© 2020 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. Arsenal's success was sealed when they Rocastle scored 34 goals and played 228 times in seven years for Arsenal, collecting two league title medals and a winner's medal in the League Cup.On 23 July 1992, Rocastle's decade at Arsenal came to an end when he was sold to reigning league champions The player's arrival at Leeds United made him, up to that point, the club's' most expensive signing at up to £2 million. David "Rocky" Rocastle, the footballer, who has died from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma aged 33, perhaps never quite came to terms with his ejection from Arsenal. Manager With Leeds, a 25-year-old Rocastle entered the first-ever He was at the club until December 1993, when he moved to Just before the start of the 1994–95 season, Rocastle returned to Rocastle eventually left Chelsea in the summer of 1998 to join up with After making two appearances for the England 'B' side, Rocastle was capped 14 times at under-21 level for England during the second half of the 1980s, scoring twice. Many years later, it was revealed that Rocastle's cancer had been declared terminal from the time of his diagnosis in October 20… It’s said that while Rocastle was waiting for his break at Arsenal, David Dein excitedly spoke to his wife and declared ‘I’ve seen a boy in our youths that can dribble like a Brazilian and he’s from Lewisham !’ Rocastle, the clever playmaker Paul Davis and the powerful midfielder Michael Thomas represented a new and positive trend at Highbury, following, in a sense, on the Irish "tendency", as represented by David O'Leary, Frank Stapleton and Liam Brady. Even David Pleat, manager of Tottenham for the day, remarked that he was happily surprised. One great disappointment was that he missed playing for England in the 1990 World Cup in Italy. That he is still well remembered and admired at Highbury was shown when the 38,000 crowd at Arsenal stadium, before the North London derby match with Tottenham Hotspur, observed a minute's silence without the faintest interruption. He joined Arsenal's academy in 1982, a year after me, with both of us brought in by scout Terry Murphy. We all live in a Perry Groves world, John Blake Publishing Ltd, London. The charity, which was chosen by Perry Groves and John Mc Shane, 2006. In January 1997, he went, for a spell, to Norwich City, signed for Hull City in October 1997 and finished his playing career in Malaysia. From Leeds, Rocastle went on to play for Manchester City, in December 1993, moving back to London - but to Chelsea rather than Arsenal - in August 1994, where it gradually grew plain that something of the spark had gone.

He was one of 26 players chosen by the manager, Bobby Robson, to go to training camp before the tournament, but when push came to shove, he was one of four dropped from the official 22-man squad. In the 1990-91 season, when Arsenal won the championship again, he played 13 full games, made three appearances as substitute and scored a couple of goals. All rights reserved. Alan Hansen relates that when, playing against him for Liverpool, he brought him down quite badly, Rocastle merely smiled at him and asked: "Getting old?"

Altogether, Rocastle made 204 appearances for Arsenal in the League, plus 14 as substitute, scoring 24 goals. Alan Hansen relates that when, playing against him for Liverpool, he brought him down quite badly, Rocastle merely smiled at him and asked: "Getting old?" It would be wrong to call him, generically, a midfielder. In that championship season, Rocastle played 38 games, scoring just half a dozen goals. He was very much in the tradition of Arsenal outside-rights, from Joe Hulme and Alf Kirchen onwards. MARTIN KEOWN: I was 15 when I first met David Rocastle. Davis will always remember Rocky as "a bubbly character, lovely spirit, fantastic spirit. His overall total of games in all tournaments for Arsenal was 260, with 17 appearances as substitute, scoring 34 goals. Really, he was an Arsenal person. Before the game he had suggested to the referee, Paul Durkin, that he blow his whistle as soon as there was any interruption to the silence, believing as he did that football crowds, in such circumstances, could seldom observe more than half a minute. David Carlyle Rocastle (Londres, Inglaterra, 2 de mayo de 1967 - 31 de marzo de 2001), fue un futbolista inglés, se desempeñaba como centrocampista.. Como jugador, disputó la mayor parte de su carrera en el Arsenal FC, y posteriormente en diversos clubes, con una breve aventura en Malasia.David Rocastle, apodado Rocky, falleció en 2001 debido a un linfoma no-Hodgkin.
Born in Lewisham, south-east London, Rocastle, a fast, skilled, powerful outside right who won 14 caps for England, was one of three black players from the same area who played a crucial part in the Gunners' success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Whilst playing for the Young Lions, he earned a runners-up medal in the 1988 Aged 21, he was capped at senior level for the first time against In February 2001, Rocastle announced that he was suffering from Six weeks after Rocastle's death his nine-year-old son Ryan was Arsenal's mascot in their Five years and a day after his passing, 1 April 2006 was designated "David Rocastle Day", as part of the themed celebrations of Arsenal's final season at their stadium of Rocastle had three children with his wife Janet – son Ryan and daughters Melissa and Monique.He is the cousin of another professional footballer, The David Rocastle Trust is a charity based in London, UK founded in memory of Rocastle. Rocastle was survived by his wife and children. It was one which they had to win to take the title, and this they did with a goal at the last gasp by Michael Thomas.