional goal from a penalty kick in his last game for them! A scout from Liverpool, Tom Saunders, saw him play a fantastic game for Crewe. This led to his big move. After his loan, Bruce went back to Vancouver for the 1980 NASL season.

Becoming a Liverpool Legend

Grobbelaar in October 1981, stopping the ball from AZ's Jos Jonker (right)

Liverpool signed Bruce Grobbelaar for £250,000 in March 1981. He was meant to be a reserve goalkeeper. But when the main goalkeeper, Ray Clemence, left for Tottenham Hotspur, Bruce got his chance. He made his first appearance for Liverpool on 28 August 1981. His first clean sheet (a game where the opponent doesn't score) came two weeks later against Arsenal.

At first, Bruce made some mistakes, and Liverpool struggled. But by the new year, the team, led by manager Bob Paisley, started playing much better. They won many games and ended up winning the League championship! Bruce also won the League Cup that season.

Bruce played 627 games for Liverpool over 14 years. He was famous for his exciting and sometimes funny style. In the 1984 European Cup final against Roma, the game went to a penalty shootout. Before Roma's Bruno Conti took his kick, Bruce pretended to eat spaghetti by wobbling his legs. Conti missed! Bruce did something similar for the next kick, and that player missed too. Liverpool won the shootout and the European Cup!

Bruce was a key player for three great Liverpool managers: Paisley, Fagan, and Dalglish. He was known for his amazing agility and confidence. He wasn't afraid to tell his defenders off if they made mistakes. He won more medals than any other player from his time at Liverpool.

In the 1988–89 season, Bruce faced some injuries and illness. But he was fit to play in the FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest. This game was moved to Old Trafford because of the sad Hillsborough disaster that happened at Hillsborough. Bruce attended many of the funerals for the fans who passed away.

In 1992, Liverpool signed David James. This meant Bruce played less often, especially when he was away playing for Zimbabwe. Bruce played his last game for Liverpool in February 1994.

During his time at Liverpool, he won six league titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups, and one European Cup.

Later Career Teams

Bruce left Liverpool in 1994 and joined Southampton. He played there for two seasons. After Southampton, he spent short periods at several other clubs, including Plymouth Argyle, Oxford United, and Sheffield Wednesday. He then returned to his home country.

International Career

Bruce Grobbelaar was born in South Africa, but he moved to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) when he was two months old. He grew up there and learned to play football.

He made his first international appearance for Rhodesia when he was 19, in a friendly game against South Africa in 1977. He later played for Zimbabwe in World Cup qualifying matches.

In 1992, he came back to play for the national team after some years away. With Bruce and other talented players like Adam and Peter Ndlovu, Zimbabwe almost qualified for the 1994 World Cup. Bruce played 32 games for Zimbabwe between 1980 and 1998.

On 7 June 2018, Bruce played a special game for the Matabeleland football team in the ConIFA World Cup. He played for 30 minutes against the Chagos Islands.

Retirement and Coaching

After retiring from playing, Bruce Grobbelaar moved back to South Africa. He coached several teams there, helping them improve. He managed Seven Stars and helped them move up the league table. In 2001, he coached Hellenic and even played in one of their last games, becoming the oldest player in the South African league at 44 years old! He also coached Supersport United, Manning Rangers, and Umtata Bush Bucks. He was also briefly the player-manager for Zimbabwe's national team in 1997 and 1998.

Bruce has said he hopes to return to Liverpool one day as their manager. He still plays in charity matches and is very popular with Liverpool fans. In 2006, he was voted No.17 in a poll of the "100 Players Who Shook The Kop" by the official Liverpool Football Club website.

In 2007, Bruce came out of retirement for one game to help a non-league team, Glasshoughton Welfare, win a match. He also appeared on a TV show called Hell's Kitchen in 2009.

As of 2012, Bruce lived in Canada and was active in local soccer, playing as a goalkeeper and sometimes coaching young players. From 2014 to 2018, he was the goalkeeping coach for Ottawa Fury FC. In May 2018, he became the goalkeeping coach for the Matabeleland football team. He later became a goalkeeping coach for the Norwegian club Øygarden FK.

Career Statistics

Source:

• A. The "Other" column includes games and goals in the Charity Shield, Screen Sport Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup, and Centenary Trophy.

Honours

Liverpool

• Football League First Division: 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1985–86, 1987–88, 1989–90
• FA Cup: 1985–86, 1988–89, 1991–92
• League Cup: 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84
• FA Charity Shield: 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990
• European Cup: 1983–84
• Football League Super Cup: 1986

Images for kids

• 

  Grobbelaar in 2008

• 

  Grobbelaar in October 1981, stopping the ball from AZ's Jos Jonker (right)

See also

In Spanish: Bruce Grobbelaar para niños