Ricky Hill

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For the Arkansas politician, see Ricky Hill (politician).

Ricky Hill
Personal information
Full name Ricky Anthony Hill
Date of birth (1959-03-05) 5 March 1959 (age 62)
Place of birth Paddington, London, England[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1976–1989 Luton Town 436 (54)
1989–1990 Le Havre 20 (1)
1990–1991 Leicester City 16 (1)
1992 Tampa Bay Rowdies
– Chertsey Town
– Cocoa Expos
National team
1982–1986 England 3 (0)
Teams managed
1992 Tampa Bay Rowdies
2000 Luton Town
2003–2005 San Juan Jabloteh
2011–2014 Tampa Bay Rowdies[2]
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Ricky Hill (born 5 March 1959) is an English former footballer, most recently the head coach of Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Early life[]

Hill was born on 5 March 1959, of mixed ancestry. Hill's mother is Jamaican but his family on his father's side are from the city of Lucknow in India. Hill's great-grandparents are both Indian and moved to Jamaica from India shortly after the turn of the 20th century. Hill's grandparents are also Indian, and his grandfather John Hill was originally named Gurcharan. Loosely translated from Hindi or Punjabi, Gurcharan means 'at the feet of the teacher'. Hill's father Joseph, who was one of 11 children, eventually moved to London where he married Ricky's mother Doris, a Jamaican woman who Joseph had previously been at school alongside in Jamaica.[3]

A talented footballer in his early years, Ricky Hill grew up in the London Borough of Brent, not far from Wembley Stadium.[3] Hill attended John Kelly Boys' Technology College in Neasden, where he was spotted playing for his school team by then Luton Town reserve coach David Pleat.

Playing career[]

Hill joined Luton in 1975, and made 436 League appearances, scoring 54 goals in the process, from 1976 to 1989.[4]

He earned 3 full England caps during this time, making his debut on 22 September 1982[1] as a substitute for Bryan Robson in England's 2–2 draw with Denmark in Copenhagen - the nation's first match under the management of Bobby Robson. He was the first British South Asian to represent England at senior level.[3] He was also only the fourth black player to represent England at the highest level.[1] He was capped three times in total for England, with his last appearance being against Egypt on 29 January 1986.[1]

He helped Luton win promotion to the First Division in 1981-82 as Second Division champions, and in 1987-88, he was part of the team that won their first - and only to date - major trophy as they achieved a thrilling 3–2 win over Arsenal in the Football League Cup final. In 1989, he moved on a free transfer to French club Le Havre.[4]

In 1990, he transferred to Leicester City for £100,000, rejoining David Pleat for a brief spell, before heading abroad to be player/coach with the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the US. As a player-coach where he took them to two national championships and was named 1992 'Coach of the Year'.[4]

On his return to England, Ricky had a brief spell as a player with non-league Chertsey Town and Hitchin. He returned to the US for two seasons at Cocoa Expos, before moving into coaching in England.[4]

Coaching career[]

In 1996, he was appointed the youth team coach (under-19) at Sheffield Wednesday again by David Pleat. He then had a spell coaching youth (under-17) at Tottenham Hotspur.

Hill returned to Luton Town as manager in July 2000, but it was an unsuccessful stint in which he won only two games of a Luton side now playing in Division Two, and he left the post in November 2000. Luton finished the season relegated.[5]

On 18 January 2011, Hill was announced as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the North American Soccer League.[6] In 2012, Hill led the Rowdies to the league championship with a win in Soccer Bowl 2012.[7] Hill has been appointed coach of Montego bay United in January 2022.

Honors/Achievements[]

  • Tampa Bay Rowdies

NASL Championships (1)

Winners: 2012

References[]

  1. ^ a b c England stats at thefa.com
  2. ^ Formerly known as FC Tampa Bay through 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Trehan, Dev (15 March 2021). "Ricky Hill New book reveals Luton legend was first British South Asian to play for England". Sky Sports. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d James Garley. "Where Are They Now?". Luton Town Official Site. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
  5. ^ Ricky Hill management career stats at soccerbase
  6. ^ Brian Quarstad (18 January 2011). "the Tampa Bay Rowdies Announce New Coach Ricky Hill". IMSoccer News. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
  7. ^ NASL. "Tampa Bay Wins NASL Championship Series After Penalty Shootout - Rowdies Lift Soccer Bowl Trophy In Dramatic Fashion". North American Soccer League.
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