 Robbie Blake as manager ofBognor Regis Town in January 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert James Blake[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1976-03-04)4 March 1976 (age 49)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Middlesbrough, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Striker,midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1994 | Darlington | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1994–1997 | Darlington | 68 | (21) |
| 1995–1996 | →Waterford United (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 1997–2002 | Bradford City | 153 | (40) |
| 2000 | →Nottingham Forest (loan) | 11 | (1) |
| 2002–2005 | Burnley | 120 | (42) |
| 2005 | Birmingham City | 11 | (2) |
| 2005–2007 | Leeds United | 77 | (19) |
| 2007–2010 | Burnley | 122 | (19) |
| 2010–2012 | Bolton Wanderers | 9 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | Doncaster Rovers | 7 | (0) |
| 2013 | Team Northumbria | ||
| Total | 580 | (145) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2018–2024 | Bognor Regis Town | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Robert James Blake (born 4 March 1976) is an English former professionalfootballer who was most recently the manager ofBognor Regis Town. He began his career as astriker but was increasingly used asmidfielder in the latter part of his career.
He began his professional career withDarlington in 1994 and went on to make more than 500 appearances inthe Football League andPremier League playing forBradford City,Nottingham Forest, Burnley,Birmingham City,Leeds United,Bolton Wanderers andDoncaster Rovers. Blake was the subject of manytransfers throughout his career, with career total transfer fees reaching £3.6 million.[2]
Born inMiddlesbrough, England, Blake began his professional football career atDivision Three sideDarlington in the1994–95 season after signing on from theyouth academy.[2] He spent the first few seasons of his career playing atFeethams, and also was loaned out toWaterford United during the 1995–96 season, making some 68 league appearances and scoring 21 goals before the club received an offer, from thenDivision One side,Bradford City in March 1997. Bradford made a£300,000 offer for the player which Darlington accepted.[3]
Blake quickly settled into the Bradford side and he scored eight goals in his first full season, first underChris Kamara and thenPaul Jewell. He was sent off in the final game of the1997–98 season againstPortsmouth meaning he was suspended for the start of the following season. But he forced his way back into the team and scored in his first game back in a 2–2 draw withSheffield United. He and new signingLee Mills forged a lethal partnership in attack sharing 40 goals. Blake scored 16 goals[4] as City won promotion to thePremiership. Blake scored the winning goal in the final game againstWolverhampton Wanderers of the1998–99 season to see his side finish the season as league runners-up.[3]
However the following season was harder for Blake and he struggled to make an impact in thePremiership, starting just 15 games for Bradford, with a further 12 played as a substitute.[2] The next season atValley Parade began much differently for Blake after being sent on loan to Division One sideNottingham Forest for two months,[4] scoring once against Barnsley.[5] Following his 2-month loan spell at Forest he returned to Bradford where he finished the season with four goals from his 14 starts in the2000–01 season with Bradford ultimately being relegated to Division One.[3] During the summer of 2001 former loan club Nottingham Forest made an undisclosed bid for the player which was rejected. Following the failed transfer bid Forest managerDavid Platt said;
"The offer was turned down, and as no further finance is available, we must assume the deal is dead" –David Platt[6]
This was not the last transfer offer Bradford would receive as just a few months later on 25 January 2002 the club received a £1 million transfer bid from fellow Division One sideBurnley and, due to Bradford's poor financial status, the club had no option but to sell the player.[2]
Blake signed a three-year contract with the Clarets but did not feature much in the remaining six months of the season due to ahernia injury.[3] In his second season at Burnley Blake was the club's top scorer with 22 goals in all competitions from 46 games. That summer, long time Burnley managerStan Ternent left the club and was replaced bySteve Cotterill and under the new manager Blake continued his prolific goal scoring with 13 goals in the run up to the January transfer window. When the transfer window opened Blake was subject of multiple bids by Premiership clubs, all of which were rejected (at first). Several bids were made byWigan Athletic who had offers of £500,000 and £600,000 rejected. Following the failed bids Wigan managerPaul Jewell said;
"The position is that we made an offer for him and it's been turned down, it's as simple as that" –Paul Jewell[7]
Wigan later made a third for the player, a revised figure of £700,000. Again the Burnley board turned down this offer and no further bids were made by the Latics.[8] In his final game of his first spell at Burnley he scored what is possibly the best goal of his Burnley career leathering in a stunning free kick from 35 yards in a local derby against Preston North End. Eventually a successful bid of £1.25 million was made byBirmingham City and Blake once again had a chance to prove himself in the top league.[9]
Blake made his debut for Birmingham in theFA Cup againstLeeds United on 8 January 2005 as a second-half substitute. Blake was confident that he could push for a starting place at Birmingham saying:
"Clinton Morrison andEmile Heskey have done fantastically well, but hopefully I can push them for a place. I can play in a few positions, behind the strikers or dropping deep, and that gives the gaffer some selections to think about. I thought if anything a bottom four team in the Premiership would come in for me but Birmingham, with the quality of players they have, was an even bigger bonus."[9] –Robbie Blake
In an interview withBBC Sport. Blake's hopes did not materialise, he went on to play just 11 games for the club and only scored two goals.[10] During the summer of that year Birmingham confirmed that they had received an offer from Leeds United for Blake:
"We have had an offer from Leeds for Robbie Blake. We are considering it and talks are ongoing. Robbie has done very well for us, but he feels he wants to play more and at Leeds he would probably play every week" –Steve Bruce[10]
Blake did not travel with his teammates on the pre-season tour as he was still in negotiations with Leeds[11] and he was eventually signed for £800,000.[12][13]
Blake signed a three-year deal atElland Road and commented that although moving to Leeds was stepping back a division he was looking forward to winning promotion with his new club;
"It's a step back in terms of divisions but hopefully I can get back into the Premier League with Leeds. With the quality of players we have got, I'm sure there will be no end of goals going in."[12] –Robbie Blake
He made his debut for the club alongside Northern Ireland strikerDavid Healy in the first match of the2005–06 season againstMillwall and scored his first goal just two days later in the Championship match againstCardiff City atNinian Park.[14] He went on to make 31 starts for Leeds and finished the season with 11 goals.
Blake was one of six strikers at Leeds and was not a first team regular until the second season whenDennis Wise was appointed manager followingKevin Blackwell's departure.[3] Blake did manage eight goals in the2006–07 season but this was not enough to save Leeds fromrelegation after the club filed foradministration and suffered a 10-point deduction.[15] Following their relegation to theFootball League One Leeds struggled to hang on to their players with the likes ofDavid Healy,Richard Cresswell,Neil Sullivan andKevin Nicholls all leaving the club.[16]
Blake soon followed when he was re-signed by Burnley for a fee of £250,000 on 13 July 2007 and signed a three-year deal.[3][17] A number of clauses on the sale meant the total transfer fee would rise to £350,000 after 40 games and also included a further payment if Burnley were to be promoted.[13]
With Blake back at his old club, managerSteve Cotterill revealed that Blake felt he had "unfinished business" with the club and that the player needed no persuasion to sign the deal.[18] Burnley director Brendan Flood also revealed that Burnley had been working on a deal for a couple of weeks prior to the announcement:
"With strikers, once it gets mooted that they may be on the move, it invites others to join the hunt. Being able to keep it under wraps is therefore vital, otherwise you get competitive bids coming and the price spirals. Robbie is a proven entertainer and one of the top strikers in the Championship and we know he is always going to score goals. But the really important factor is that he is happy and keen to play for Burnley."[19] –Brendan Flood
Blake made his return debut for the club on 11 August 2007 in the opening fixture of the2007–08 Football League Championship season againstWest Bromwich Albion which Burnley won 2–1.[20] He then scored the first goal of his second spell with the Clarets against in theLeague Cup game againstOldham Athletic.[21] He was heavily praised by both his[22] and other managers[23] as well as the press for his excellent form at the start of the 2007–2008 season, most notably for his performance in the 1–1 draw againstCrystal Palace just days after the birth of his daughter Mia.[24] Blake finished the season with 10 goals and 14 assists in 43 matches.
Blake came close to helping Burnley into the2009 League Cup final by scoring one goal and making two more in the second leg of the side's semi-final againstTottenham Hotspur. The goals put Burnley just two minutes away from the final, before Tottenham scored twice in the final two minutes to reach the final on aggregate.[25]
Blake returned to the top flight once again in May 2009, this time with Burnley after Burnley beat Sheffield United 1–0 in the play-off final at Wembley. A match which Blake played in, directly against a youngKyle Walker. Blake scored his firstPremier League goal since 2005 on 19 August 2009 against the defending Premier League championsManchester United, in a 1–0 win. This was Burnley's first home game in the top flight of English football for 33 years.[26]
On 30 June 2010, it was announced that he had signed forBolton Wanderers on a free transfer and would officially join the club a day later.[27] He made his debut for Wanderers in their 3–1 win overWest Ham United at Upton Park on 21 August and scored his first goal for the club eight days later in the home game against former employersBirmingham City with a free kick that earned Bolton a 2–2 draw. As the season drew on, Blake became less and less involved in the first team and several clubs showed interest in signing him on loan, but the player decided to stay and fight for his first team place.[28] At the end of the season, the club decided to take up the option on extending his contract for another year.[29] However, at the end of the following season, following Bolton's relegation from the Premier League, Blake was released.[30] He made only three appearances in his second season with only one of them in the league, on the opening day of the season.
On 27 June 2012, it was announced that Blake had signed a one-year deal forDoncaster Rovers on a free transfer.[31] After two League Cup starts and several appearances from the bench, he scored his first goal for Rovers on 1 December 2012 in an FA Cup game atOldham Athletic.[32] With no appearances since January, Blake's contract was terminated by mutual consent on 25 March 2013, with him having scored once in 14 appearances for the club.[33]
On 2 November 2013, it was announced that Blake had signed forTeam Northumbria who are in the Division One of theNorthern League on a free transfer.[34]
In September 2015, Blake joined the backroom staff atPortsmouth as a coach.[35]
On 23 May 2018, it was announced that Blake had joinedBognor Regis Town as First Team Coach.[36] He departed the club by mutual consent in November 2024 with the club sitting bottom of theIsthmian League Premier Division.[37]
Blake has joined the coaching staff atWeymouth FC for the 2025/26 season.[38]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Darlington | 1994–95 | Third Division | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 1995–96 | Third Division | 29 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 1 | 36 | 12 | |
| 1996–97 | Third Division | 30 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1[b] | 0 | 37 | 11 | |
| Total | 68 | 21 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 82 | 23 | ||
| Bradford City | 1996–97 | First Division | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| 1997–98 | First Division | 34 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 8 | ||
| 1998–99 | First Division | 39 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 44 | 17 | ||
| 1999–2000 | Premier League | 28 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | 33 | 4 | ||
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 21 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 4[c] | 2 | 26 | 6 | ||
| 2001–02 | First Division | 26 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | — | 30 | 12 | ||
| Total | 153 | 40 | 7 | 1 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 175 | 47 | ||
| Nottingham Forest (loan) | 2000–01 | First Division | 11 | 1 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 12 | 1 | ||
| Burnley | 2001–02 | First Division | 10 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||
| 2002–03 | First Division | 41 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | — | 49 | 16 | ||
| 2003–04 | First Division | 45 | 19 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | 51 | 22 | ||
| 2004–05 | Championship | 24 | 10 | — | 4 | 3 | — | 28 | 13 | |||
| Total | 120 | 42 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 5 | — | 138 | 51 | |||
| Birmingham City | 2004–05 | Premier League | 11 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 2 | ||
| Leeds United | 2005–06 | Championship | 41 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | 47 | 11 |
| 2006–07 | Championship | 36 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 40 | 9 | ||
| Total | 77 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 87 | 20 | ||
| Burnley | 2007–08 | Championship | 45 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 49 | 10 | |
| 2008–09 | Championship | 46 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 3[d] | 0 | 61 | 9 | |
| 2009–10 | Premier League | 31 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 34 | 2 | ||
| Total | 122 | 19 | 8 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 144 | 21 | ||
| Bolton Wanderers | 2010–11 | Premier League | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 12 | 1 | |
| 2011–12 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 15 | 1 | |||
| Doncaster Rovers | 2012–13 | League One | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| Career total | 578 | 145 | 35 | 6 | 52 | 13 | 15 | 3 | 680 | 167 | ||
Bradford City
Leeds United
Burnley
Bognor Regis Town
