Bobby Mimms

Bobby Mimms
Mimms as goalkeeping coach for West Ham United in 2014
Personal information
Full name Robert Andrew Mimms[1]
Date of birth (1963-10-12) 12 October 1963 (age 61)[1]
Place of birth York, England
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[1]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1981 Halifax Town 0 (0)
1981–1985 Rotherham United 83 (0)
1985–1988 Everton 29 (0)
1986 → Notts County (loan) 2 (0)
1986–1987 → Sunderland (loan) 4 (0)
1987 → Blackburn Rovers (loan) 6 (0)
1987 → Manchester City (loan) 3 (0)
1988–1990 Tottenham Hotspur 37 (0)
1990 → Aberdeen (loan) 6 (0)
1990–1996 Blackburn Rovers 128 (0)
1996 Crystal Palace 1 (0)
1996–1997 Preston North End 27 (0)
1997–1998 Rotherham United 43 (0)
1998 → York City (loan) 10 (0)
1998–2000 York City 53 (0)
2000–2001 Mansfield Town 45 (0)
Total 477 (0)
International career
1985–1986 England U21 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Robert Andrew Mimms (born 12 October 1963) is an English football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper.

Mimms' career lasted twenty years, and is best known for his tenure with Blackburn Rovers, where he was a member of the Premier League winning squad in 1995. He also played top flight football for Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City as well as a spell in the Scottish Premier League with Aberdeen. Mimms also turned out in the Football League for Halifax Town, Rotherham United, Notts County, Sunderland, Crystal Palace, Preston North End, York City and Mansfield Town. He was capped three times at England U21 level.

Since retiring from playing, Mimms has worked as a goalkeeping coach for Wolverhampton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers, Oldham Athletic, Bahrain, West Ham United, Blackpool, Bolton Wanderers, Hull City, Jamshedpur, ATK, Bangladesh and SC East Bengal.

Playing career

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Born in York, Mimms began his football career as an apprentice at Halifax Town.[2] However, he failed to break into the first team and joined Rotherham United in November 1981 for a fee of £15,000. In 1985, he was sold to Everton, who had just won the league title and European Cup Winners' Cup. During the 1980s, Mimms played for no less than eight different clubs, as he went out on loan from Everton more than once. However, due to an injury to Neville Southall, Mimms played in goal for Everton in the final weeks of the 1985–86 season. Everton were top of the league for most of the last three months of the season, but were pipped to the title on the last day by local rivals Liverpool. Liverpool won the FA Cup as well that season, beating Everton 3–1 in the final, with Mimms in goal for the losers. He played as Everton shared the 1986 FA Charity Shield with Liverpool and won the 1987 FA Charity Shield against Coventry City.[3][4] He was later sold to Tottenham Hotspur in 1988, following the retirement of Ray Clemence, and had more first team chances at White Hart Lane than he had been given at Goodison Park.

In December 1990, Blackburn Rovers manager Don Mackay signed him for a fee of £250,000 from Tottenham Hotspur making him Blackburn's most expensive transfer at the time.[5] He was signed in the early stages of Jack Walker's backing of Blackburn, and just weeks before Walker took full control of the Second Division club. Blackburn had a slow start to the 1991–92 season, and Mackay was sacked in early September, being replaced the following month by Kenny Dalglish. Dalglish made several substantial signings during the season and Blackburn reached the playoff final where they beat Leicester City 1–0, ending 26 years outside the top flight. Mimms was one of the players who kept his place in the team throughout the season. Mimms was an integral part of this team. However, Jack Walker was not one to rest on his laurels and after the club's promotion vast amounts of money were spent to recruit the finest talents in the country to Ewood Park. Players such as Alan Shearer, Stuart Ripley, Graeme Le Saux and Kevin Gallacher were brought to the club and Mimms was a key part of the team which finished fourth in the 1992–93 season, just missing out on a UEFA Cup place. In November 1993, Southampton goalkeeper Tim Flowers was brought in as the new number one. From then on, Mimms was rarely selected in the starting line-up, his four appearances in the 1994–95 season not being enough for a title medal, and in early 1996 joined Crystal Palace, where he played just once. He then dropped into the lower divisions, playing for Preston North End, Rotherham United, hometown club York City and finished off his playing career at Mansfield Town in 2001.

Coaching career

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Between 2001 and 2008, Mimms worked as goalkeeping coach at Wolverhampton Wanderers, before returning to Blackburn to fulfil the same role in August 2008,[6] until he was sacked on 27 December 2012. During the pre-season preceding the 2013–14 season, Mimms was appointed goalkeeping coach at Oldham Athletic.[7] In February 2014, he left his role at Oldham to join the Bahrain as their new goalkeeping coach.[8] In October 2014, Mimms was appointed as goalkeeping coach at Premier League side West Ham United.[9]

After leaving West Ham, he had short spells coaching at Blackpool and Bolton Wanderers,[10] and in November 2016, joined the coaching staff at Hull City following goalkeeper coach Gary Walsh's move to Aston Villa.[11] He left the club in January 2017, following the sacking of head coach Mike Phelan.[12]

After leaving Hull City, he joined Jamshedpur in the Indian Super League as a goalkeeper coach under Steve Coppell in September 2017.[13] In June 2018, he joined ATK with Coppell as a goalkeeper coach.[14] After the sacking of Coppell, he also left the club after the Super Cup in April 2019. In June 2019, he was appointed as the goalkeeper coach of Bangladesh.[15] He became goalkeeping coach of SC East Bengal,[16] but left his role in September 2021.

In October 2022 Mimms signed a twelve-month contract with the Fiji Football Association to be the Fiji national goalkeeper coach and to work closely with the other goalkeeping coaches in Fiji.[17] In May 2023 Mimms was head coach of the Fiji national under-20 football team at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.[18][19]

Honours

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Everton

Blackburn Rovers

References

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  1. ^ a b c Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2001). The 2001–2002 Official PFA Footballers Factfile. AFS. p. 207. ISBN 0-946531-34-X.
  2. ^ Bobby Mimms at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database
  3. ^ "Charity Shield". lfchistory.net. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
  4. ^ "Blast From The Past: On This Day 1987 – City's Second Wembley Date Delivers Defeat In Charity Shield". ccfpa.co.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  5. ^ Moore, Glenn (15 May 1995). "Blackburn masters of the modern game". The Independent. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  6. ^ "Football – My Club – Blackburn – Mimms returns as coach to Rovers". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  7. ^ "Backroom-team signings". Oldham Athletic F.C. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  8. ^ "Bobby Mimms Departs". Oldham Athletic F.C. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  9. ^ "Former Everton and Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Bobby Mimms joins West Ham United coaching staff". East London and West Essex Guardian. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  10. ^ "Wanderers appoint Bobby Mimms as new Goalkeeping Coach". The Bolton News. 4 August 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  11. ^ "Mimms is the man for City as club confirm appointment". Hull Daily Mail. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2017.[permanent dead link‍]
  12. ^ "Tigers Confirm Coaching Staff Departures". Hull City A.F.C. 4 January 2017. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  13. ^ ""We have kept on believing that we can make it to the semi-final" – Bobby Mimms". Jamshedpur Football Club. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  14. ^ "Steve Coppell joins Indian Super League side ATK". Sports Mole. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  15. ^ Chowdhury, Aritra (13 October 2019). "Pressure will be on India: Bangladesh goalkeeping coach | Football News". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  16. ^ "Goalkeeping coach of SC East Bengal". Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  17. ^ Matairakula, Talei (12 November 2023). "Compulsory GK coach for districts". fbcnews.com. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  18. ^ Kumari, Karishma (19 May 2023). "The first game is important for the Digicel Fiji U20 National Team as it sets out for the rest of the tournament- Mims". Fijivillage.com.
  19. ^ "Coach says young Fijian side serious about World Cup". rnz.co.nz. 20 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  20. ^ Dunk, Peter, ed. (1987). Rothmans Football Yearbook 1987–88. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 490. ISBN 978-0-356-14354-5.
  21. ^ Rollin, Jack, ed. (1988). Rothmans Football Yearbook 1988–89. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 488. ISBN 978-0-356-15880-8.
  22. ^ "Liverpool v Everton, 10 May 1986". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  23. ^ "Blackburn Rovers v Leicester City, 25 May 1992". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
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