{{Short description|Footballer (born 1959)}} {{Use British English|date=January 2023}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Bob Hazell | image = | caption = | fullname = Robert Joseph Hazell<ref name="kent"/> | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1959|06|14|df=y}}<ref name="kent"/> | birth_place = [[Kingston, Jamaica]]<ref name="kent"/> | death_date = | height = {{height|ft=6|in=1}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dunk |first1=Peter |title=Rothmans football yearbook 1987-88 |date=1987 |publisher=Queen Anne Press |location=London |isbn=978-0356143545 |page=294 |url=https://archive.org/details/rothmansfootball00lond/page/294/mode/2up/search/port+vale |accessdate=14 April 2020}}</ref> | position = [[Defender (association football)|Defender]] | youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] | years1 = 1977–1979| clubs1 = [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]]| caps1 = 33| goals1 = 1 | years2 = 1979–1983| clubs2 = [[Queens Park Rangers F.C.|Queens Park Rangers]]| caps2 = 106| goals2 = 8 | years3 = 1983–1986| clubs3 = [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]]| caps3 = 41| goals3 = 2 | years4 = 1985| clubs4 = → [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] (loan)| caps4 = 1| goals4 = 0 | years5 = 1986| clubs5 = [[Reading F.C.|Reading]]| caps5 = 4| goals5 = 1 | years6 = 1986–1989| clubs6 = [[Port Vale F.C.|Port Vale]]| caps6 = 81| goals6 = 1 | totalcaps = 266| totalgoals = 13 | nationalyears1 = 1977| nationalteam1 = [[England national under-18 football team|England Youth]] | nationalcaps1 = 2 | nationalgoals1 = 1 | nationalyears2 = 1979| nationalteam2 = [[England national under-21 football team|England U21]] | nationalcaps2 = 1 | nationalgoals2 = 1 | nationalyears3 = 1978| nationalteam3 = [[England national football B team|England B]] | nationalcaps3 = 1 | nationalgoals3 = 0 }}
'''Robert Joseph Hazell''' (born 14 June 1959) is a former professional [[association football|footballer]] who made 266 league appearances in a 12-year career in the [[English Football League]] between 1977 and 1989. Born in Jamaica, he represented England at [[England national under-21 football team|under-21 level]]. His nephew is the former [[Oldham Athletic A.F.C.|Oldham Athletic]] defender [[Reuben Hazell]], and his son Rohan was a [[Non-League football|non-League]] player.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20121001022327/http://www.nonleaguedaily.com/teams/players.php?pid=17016 NonLeagueDaily.com]}}</ref>
A big physical [[Defender (association football)|defender]], he began his career at [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]], featuring in the [[FA Youth Cup]] final in 1976. He moved on to [[Queens Park Rangers F.C.|Queens Park Rangers]] in 1979. He helped QPR to the [[Football League Second Division|Second Division]] title in 1982–83 and also played in the [[1982 FA Cup final]]. He moved on to [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]] in 1983 and had a brief spell back on [[Loan (sports)|loan]] at Wolves in 1985 before he signed with [[Reading F.C.|Reading]]. He joined [[Port Vale F.C.|Port Vale]] in December 1986 and was a regular for the "Valiants" until a back injury forced his retirement in June 1989.
==Club career== ===Wolverhampton Wanderers=== Hazell was born in [[Kingston, Jamaica]]. He began his career at [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] and featured in the 1976 [[FA Youth Cup]] final, which ended in a 5–0 [[aggregate score|aggregate]] defeat to [[West Bromwich Albion F.C.|West Bromwich Albion]]. He turned professional at [[Molineux Stadium|Molineux]] under [[Sammy Chung]] and played 20 [[Football League First Division|First Division]] games for Wolves in the [[1977–78 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1977–78]] season; despite only making his debut in December and being [[Ejection (sports)|sent off]] in a 2–1 defeat to [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] in the [[FA Cup]], he made such an impact in a central defensive partnership with [[John McAlle]] that he picked up the club's second ever Player of the Year award.<ref name="poty"/> Hazell scored his first career goal in a 1–0 home win over [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]].<ref name="beano1"/> He played 13 games in the first half of the [[1978–79 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1978–79]] campaign. He played in a benefit match for West Bromwich Albion player [[Len Cantello]], which saw a white team play against a black team.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-37924448|title=The match that pitted white players against black players|date=17 November 2016|accessdate=18 November 2016|author=Adrian Chiles|publisher=BBC}}</ref>
===Queens Park Rangers=== In September 1979, Hazell was [[Transfer (association football)|transferred]] to [[Queens Park Rangers F.C.|Queens Park Rangers]] for a £240,000 fee, who had just been [[promotion and relegation|relegated]] into the [[Football League Second Division|Second Division]].<ref name="beano1"/> Rangers finished fifth in [[1979–80 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1979–80]] under the stewardship of [[Tommy Docherty]], two places and four points behind [[Promotion and relegation|promoted]] [[Birmingham City F.C.|Birmingham City]]. Following this disappointment, [[Terry Venables]] was put in charge at [[Loftus Road]]. The "Hoops" then dropped to eighth position in [[1980–81 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1980–81]], before rising to fifth again in [[1981–82 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1981–82]], just two points behind promoted [[Norwich City F.C.|Norwich City]]. Hazell played for QPR in the [[1982 FA Cup final]] against [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]] at [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley]] and provided the [[Assist (association football)|assist]] for [[Terry Fenwick]] to make the original tie a 1–1 draw.<ref name="fff">{{cite web|title=FA Cup final 1982|url=http://www.fa-cupfinals.co.uk/1982.htm|accessdate=16 May 2018|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717033528/http://www.fa-cupfinals.co.uk/1982.htm|archivedate=17 July 2011}}</ref> However, a [[Glenn Hoddle]] [[Penalty kick (association football)|penalty]] was enough to hand "Spurs" a 1–0 victory in the [[Replay (sports)|replay]]. Perhaps his most impressive performance came in the semi-final against West Bromwich Albion, where he marked [[Cyrille Regis]] out of the game.<ref name=Semi-final>{{cite news|title=Semi-final just a blur for Bob|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/latest/2008/04/01/semi-final-just-a-blur-for-bob/|accessdate=10 June 2012|newspaper=Express & Star|date=1 April 2008|archive-date=16 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180516174836/https://www.expressandstar.com/latest/2008/04/01/semi-final-just-a-blur-for-bob/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Promotion was finally achieved in [[1982–83 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1982–83]], as Rangers won the Second Division title by a ten-point margin.<ref name="beano1"/>
===Leicester City to Reading=== Hazell transferred to First Division rivals [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]] in September of the [[1983–84 Leicester City F.C. season|1983–84]] campaign for a fee of £100,000.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bob Hazell {{!}} Leicester City career stats - FoxesTalk|url=https://www.foxestalk.co.uk/history/players?pid=510|website=FoxesTalk|accessdate=27 March 2018}}</ref> He helped [[Gordon Milne]]'s "Foxes" to post a 15th-place finish in [[1984–85 Leicester City F.C. season|1984–85]], but became plagued by injury problems.<ref name="beano1"/> He had a brief [[Loan (sports)|loan]] spell at old club Wolves in [[1985–86 Leicester City F.C. season|1985–86]], but could do little to prevent [[Sammy Chapman]]'s side from slipping into the [[Football League Fourth Division|Fourth Division]]. He was released from [[Filbert Street]] and played for [[Leeds United F.C.|Leeds United]] in the Yorkshire Cup.<ref name="beano1"/> He moved on to Second Division side [[Reading F.C.|Reading]] for the [[1986–87 Reading F.C. season|1986–87]] season. He made just four league appearances for [[Ian Branfoot]]'s "Royals" before leaving [[Elm Park (stadium)|Elm Park]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/player3/bobhazell.html|title=BOB HAZELL|last=Brown|first=Neil|accessdate=12 May 2009}}</ref> Reading wanted him on a short-term [[Association football contracts|contract]] to cover for [[Paul Futcher]], who was out with a [[Mandibular fracture|fractured jaw]].<ref name="beano1">{{cite journal |title=The Bob Hazell Interview |journal=The Port Vale Beano |volume=60}}</ref>
===Port Vale=== Hazell joined [[Port Vale F.C.|Port Vale]] in December 1986.<ref name="kent">{{cite book|last=Kent|first=Jeff|title=Port Vale Personalities|publisher=Witan Books|page=132|year=1996|isbn=0-9529152-0-0}}</ref> He was reluctant to join due to the club's dire league placement but was talked round by former Leicester teammate [[Mark Grew]].<ref name="beano1"/> His signing proved to be another master-stroke by [[Manager (association football)|manager]] [[John Rudge]]. Along with defensive partner [[Phil Sproson]], Hazell quickly shored up the "Valiants" defence before the end of [[1986–87 Port Vale F.C. season|season]] run-in to steer the club out of the [[Football League Third Division|Third Division]] relegation zone to a 12th-place finish.<ref name="kent"/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Baggaley|first1=Mike|title=How Big Bob Hazell helped transform Port Vale|url=http://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/how-big-bob-hazell-helped-transform-port-vale/story-30124240-detail/story.html|accessdate=10 February 2017|work=Staffordshire Sentinel|date=10 February 2017}}</ref> He went on to serve as club [[Captain (association football)|captain]], setting an example with his performances whilst commanding respect with his mentality and presence.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Earle |first1=Robbie |title='You were shaking in your boots' - Robbie Earle on what makes good captain |url=https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/port-vale-stoke-city-captains-4131089 |accessdate=14 May 2020 |work=Stoke Sentinel |date=13 May 2020}}</ref> He was the first black player to captain the club.<ref>{{cite news |title=Black History Month: Port Vale Football Club |url=https://www.port-vale.co.uk/news/2020/october/black-history-month-port-vale-football-club/ |accessdate=16 October 2020 |work = Port Vale F.C. |date=14 October 2020 |language=en-gb}}</ref> He played 52 league and cup games in [[1987–88 Port Vale F.C. season|1987–88]], and gained some measure of revenge over Tottenham Hotspur in the [[FA Cup]] as he helped Vale to snatch a memorable 2–1 win; it was reported that he successfully intimidated [[Clive Allen]] by knocking him to the ground and telling him that "You're going to get that for the next eighty-five minutes".<ref>{{cite news |title=A collection of Port Vale hard men from yesteryear - onevalefan.co.uk |url=https://www.onevalefan.co.uk/2017/08/a-collection-of-port-vale-hard-men-from-yesteryear/ |accessdate=5 June 2020 |work=onevalefan.co.uk |date=28 August 2017}}</ref>
Hazell was a regular feature in the [[first XI]] until he received a back injury in January 1989.<ref name="kent"/> He made 17 league appearances in Vale's [[1988–89 Port Vale F.C. season|1988–89]] promotion season. However, injury meant he was unable to play in the [[1989 Football League Third Division play-off final|play-off final]] victory over [[Bristol Rovers F.C.|Bristol Rovers]].<ref name="kent"/> Unable to overcome a back injury, he was given a [[Free transfer (association football)|free transfer]] in June 1989, having made 100 club appearances in all competitions at [[Vale Park]].<ref name="kent"/> Chairman [[Bill Bell (businessman)|Bill Bell]] refused to pay up his contract as he wanted to try and sell Hazell on to another club, and so the [[Professional Footballers' Association]] (PFA) decided to pay the remainder of his contract rather than try and take the club to court over the issue.<ref name="beano2">{{cite journal |title=The Bob Hazell Interview (Part 2) |journal=The Port Vale Beano |volume=61}}</ref>
==International career== During his time at Wolves he represented the [[England national under-18 football team|England Youth]], playing two games in March 1977.<ref name="beano1"/> He scored for the [[England national under-21 football team|under-21]] team in a 2–1 victory over [[Denmark national under-21 football team|Denmark]] in February 1979.<ref name="beano1"/> He also played for the B team in 1978.<ref name="beano2"/>
==Style of play== {{Blockquote|"Big Bob was your typical 'throw back' defender who took no prisoners and would kill to prevent a goal. On the ball he had much more skill and ability than he was given credit for, but it was his physicality that scared opposing forwards to death. This monster of a man had a particularly light, soft-spoken voice. But I never heard anyone take the mickey out of him!"|[[Robbie Earle]] writing in 2012.<ref>{{cite news|last=Earle|first=Robbie|title=Here's my promotion-winning Vale team|url=http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/Robbie-Earle-s-promotion-winning-Vale-team/story-14401576-detail/story.html|accessdate=12 January 2012|newspaper=[[The Sentinel (Staffordshire)|The Sentinel]]|date=12 January 2012}}</ref>}}
==Post-retirement== After leaving the game, Hazell attempted a job selling [[life insurance]] but fell into a deep [[depression (mood)|depression]].<ref name="beano2"/> He took up [[Transcendental Meditation]] and became a sports prevention manager in [[Birmingham]], working to help rehabilitate young offenders through sport.<ref name="beano2"/><ref name=Semi-final/>
==Career statistics== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition<ref>{{ENFA}}</ref> |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|[[FA Cup]] !colspan="2"|Other !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="3"|[[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] |[[1977–78 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1977–78]] |[[Football League First Division|First Division]] |20||1||3||0||0||0||23||1 |- |[[1978–79 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1978–79]] |First Division |13||0||0||0||0||0||13||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !33!!1!!3!!0!!0!!0!!36!!1 |- |rowspan="6"|[[Queens Park Rangers F.C.|Queens Park Rangers]] |[[1979–80 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1979–80]] |[[Football League Second Division|Second Division]] |29||1||1||1||4||0||34||2 |- |[[1980–81 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1980–81]] |Second Division |8||2||0||0||2||0||10||2 |- |[[1981–82 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1981–82]] |Second Division |24||2||4||0||4||0||32||2 |- |[[1982–83 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1982–83]] |Second Division |39||3||1||0||2||0||42||3 |- |[[1983–84 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1983–84]] |First Division |6||0||0||0||0||0||6||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !106!!8!!6!!1!!12!!0!!124!!9 |- |rowspan="3"|[[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]] |[[1983–84 Leicester City F.C. season|1983–84]] |First Division |27||2||1||0||2||0||30||2 |- |[[1984–85 Leicester City F.C. season|1984–85]] |First Division |14||0||0||0||2||0||16||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !41!!2!!1!!0!!4!!0!!46!!2 |- |Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan) |[[1985–86 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1985–86]] |[[Football League Third Division|Third Division]] |1||0||0||0||0||0||1||0 |- |[[Reading F.C.|Reading]] |[[1986–87 Reading F.C. season|1986–87]] |Second Division |4||1||0||0||1||0||5||1 |- |rowspan="4"|[[Port Vale F.C.|Port Vale]] |[[1986–87 Port Vale F.C. season|1986–87]] |Third Division |21||1||0||0||3||1||24||2 |- |[[1987–88 Port Vale F.C. season|1987–88]] |Third Division |43||0||6||0||3||0||52||0 |- |[[1988–89 Port Vale F.C. season|1988–89]] |Third Division |17||0||3||0||4||0||24||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !81!!1!!9!!0!!10!!1!!100!!2 |- !colspan="3"|Career total !266!!13!!19!!1!!27!!1!!312!!15 |}
==Honours== '''Individual''' *[[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] Player of the Year: [[1977–78 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season|1977–78]]<ref name="poty">{{cite web|title=Wolves Heroes » Player of the Year|url=http://www.wolvesheroes.com/player-of-the-year/|website=www.wolvesheroes.com|accessdate=16 May 2018}}</ref>
'''Wolverhampton Wanderers''' *[[FA Youth Cup]] runner-up: 1976
'''Queens Park Rangers''' *[[FA Cup]] runner-up: [[1982 FA Cup final|1982]]<ref name="fff"/> *[[Football League Second Division]]: [[1982–83 Queens Park Rangers F.C. season|1982–83]]<ref name="beano1"/>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Player of the Year}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hazell, Bob}} [[Category:Footballers from Kingston, Jamaica]] [[Category:Black British sportsmen]] [[Category:English men's footballers]] [[Category:England men's youth international footballers]] [[Category:England men's under-21 international footballers]] [[Category:England men's B international footballers]] [[Category:Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Men's association football central defenders]] [[Category:Queens Park Rangers F.C. players]] [[Category:Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players]] [[Category:Leicester City F.C. players]] [[Category:Luton Town F.C. players]] [[Category:Reading F.C. players]] [[Category:Port Vale F.C. players]] [[Category:English Football League players]] [[Category:20th-century Jamaican sportsmen]] [[Category:20th-century English sportsmen]] [[Category:20th-century Black British people]] [[Category:1959 births]] [[Category:Living people]]