Rob Newman (footballer)

Football player infobox| playername= Rob Newman
playername = Rob Newman


fullname = Robert Nigel Newman
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1963|12|13
cityofbirth = Bradford on Avon
countryofbirth = England
height =
currentclub =
position = Central Defender
years = 1981-1991
1991-1998
1998
1998-2002
2007-2008
clubs = Bristol City Norwich City → Wigan Athletic (loan) Southend United A.F.C. Bournemouth
caps(goals) = 394 (52)
200 (14)
008 (0)
072 (11) 1 (0)
manageryears = 2001-2003
2005-2006
2006-2008
managerclubs = Southend United
Cambridge United
A.F.C. Bournemouth (Assistant Manager)

Robert (Rob) Newman (born 13 December 1963 in Bradford on Avon) is an English football coach.

Newman signed for Bristol City as an apprentice in October 1981 and played 483 games for the club, serving as club captain before being sold to Norwich City for £600,000 in 1991. He was a member of the Norwich team that finished a club record third in the FA Premier League in 1992-93 and went on to play a part in the defeat of Bayern Munich in the following season's UEFA Cup.

Since his playing days, Newman has become a manager in the lower leagues of English football. He had a short time spell at Southend United before being appointed assistant manager to Steve Thompson at Cambridge United in December 2004. Following Thompson's departure from an unsuccessful spell which led to Cambridge's relegation from the Football League, Newman was appointed manager in May 2005.

Newman built a squad with very little money and showed his abilities in scouting little-known players. He also gained the support of the majority of Cambridge fans, earning him the nickname of 'Buzz Lightyear', owing to his facial likeness to the character from the motion-picture Toy Story. Some fans even set up a fan site (see below), and wore Buzz Lightyear masks in homage to him.

However, he was sacked following United's 3-1 defeat by Exeter on Friday, September 1, 2006 that left the club second-bottom of the Conference.

The following month, new Bournemouth manager Kevin Bond appointed Newman as his assistant. Newman has since played for the Bournemouth Reserves team. Most of the time, it is when Reserve Team Manager Eddie Howe plays a youthful side to help stabalise the defence. More recently, he has been included in Bournemouth first team, being named a sub in the match against Carlise after the team had only 14 fit first team players. He made his AFC Bournemouth debut away to Bristol Rovers in a Johnstone's Paint Trophy South Section Area 2nd Round match, appearing as a substitute. Bournemouth went on to win the match 1-0. Newman was sacked along with Kevin Bond and Eddie Howe in September 2008.

External links

* [http://www.afcb.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10324~10643,00.html Rob Newman player profile] at afcb.co.uk
*soccerbase|id=5835|name=Rob Newman
* [http://www.ex-canaries.co.uk/players/newman.htm Flown From The Nest] : a profile of Rob Newman by 'Flown From The Nest', a website charting the lives of ex-Norwich players
* [http://www.buzzontour.co.uk/ Buzz on Tour] : fan site dedicated to Rob Newman