Perry Groves

Last updated

Perry Groves
Perry Groves.jpg
Groves in 2014, at the Emirates Stadium legends tour
Personal information
Full name Perry Groves
Date of birth (1965-04-19) 19 April 1965 (age 58)
Place of birth Bow, London, England
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) [1]
Position(s) Left winger
Youth career
1981–1982 Colchester United
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1982–1986 Colchester United 156 (26)
1986–1992 Arsenal 156 (21)
1992–1994 Southampton 15 (2)
1994 Dagenham & Redbridge 4 (0)
1995 Canvey Island 1 (0)
Total332(49)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Perry Groves (born 19 April 1965) [1] is an English former professional footballer, best known for his time at Arsenal. A fast-paced player who usually played as a winger and occasionally a striker, Groves also played professionally for Colchester United and Southampton, also briefly playing for both Dagenham & Redbridge and Canvey Island in non-league football towards the end of his career. He currently works as a media pundit. [2] [3]

Contents

Playing career

Colchester United

Groves was born in Bow, London, but as a boy he played for Cornard Dynamos in the village of Great Cornard on the Suffolk – Essex border. Groves then had a trial with Wolves as a schoolboy before signing as an apprentice for Colchester United in 1981. He turned professional a year later and over the next four seasons he played 142 league games for the U's, scoring 26 goals.

Arsenal

In September 1986, he signed for Arsenal for £50,000, becoming the first signing by new manager George Graham. His debut came in a goalless draw against Luton Town that same month.

In his first season at the club he helped set up Charlie Nicholas for the winner in the 1987 League Cup final, dribbling past three Liverpool players before laying the ball off.

Noted for his enthusiasm, pace and hard work, he started most of Arsenal's games in the 1987–88 season, ousting Charlie Nicholas as strike partner to Alan Smith, and helping the Gunners reach a second League Cup final the following season by scoring the only goal of the away leg of the semi-final against Everton; Arsenal however lost the final to Luton Town. Although Groves made 46 appearances in all competitions that season, the arrival of Brian Marwood reduced his opportunities to play, and he was mainly used as a substitute in Arsenal's title-winning 1988–89 season, coming off the bench 15 times during the league campaign, on top of six starts. He was on the pitch as a substitute in the final game of the season and helped create the space when Michael Thomas famously scored the title clinching goal at Anfield.

Although an injury to Marwood opened the door for him again in 1989–90, Groves returned to the bench after Marwood recovered. This did not however stop him from winning a second league title winners' medal in 1990–91, again with most of his appearances coming as a sub, as Graham usually favoured Kevin Campbell to play alongside Alan Smith. After making only 13 league appearances in 1991–92, Groves was sold to Southampton just at the start of the inaugural Premier League season. [4]

Southampton

He moved to Southampton in August 1992 for £750,000 but only played 15 times in two years before retiring from professional football at the age of 28, following two serious Achilles tendon injuries. [1] [5]

Dagenham and Redbridge

He then played four games in the Conference for Dagenham & Redbridge before ending his playing career with a solitary appearance for Canvey Island.

Post-retirement

Groves has appeared for Arsenal in several Masters footballing tournaments. [3] He is now a well established sports pundit and has worked for a wide variety of media firms including Sky Sports, BBC Radio 5 Live, BT Sport, Absolute Radio as well as TalkSPORT. [6] Groves was previously part of Absolute Radio's Sony Award winning Rock 'N' Roll Football show, fronted by former Arsenal teammate, Ian Wright, which airs on a Saturday.

In 2010, Groves signed as a non-playing substitute for new club Chester after Colin Murray, then of BBC Radio 5 Live, offered the new club £2,000 if they named Groves and Pat Nevin as unused substitutes at every game in the 2010–11 season. [7]

Legacy

Groves became a cult player among Arsenal fans, who commemorate him with the chant "We all live in a Perry Groves World", which listed Perry in every position from 1 to 12 (except 7, which is instead taken by Liam Brady), to the tune of The Beatles' "Yellow Submarine". [3]

He still has a large following, with a fan club and website devoted to him. [8] In October 2006, Groves published his autobiography, entitled We All Live in a Perry Groves World ( ISBN   1-84454-319-6). With it came an Arsenal fans' campaign on the web to purchase the book, in an attempt to outsell former Arsenal defender Ashley Cole's autobiography, My Defence, which was out at the same time. [9] His autobiography has since outsold that of Cole.[ citation needed ]

Family

His great uncle, Vic Groves, having previously featured for Tottenham Hotspur, played for and captained Arsenal. He played as a forward making 203 appearances and scoring 37 goals. [2] [10]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeague FA Cup League Cup OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Colchester United
1981–82 [11] Fourth Division 900000—90
1982–83 [12] Fourth Division17200213 [lower-alpha 1] 0223
1983–84 [13] Fourth Division42220501 [lower-alpha 2] 0502
1984–85 [14] Fourth Division441031203 [lower-alpha 2] 15212
1985–86 [15] Fourth Division431210102 [lower-alpha 2] 34715
1986–87 [16] Fourth Division100000—10
Total15626611019418132
Arsenal
1986–87 [17] First Division 2533060—343
1987–88 [17] First Division3464182—469
1988–89 [17] First Division21420202 [lower-alpha 3] 1275
1989–90 [17] First Division3043031—365
1990–91 [17] First Division3234043—406
1991–92 [17] First Division13110304 [lower-alpha 4] 0211
1992–93 [17] Premier League 100000—10
Total156211712666120529
Southampton 1992–93 [18] Premier League1521020—182
Career total3274924238715540463
  1. ↑ Appearances in Group Cup
  2. 1 2 3 Appearances in Associate Members' Cup
  3. ↑ Appearances in Centenary Trophy
  4. ↑ Appearances in European Cup

Honours

Club

Arsenal

Related Research Articles

Brian Marwood is an English former footballer who made more than 400 appearances in the Football League and was capped once for England. He is City Football Group's Managing Director of Global Football.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy McDonough</span> English football player and manager (born 1958)

Roy McDonough is an English former professional football player and manager in the English Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vic Keeble</span> English footballer (1930–2018)

Victor Albert Williams Keeble was an English footballer who played as a centre-forward for Colchester United, Newcastle United and West Ham United.

David Spencer Gregory is an English retired professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played alongside his brother Neil whilst at Colchester United and Canvey Island.

Paul Abrahams is an English former footballer who played as a forward or as a winger in the Football League, most notably for Colchester United, where he made over 100 league appearances in two spells between 1992 and 1999. He also played for Brentford and for a number of non-league teams after retiring from the professional game through injury. He was most recently manager of Maldon & Tiptree.

The 2004–05 season was Colchester United's 63rd season in their history and their seventh successive season in the third tier of English football, the newly renamed League One. Alongside competing in League One, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Football League Trophy.

Ernest Robert Adams is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the Football League for Colchester United, Crewe Alexandra and Darlington. Adams came up through the youth ranks at Arsenal, where was a member of the 1966 FA Youth Cup winning squad, but failed to break into the first-team.

The 1986–87 season was Colchester United's 45th season in their history and sixth consecutive season in fourth tier of English football, the Fourth Division. Alongside competing in the Fourth Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Associate Members' Cup.

The 1982–83 season was Colchester United's 41st season in their history and second consecutive season in fourth tier of English football, the Fourth Division. Alongside competing in the Fourth Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Football League Trophy.

The 1981–82 season was Colchester United's 40th season in their history and first season back in fourth tier of English football, the Fourth Division following relegation the previous campaign. Alongside competing in the Fourth Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup and the League Cup.

The 1960–61 season was Colchester United's 19th season in their history and their eleventh season in the third tier of English football, the Third Division. Alongside competing in the Third Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup and the new League Cup competition. Colchester reached the second round in both cups, beating Maidenhead United in the first round of the FA Cup before being eliminated by Aldershot. In the League Cup, Colchester hosted First Division Newcastle United in the first round. They won 4–1, but were knocked out by Southampton in round two.

The 1958–59 season was Colchester United's 17th season in their history and their ninth season in the third tier of English football, the newly formed national Third Division. Alongside competing in the Third Division, the club also participated in the FA Cup. Colchester reached the fourth round of the FA Cup, beating Bath City, Yeovil Town and Chesterfield on their way to meeting Arsenal. Drawn at home, Colchester held Arsenal to a 2–2 Layer Road draw, but were defeated 4–0 at Highbury in the replay. Colchester finished fifth in the Third Division, nine points shy of promotion.

The 1957–58 season was Colchester United's 16th season in their history and their eighth season in the Third Division South, the third tier of English football. Alongside competing in the Third Division South, the club also participated in the FA Cup. They were eliminated at the first round stage of the cup for the fifth successive season, on this occasion to non-league side Wisbech Town. In the league, with the division being restructured at the end of the season, Colchester managed to finish in the top half of the table by three points to avoid a move to the newly formed Fourth Division, instead remaining in the third tier.

The 1954–55 season was Colchester United's 13th season in their history and their fifth season in the Third Division South, the third tier of English football. Alongside competing in the Third Division South, the club also participated in the FA Cup. Following a replay, Colchester were knocked out of the FA Cup in the first round by Reading. Meanwhile, in the league, Colchester's poor run of form had Jack Butler allowed indefinite leave following a bout of ill health. After resigning in January 1955, Colchester appointed Benny Fenton as his replacement, and despite an upturn in form, a run of defeats at the end of the season meant Colchester needed to apply for re-election for the second successive season. Once more, all clubs applying for re-election were successful, with Colchester receiving 44 votes, behind Third Division North clubs Grimsby Town and Chester City, but eleven votes ahead of division rivals Walsall.

The 1953–54 season was Colchester United's twelfth season in their history and their fourth season in the Third Division South, the third tier of English football. Alongside competing in the Third Division South, the club also participated in the FA Cup. Colchester were knocked out in the first round of the cup by Millwall following a replay. The club struggled in the league for the second successive season, eventually finishing 23rd of 24 teams under new manager Jack Butler. The club had to apply for re-election at the end of the season for the first of three occasions in its history. All four clubs applying for re-election were successful, with Colchester receiving 45 votes, behind Chester by three votes but ahead of both Walsall and Halifax Town.

The 1938–39 season was Colchester United's second season in their history and their second in the Southern League. Alongside competing in the Southern League, the club also participated in the Southern League Mid-Week Section and Southern League Cup. Colchester won the Southern League title after beating local rivals Chelmsford City to the top of the league by one point. They also reached the 1st round of the FA Cup, where they were eliminated by Folkestone, and finished as runners-up to Tunbridge Wells Rangers in the Mid-Week Section. They reached the semi-final of the Southern League Cup, but the competition could not be completed due to fixture congestion.

Jason Peter Cook is an English former footballer who played in the Football League as a midfielder for Southend United and Colchester United.

Craig Oldfield is an English former footballer who played in the Football League as a forward for Colchester United.

John Hodge was an English professional footballer who played as an outside right in the Football League for Bristol City and Luton Town. He played in his hometown of Plymouth for a number of local amateur clubs, joining Plymouth Argyle briefly but failing to make any first-team appearances. He also represented Southern League club Colchester United, featuring in their first-ever match.

Arthur Brynley Pritchard was a Welsh professional footballer who played as a forward in the Football League for Newport County.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan; Bull, David (2013). All the Saints: A Complete Players' Who's Who of Southampton FC. Southampton: Hagiology Publishing. p. 336. ISBN   978-0-9926-8640-6.
  2. 1 2 Perry Groves (2007). We all live in a Perry Groves World. London: John Blake Publishing. p. 2.
  3. 1 2 3 "Perry Groves: Interview". Planet Football.com. 13 March 2017.
  4. ↑ "arsenal historic players". 15 January 2023.
  5. ↑ "saintsplayers". 7 January 2023.
  6. ↑ "Play with a legend". Nights Out in Newcastle.co.uk.
  7. ↑ "Club not live". Archived from the original on 21 April 2014.
  8. ↑ "We Love Perry". We Love Perry.com.
  9. ↑ "Let's make Perry Groves better than Ashley Cole | Arseblog @ OleOle". oleole.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  10. ↑ "Vic Groves". Arsenal.com.
  11. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1981/1982". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  12. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1982/1983". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  13. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1983/1984". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  14. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1984/1985". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  15. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1985/1986". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  16. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1986/1987". coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Player search: Groves, P (Perry)" . English National Football Archive. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  18. ↑ "Games played by Perry Groves in 1992/1993". saintsplayers.co.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  19. ↑ "Premier League (Tier One) Honours". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  20. ↑ "1972/73 Terry Anderson". Coludaybyday.co.uk. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  21. ↑ "Mercantile Credit Centenary Trophy 1988". Football Database. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.