Number 98 - Bob Jackson

Name: Robert Jackson
Seasons Played: 1955/56-1963/64
Position: Right Back/Half Back
Date of Birth: 05.06.1934
Birthplace: Middleton, Lancashire
Debut: 17.03.1956, Port Vale (h), Div 2
League Games: 235
League Goals: 0
Career: Oldham Athletic, LCFC, Wisbech Town.

Bob Jackson played over 250 senior games for the Imps in a nine year spell at Sincil Bank in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

A versatile defender who appeared mostly at right back and left half for City, he was renowned for his tackling ability being described by one former colleague as ''our own Nobby Stiles."

Bob played for both Chadderton and Lancashire Schools representative teams as a youngster and on leaving school he became one of the first groundstaff boys at his local club Oldham Athletic.

After just three months he decided to begin an engineering apprenticeship but continued to play as an amateur for Oldham before signing professional forms at the age of 17.

He eventually graduated to the senior team before his career was interrupted by two years' National Service in the army. He continued to play football during this time and in March 1955 appeared for the Division Three North select team against a Division Three South team.

He remained in the side for the first part of the 1957/58 season but then suffered a bad ankle injury that kept him out of action for several months.

He eventually returned at the end of February and went on to play in the final six games of the season which were all won by the Imps to complete a miraculous escape from relegation out of Division Two.

Bob was a member of the City team a couple of seasons later that came close to knocking the then prospective Football League champions Burnley out of the FA Cup. The Imps were eventually relegated in 1960/61 and the following season went down again to end up in the Fourth Division.

Bob stayed at Sincil Bank until the summer of 1964 when he left for a short spell at Southern League club Wisbech Town. After leaving professional football he returned to work in engineering and was employed at both Ruston Bucyrus and EEV in the city and also at Marshall Fowlers at Gainsborough.

Profile adapted from an original article that appeared in the official LCFC matchday programme, season 2000/01 and subsequently published on the Lincoln City FC website www.redimps.com