- Robbie Earle
Football player infobox
playername = Robbie Earle
fullname = Robert Fitzgerald Earle
height = height|meters=1.75
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1965|1|27|df=y
cityofbirth =Newcastle-under-Lyme
countryofbirth =England
currentclub =
position =Midfielder (retired)
youthyears = 1981–1982
youthclubs = Stoke City
years = 1982–1991
1991–2000
clubs = Port Vale
Wimbledon
Total
caps(goals) = 294 0(77)
284 0(59)
578 (136)
nationalyears = 1997–2000
nationalteam = Jamaica
nationalcaps(goals) = 033 00(8)Robert Fitzgerald "Robbie" Earle MBE (born
27 January ,1965 inNewcastle-under-Lyme ) is a former professional footballer who played as amidfielder and played approximately 600 games in senior club football, scoring around 150 goals. He currently works in television as a commentator and pundit forITV .Though English-born, Earle was eligible to play for
Jamaica at international level because of his Jamaican heritage. Before deciding to play for Jamaica in 1997, Earle was in fact once called up to the England squad, but never actually played for England. Earle was the scorer of Jamaica's first ever World Cup goal, against Croatia, in1998 FIFA World Cup .An attacking midfielder, Earle was originally a junior player at Stoke City before moving to local rivals
Port Vale , where he turned professional in 1982. He played 343 times for the Valiants and scored 90 goals. In July 1991 he was transferred to Wimbledon for a fee of £775,000. Earle played an important part in the South London club's success during the nineties, and in particular, the club's 'Crazy gang ' mentality which fostered team spirit and intimidating opposing players.Fact|date=April 2007During a reserve team game for Wimbledon in 2000, Earle sustained a heavy blow to the stomach and became seriously ill with a ruptured pancreas. At the age of 35 he was forced to give up playing. His retirement coincided with the end of the 'Crazy gang'.
Since his retirement, Earle has moved into sports journalism and has worked for Capital Radio, BBC Radio 5, BBC TV,
ITV , Sky Sports and OnDigital. He has also written columns for the London "Evening Standard " and recently for the Stoke-on-Trent Evening Sentinel.Earle was awarded an MBE in 1999 for his services to football. He is also an Honorary Patron for the campaign against racism, 'Show Racism the Red Card' and has appeared in television commercials promoting blood donation.
In 2005, he took part on BBC's "Strictly African Dancing" as part of "Africa Lives" season. He scored 33 and won the competition.
External links
*imdb name|1078538|Robbie Earle
*soccerbase|id=2254|name=Robbie Earle
* [http://www.itv-football.co.uk/Story/0,14272,6116_647377,00.html Robbie Earle] atitv.com
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