Tuesday, June 03, 2014

Ten Ricky Lambert facts


Emdad Rahman

·         A younger Ricky Lambert slipped through the scouts net at Anfield and as a journeyman he played at Blackpool, Macclesfield Town, Stockport County, Rochdale, Bristol Rovers. His talents came to the fore at St Mary’s as the Saints climbed the league ladder to reach the Premiership promised land.

 

·         The Anfield new boy is married to Amy and they have three children. The youngest is Bella Rose whose birthdate is a nice reminder for the family - it was the very day he was selected for England international duty.

 

·         Life wasn’t always a rollercoaster ride and the young Ricky Lambert found himself as a free agent. Determined to keep his dignity he laboured for four months at a beetroot bottling plant for £20 a day before being signed by Macclesfield Town in 2001.

 

·         Lambert appeared in every game for Bristol Rovers during the 2007–08 season, scoring 19 goals in all competitions.

 

·         In 2009 Lambert joined newly relegated Southampton. He topped the scoring charts with 36 goals in total. The new boy scored on his Saints debut. Scoring against Pompey in the FA Cup turned him instantly into a South Coast hero.

 

·         Well before his England debut, Lambert showed a knack of scoring big game goals by also scoring a hat trick against MK Dons and a penalty during the 4-1 League Trophy Final win over Carlisle United at Wembley in March 2010. He was voted the Fans Player of the Year for the season. With 31 goals it was the second successive season that Lambert had finished the top scorer in English football’s top four divisions.

 

·         In February 2011 Lambert scored his 50th goal for Saints in a 1-0 win over Carlisle United.

 

·         Lambert was named 2011 Championship Player of the Year in March 2012. During the campaign he scored four hat tricks as Saints were promoted to the Premier League.  He finished with 31 goals in all competitions and the Southampton Fans’ Player of the Season award for the second time in three years. Lambert was also named in the PFA Championship Team of the Year for 2011-12.

 

·         Lambert has a 100% penalty conversion rate and has scored 34 consecutive penalties.

 

·         Lambert scored in each of his first two games for England – against the auld enemy (Scotland) and Moldova. He became the first player to do so for 37 years.

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