Bobby Walker (footballer born 1879)
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Walker | ||
| Date of birth | 10 January 1879 | ||
| Place of birth | Edinburgh, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 28 August 1930 (aged 51) | ||
| Place of death | Edinburgh, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Dalry Primrose | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1896–1919 | Heart of Midlothian | 328 | (124) |
| National team | |||
| 1900–1913 | Scotland | 29 | (8) |
| 1899–1911 | Scottish League XI | 14 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Bobby Walker (10 January 1879 – 28 August 1930) was a Scottish professional footballer, who played for Heart of Midlothian and Scotland.
Walker joined Hearts from Dalry Primrose in 1896, making his debut in a "trial" match vs Sunderland. He played in a few games that clinched Hearts 2nd League Championship in 1897. Walker was the first Hearts player to score over 100 league goals, and he scored Hearts' 1000th league goal. Other notable achievements are his 33 goals against Hibernian, which is the record tally in the Edinburgh Derby if local competitions are included. He scored two hat-tricks against Hearts' Edinburgh rivals, the first at the age of 19 years and 9 months in a 5–1 victory at Easter Road on 28 October 1898. He repeated the feat on 18 September 1905 again at Easter Road in a 3–0 win.
Hearts' 1901 Scottish Cup win was remembered as "Walker's Final", the Hearts beating Celtic 4–3. With the score poised at 3–3 The Scotsman reported it thus: "It, however, proved staunch, and the Edinburgh team soon showed that they were not going to relinquish the grasp of the cup which their play entitled them to, and Walker once more proved himself the grandest forward on the field. Taking the ball some thirty yards right through the opposition, he shot straight and true. M'Arthur saved, but sent the "leather" to Bell, who tipped it over to Houston. By the last named it was again sent towards the Celtic custodian who muddled his attempt to avert, and again the Hearts were one to the good." After this match Charlie Thomson dubbed him "The Best Player in Europe" and his style of football, involving brilliant footwork and sublime passing was known as "Walkerism". He also played in Hearts Scottish Cup win of 1906.
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