John Grant Robertson
Encyclopedia
John Robertson is a former professional association football player and is currently the manager of East Fife
. His playing career included spells at Newcastle United, Dundee and Livingston but he is best known for his two spells at Heart of Midlothian
. He has previously managed Inverness Caledonian Thistle
, Heart of Midlothian and Derry City
, among others.
attempted to sign him but he asked for time to think the deal over and, after Hibs refused, he signed for Hearts, along with school friend and fellow future internationalist Dave Bowman. Robertson eventually earned the moniker "The Hammer of Hibs" as he scored for Hearts in almost every game he played against their city rivals and holds the record of scoring the most goals by any single player against Hibs by notching up 27 strikes against the Easter Road team.
Robertson was an instant success at Hearts, becoming a legend in the first few seasons with his prolific goal scoring record. In 1986 Robertson took Hearts to the brink of a league and cup double
by scoring goal after goal as the club went on an unbeaten run through that season. The league title was snatched from Hearts by Celtic
on the last day of the season. He left Hearts briefly to play for Newcastle United
in April 1988. Robertson failed to match the success he had enjoyed at Tynecastle and returned to Hearts in December of that year.
Robertson achieved his greatest success at Hearts, where he spent the vast majority of his playing career. Robertson’s loyalty to Hearts was finally rewarded in 1998 when Hearts won the Scottish Cup
and he received a winner’s medal, albeit as an unused substitute. After an earlier loan spell with Dundee
, he left Tynecastle that summer, joining Livingston as a player-coach.
Robertson was also a Scottish international
, playing on 16 occasions for Scotland. He made his debut against Romania
in 1990, scoring in a 2-1 win. He scored three goals in total in his international career.
, Robertson became involved in the coaching side of the game. He left the club in season 2002–03
to become manager of Inverness Caledonian Thistle
where he guided the Highland team to the SPL
for the first time in their history. In November 2004 he returned to Hearts as head coach and despite two cup semi-finals and a good season in Europe as well as finishing 5th in the league, he was sacked in May 2005.
He was appointed manager of Scottish First Division team Ross County
in June 2005, but left by mutual consent after four months. Robertson was appointed manager of Livingston in February 2006, then sacked in April 2007 after finishing sixth in the First Division.
He was appointed by League of Ireland side Derry City
in July 2007. He took club out of the relegation battle to a safe mid table position and also won the FAI League Cup and qualified for the Setanta Cup before being dismissed by the new chairman and board of directors at Derry, and replaced by former Derry boss Stephen Kenny.
In 2009, Robertson coached strikers at Scottish Premier League
clubs Dundee United
and Kilmarnock
. In March 2010, Robertson helped coach the strikers at Hearts
on a non-contract basis.
Robertson was appointed manager of East Fife
in October 2010. In September 2011, his East Fife side knocked SPL club Aberdeen
out of the Scottish League Cup
at Pittodrie Stadium
.
|1981–82||rowspan="7"|Heart of Midlothian
||rowspan="2"|Division One
||1||0||||||||||||||||
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|1982–83||23||21||||||||||||||||
|-
|1983–84||rowspan="5"|Premier Division
||34||15||||||||||||||||
|-
|1984–85||33||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86||35||20||||||||||||||||
|-
|1986–87||37||16||||||||||||||||
|-
|1987–88||39||26||||||||||||||||
|-
|1987–88||Newcastle United
||First Division
||12||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1988–89||rowspan="10"|Heart of Midlothian
||rowspan="10"|Premier Division
||15||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90||32||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91||31||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||42||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||42||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||36||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||31||10||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995-96||33||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||27||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||21||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||Dundee
||Division One
||4||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998–99
||rowspan="2"|Livingston
||Second Division
||36||13||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999–00||First Division
||5||1||||||||||||||||
557||229||||||||||||||||
12||0||||||||||||||||
569||229||||||||||||||||
East Fife F.C.
East Fife Football Club are a Scottish football club based in the Fife coastal town of Methil...
. His playing career included spells at Newcastle United, Dundee and Livingston but he is best known for his two spells at Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
. He has previously managed Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club are a Scottish football club from Inverness who compete in the Scottish Premier League. They are currently managed by Terry Butcher and assistant manager Maurice Malpas...
, Heart of Midlothian and Derry City
Derry City F.C.
Derry City Football Club is a professional football club based in Derry, Northern Ireland. It plays in the League of Ireland Premier Division...
, among others.
Playing career
HibsHibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
attempted to sign him but he asked for time to think the deal over and, after Hibs refused, he signed for Hearts, along with school friend and fellow future internationalist Dave Bowman. Robertson eventually earned the moniker "The Hammer of Hibs" as he scored for Hearts in almost every game he played against their city rivals and holds the record of scoring the most goals by any single player against Hibs by notching up 27 strikes against the Easter Road team.
Robertson was an instant success at Hearts, becoming a legend in the first few seasons with his prolific goal scoring record. In 1986 Robertson took Hearts to the brink of a league and cup double
The Double
The Double is a term in association football which refers to winning a country's top tier division and its primary cup competition in the same season...
by scoring goal after goal as the club went on an unbeaten run through that season. The league title was snatched from Hearts by Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
on the last day of the season. He left Hearts briefly to play for Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
in April 1988. Robertson failed to match the success he had enjoyed at Tynecastle and returned to Hearts in December of that year.
Robertson achieved his greatest success at Hearts, where he spent the vast majority of his playing career. Robertson’s loyalty to Hearts was finally rewarded in 1998 when Hearts won the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
and he received a winner’s medal, albeit as an unused substitute. After an earlier loan spell with Dundee
Dundee F.C.
Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...
, he left Tynecastle that summer, joining Livingston as a player-coach.
Robertson was also a Scottish international
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
, playing on 16 occasions for Scotland. He made his debut against Romania
Romania national football team
The Romania national football team is the national football team of Romania and is controlled by the Romanian Football Federation.Romania is one of only four national teams, the other three being Brazil, France, and Belgium, that took part in the first three World Cups.However, after that...
in 1990, scoring in a 2-1 win. He scored three goals in total in his international career.
Managerial career
Whilst playing for LivingstonLivingston F.C.
Livingston Football Club is a Scottish association football club based in Livingston, West Lothian. The club currently plays in the Scottish Football League First Division.The club was founded in 1943 as Ferranti Thistle, a works team...
, Robertson became involved in the coaching side of the game. He left the club in season 2002–03
2002-03 in Scottish football
The 2002–03 season was the 106th season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish Premier League:The 2002–03 Scottish Premier League was won on goal difference by Rangers by a single goal over Celtic. Both Rangers and Celtic qualified for the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League and...
to become manager of Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club are a Scottish football club from Inverness who compete in the Scottish Premier League. They are currently managed by Terry Butcher and assistant manager Maurice Malpas...
where he guided the Highland team to the SPL
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
for the first time in their history. In November 2004 he returned to Hearts as head coach and despite two cup semi-finals and a good season in Europe as well as finishing 5th in the league, he was sacked in May 2005.
He was appointed manager of Scottish First Division team Ross County
Ross County F.C.
Ross County Football Club are a Scottish professional football team from the town of Dingwall, Ross and Cromarty. Founded in 1929 they currently compete in the Scottish Football League First Division and play their home matches at Victoria Park. Prior to the 1994–95 season they played in the...
in June 2005, but left by mutual consent after four months. Robertson was appointed manager of Livingston in February 2006, then sacked in April 2007 after finishing sixth in the First Division.
He was appointed by League of Ireland side Derry City
Derry City F.C.
Derry City Football Club is a professional football club based in Derry, Northern Ireland. It plays in the League of Ireland Premier Division...
in July 2007. He took club out of the relegation battle to a safe mid table position and also won the FAI League Cup and qualified for the Setanta Cup before being dismissed by the new chairman and board of directors at Derry, and replaced by former Derry boss Stephen Kenny.
In 2009, Robertson coached strikers at Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
clubs Dundee United
Dundee United F.C.
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
and Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock F.C.
Kilmarnock Football Club is a Scottish football team based in the town of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Founded in 1869, "Killie" is the oldest club currently in the Scottish Premier League. Home matches are played at Rugby Park...
. In March 2010, Robertson helped coach the strikers at Hearts
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
on a non-contract basis.
Robertson was appointed manager of East Fife
East Fife F.C.
East Fife Football Club are a Scottish football club based in the Fife coastal town of Methil...
in October 2010. In September 2011, his East Fife side knocked SPL club Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
out of the Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
at Pittodrie Stadium
Pittodrie Stadium
Pittodrie Stadium is an all-seated football stadium situated in the Scottish city of Aberdeen. It was first used in 1899 and from 1903 has been the home of Aberdeen Football Club...
.
Career statistics
|-|1981–82||rowspan="7"|Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
||rowspan="2"|Division One
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1982–83||23||21||||||||||||||||
|-
|1983–84||rowspan="5"|Premier Division
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||34||15||||||||||||||||
|-
|1984–85||33||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86||35||20||||||||||||||||
|-
|1986–87||37||16||||||||||||||||
|-
|1987–88||39||26||||||||||||||||
|-
|1987–88||Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||12||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1988–89||rowspan="10"|Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
||rowspan="10"|Premier Division
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||15||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90||32||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91||31||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||42||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||42||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||36||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||31||10||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995-96||33||12||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||27||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||21||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||Dundee
Dundee F.C.
Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...
||Division One
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||4||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998–99
Scottish Second Division 1998-99
The 1998-99 Scottish Second Division was won by Livingston who, along with second placed Inverness Caledonian Thistle, were promoted to the First Division. East Fife and Forfar Athletic were relegated to the Third Division.-Table:...
||rowspan="2"|Livingston
Livingston F.C.
Livingston Football Club is a Scottish association football club based in Livingston, West Lothian. The club currently plays in the Scottish Football League First Division.The club was founded in 1943 as Ferranti Thistle, a works team...
||Second Division
Scottish Football League Second Division
The Scottish Football League Second Division is the second highest division of the Scottish Football League and the third highest overall in the Scottish football league system....
||36||13||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999–00||First Division
Scottish Football League First Division
The Irn-Bru Scottish Football League First Division Championship is the highest division of the Scottish Football League and the second highest in the Scottish football league system....
||5||1||||||||||||||||
557||229||||||||||||||||
12||0||||||||||||||||
569||229||||||||||||||||
Honours
League of Ireland Cup: 1-
- Derry CityDerry City F.C.Derry City Football Club is a professional football club based in Derry, Northern Ireland. It plays in the League of Ireland Premier Division...
- 2007
- Derry City
External links
- Hearts playing career stats at londonhearts.com