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| Keith Dublin Ex-Chelsea Pro |
With a Young Player of the Year award in his pocket and a full season of reserve team football behind him, 18-year-old left-back Keith Dublin was introduced to the Chelsea first team in the penultimate match of the 1983/84 season. His burgeoning reputation within the club certainly seemed justified as, replacing the injured Joey Jones, he made a faultless bow in a 3-1 win over Barnsley only to collect an injury himself which ruled him out of the final match, a triumph at Grimsby which clinched the Division Two championship for the Londoners.
The signing of Doug Rougvie pushed Keith further down the Stamford Bridge pecking order and he had to wait almost a year before he made his second appearance. He returned as a substitute in a 2-0 defeat at Ipswich and kept his place in the team for the following ten matches, performing well and looking very much a star of the future, but when new manager John Hollins selected his team for the start of the 1985/86 campaign there was no place for Dublin. He was recalled for a Full Members Cup tie against Charlton in October and a week later he thought he had scored the winning goal in a League Cup tie with Fulham when his crisp 20-yard shot whistled past Gerry Peyton in the Cottagers' goal only for the referee, perhaps with one eye on the following morning's headlines, to blow the final whistle as the ball was struck..
After missing out as the campaign began, he returned to the side at the end of October and finally cemented his place in the team. Impressive defensive performances in 0-0 draws with Watford and Aston Villa before Christmas were followed by increasingly confident forays along the left-wing which led to him becoming an important supply line for the strikers as the Blues recovered from an awful start to finish the season in mid-table.
Chelsea FC
1984-1987
POSITION
Left Back
DATE OF BIRTH
Saturday, 29th January 1966
PLACE OF BIRTH
High Wycombe, England
LEAGUE DEBUT
Monday, 7th May 1984 in a 3-1 win at home to Barnsley (Aged: 18)
CLUB CAREER
50 League apps (+1 as sub), 0 goals
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