Gasopedia - Bristol Rovers Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Bristol Rovers' record goalscorer by a wide margin is Geoff Bradford. His 242 league goals between 1949 and 1965 is 64 clear of second-placed man Alfie Biggs, who scored 178 times in a similar period.

The top three scorers on the list, Bradford, Biggs and Harold Jarman all played for the club at the same time, and in fact the two players tied for fifth place were also there in the early 1960s, meaning five of the top six played in the same team at the same time.

There are 27 players in the top 25 due to three men being tied for 25th place, all of whom were British-born, with 24 born in England, two in Wales and one in Scotland. Bradford, Billy Beats, Dai Ward and David Williams were all recognised at full international level by the nations of their births, while Englishman Peter Hooper was capped once by Kenya in the days when national team eligibility requirements were much more relaxed than they are now.

Two Southern League players scored enough goals to be included in the list. Fred Corbett scored 52 times in 139 games spread over three spells between 1901 and 1911, and England international Billy Beats scored 44 times in 94 games between 1903 and 1906. The remaining 25 all played their football in the Football League.

Top 25 highest goalscorers in The Football League & Southern League[]

Rank Player Nationa Positionb Appsc Goalsc Yearsd
1 Geoff Bradford Eng England Forward 462 242 1949–1964
2 Alfie Biggs Eng England Forward 424 178 1953–1968
3 Harold Jarman Eng England Midfielder 452 127 1959–1973
4 Vic Lambden Eng England Forward 268 117 1945–1955
5= Peter Hooper Ken-old Kenya Forward 297 101 1953–1962
5= Bobby Jones Eng England Forward 421 101 1956–1973
7 Paul Randall Eng England Forward 240 94 1977–1983
8 Dai Ward Wal Wales Forward 175 90 1954–1961
9 George Petherbridge Eng England Forward 457 85 1945–1962
10 Bruce Bannister Eng England Forward 206 80 1971–1977
11 Jamie Cureton Eng England Forward 174 72 1996–2000
12 David Williams Wal Wales Midfielder 352 66 1975–1985
13 David Mehew Eng England Midfielder 222 63 1985–1994
14= Ian Hamilton Eng England Forward 149 60 1958–1968
14= Barrie Meyer Eng England Forward 139 60 1953–1958
14= Gary Penrice Eng England Mid/Fwd 257 60 1983–2002
17 Marcus Stewart Eng England Forward 171 57 1991–1996
18 Alan Warboys Eng England Forward 144 53 1973–1977
19= Fred Corbett Eng England Forward 139 52 1901–1911
19= Devon White Eng England Forward 202 52 1987–1992
21 Rickie Lambert Eng England Forward 128 51 2006–2009
22 Bill Roost Eng England Forward 178 49 1948–1957
23 Richard Walker Eng England Forward 143 46 2004–2009
24 Bill Culley Sco Scotland Forward 57 45 1926–1928
25= Billy Beats Eng England Forward 94 44 1903–1906
25= John Taylor Eng England Forward 95 44 1992–1994
25= Steve White Eng England Forward 150 44 1977–1986
Notes

a Nationality is defined as the country represented by a player at any level of international football, or their country of birth if they have never played internationally.

b The position where the player played the majority of their games. Simplified to Goalkeeper, Defender, Midfielder or Forward to allow for comparison between modern formations and the old 2–3–5 lineups.

c Appearances and goals in Football League and Southern League matches only.

d Period over which the player's appearances were made. This may have been split over two or more spells at the club.

Advertisement