Sad death of former Rovers defender
Bristol Rovers are sorry to report the death, from cancer, on 18th January 2014 of reliable right back Trevor Jacobs, an ever present as Rovers gained promotion to Division Two in 1973/74 and later a club coach in two separate spells.
The son of Frederick Jacobs and Doris Williams, who married in 1934 in Bristol, Trevor Frederick Jacobs was born in Bristol on 28th November 1946 and was one of a rare breed of players to have enjoyed lengthy careers with both Bristol’s professional clubs.
Jacobs’ début for Bristol City, for whom he signed professional forms in July 1965, came at Rotherham in November 1966, when he conceded an own goal as City trailed 3-0 by half time, only to stun the Millmoor crowd by fighting back to earn a 3-3 draw.
He was to appear in 130 (+1 as sub) League games for City, scoring three times and played four times for Plymouth Argyle, whom he joined on loan in September 1972. A League Cup semi finalist at Ashton Gate in 1971/72, he never opposed Rovers in the League, but moved across the city on a free transfer on 21st May 1973.
It was an expedient moment to arrive at Eastville, for Rovers embarked on a 32 match unbeaten run, defeated Brian Clough’s Brighton 8-2 at the Goldstone Ground and secured promotion from Division Three.
Jacobs played a critical role in all this, for the defence, primarily Jim Eadie in goal with Lindsay Parsons alongside Jacobs at full back, was noted for keeping clean sheets and Jacobs even popped up at the other end, scoring twice in the 3-0 home victory over Blackburn Rovers in March 1974.
Five feet nine inches in height and weighing in at eleven stone ten pounds, his defensive qualities enabled Rovers to enjoy a season of enormous success. Having scored his first goal for the club against Southend in December 1973, when he ran through a vacant defence to float the ball home, Jacobs enjoyed the match of his life against Blackburn, scoring from an acutely angled drive after ten minutes and a high left footed shot twenty minutes later, before firing narrowly wide in the second half.
Three goals proved his final tally in 82 (+1 as sub) League matches in Rovers’ colours. Twice damaging his ankle, against Fulham and Oxford, in the 1974/75 season, Jacobs could not make the impact he hoped in Division Two and soon retired from professional football.
From 1976 he played for Bideford, Frome Town, Paulton Rovers and Clevedon Town before coaching Rovers’ U-13 side from July 1983 and, from July 1998, the U-13 and U-14 sides. He ran the Horseshoe Inn at Shepton Mallet and the Baccy Jar at Whitchurch, before spending twelve years until his retirement in 1998 as a postman.
Married to Mary, with two sons, one of whom Lee was with Rovers briefly in 1983/84, and three grandchildren, Trevor Jacobs lived in Bedminster.
Our thoughts are with Trevor’s family and friends at this sad time and we will hold a minute’s applause in his memory prior to Saturday’s game against Newport County at the Memorial Stadium