Bobby Stokes
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert William Thomas Stokes | ||
| Date of birth | 30 January 1951 | ||
| Place of birth | Portsmouth, England | ||
| Date of death | 30 May 1995 (aged 44) | ||
| Place of death | Portsmouth, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1967–1968 | Southampton | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1968–1977 | Southampton | 216 | (40) |
| 1977–1978 | Portsmouth | 24 | (2) |
| 1978–1980 | Washington Diplomats | 98 | (17) |
| Waterlooville | |||
| Cheltenham Town | |||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Bobby Stokes (30 January 1951 – 30 May 1995) was an English footballer, well known for scoring the winning goal in the 83rd minute of the FA Cup Final for Southampton F.C. against Manchester United in 1976.
Stokes was born in Portsmouth on 30 January 1951, and was brought up in the Paulsgrove area of the city. It is ironic that he was born in the city whose team rivals Southampton, the one he was most famous for playing for, although he did go on to play for Portsmouth at the end of his career. Following a successful period of boyhood football at schoolboy and county level, he quickly became a target for a number of clubs and looked likely to sign for Portsmouth. However, he failed a trial with them and instead signed for the Saints in September 1966 as an apprentice, turning professional in February 1968. He struggled to get into the first team as a young player but made his debut on 7 April 1969, scoring against Burnley. However, that was one of only two goals he scored that season and next season (1970–71), ravaged by injury, he only played one game. During the 1971–72 season he played 41 times and scored 7 times. He continued to impress in the next few years, despite suffering relegation in 1974 with the team.
The year would be remembered for Saints reaching the FA Cup Final. Stokes had an average league campaign that season, scoring just 8 goals and he nearly left The Dell before the cup final as part of an exchange deal with Portsmouth for Paul Went, However, Stokes changed his mind and stayed. Stokes scored against Blackpool in the fourth round in a 3–1 victory. In the fifth round, Saints were drawn against West Bromwich Albion and were forced to put out a significantly weakened team because of a stomach virus which affected many of the first team. Stokes was not one of the players affected however, and he scored a late equaliser in the game to draw it 1–1. Saints subsequently won the replay. Southampton's place in the final was sealed with a 2–0 semi-final defeat of Crystal Palace.
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