Vinny Arkins

Vinny Arkins
Personal information
Full nameVincent Thomas Arkins
Date of birth18 September 1970)
Place of birthDublin, Republic of Ireland
Height1.87 m (6 ft 1 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionStriker (retired)
Youth career
–1986Stella Maris
1986–1987Home Farm
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1987–1989Dundee United0(0)
1989–1991Shamrock Rovers67(28)
1991–1993St. Johnstone48(11)
1993–1995Shelbourne54(21)
1995–1997Notts County38(8)
1997–2006Portadown279(179)
2006Bohemians16(2)
2007St Patrick's Athletic0(0)
Total502(249)
National team
1986Republic of Ireland U171(0)
1991–1995League of Ireland XI3(0)
1990–1992Republic of Ireland U218(1)
1992Republic of Ireland B1(0)
2000Irish League representative team1(1)
Teams managed
2010–????Baldoyle United
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Vincent Thomas "Vinny" Arkins (born 18 September 1970 in Dublin) is a retired Irish footballer. After retiring, he moved into management with Baldoyle United of the Athletic Union League.[1]

Club career

Arkins scored 15 goals as Dundee United's youth team made it to the Scottish Youth Cup Final in 1989. After signing for Noel King for £12,000 he made his League of Ireland debut for Shamrock Rovers against Bohemians on 15 October 1989 in a 3–1 win. Arkins went on to score 35 goals in 86 total appearances for The Hoops.

He won the Player of the Year award in his first season as well as sharing the PFAI Young Player of the Year award[2] and was top club goalscorer that season and in 1990–91. He was also the first player to score at Rovers rented ground, the RDS Arena, on 14 October 1990.

Despite agreeing personal terms with Liam Brady to join Glasgow Celtic in November 1991 the deal fell through as it was conditional on Celtic offloading some of their seven strikers. This deal would have been worth £80,000 to Rovers with the bonus of home and away friendlies between the clubs.

In his last game for Rovers he scored against Galway at the RDS Arena[3]

Arkins joined St Johnstone for a reputed transfer fee of £40,000 with additional bonuses based on appearances in November 1991[4] Under the terms of the transfer fee to Rovers in 1989 Dundee United were entitled to half of this transfer fee. He scored his first goal at Ibrox Stadium in December in a 3–1 defeat.

He returned home to sign for Shelbourne in 1993 and made his European bow in the 1993–94 European Cup Winners' Cup at FC Karpaty Lviv. Arkins was named on the best league XI for the 1994–95 League of Ireland season after scoring 13 league goals.[5] He played in the 1995 FAI Cup final loss to Derry City.

In July 1995 Arkins confirmed he had signed a two-year contract at Shelbourne.[6]

He played in the 1995–96 UEFA Cup clashes with Íþróttabandalag Akraness, getting sent off in Iceland.[7]

The following month he opened the scoring in a friendly against Manchester United in a game that finished 2–2.[8]

He signed for Notts County from Shelbourne in September 1995, joining the recently-departed Shelbourne manager Colin Murphy at Meadow Lane.[9]

In February 1997 he joined Portsmouth for £10,000[10] and scored on his debut at home to Coleraine.

He made his European bow against PFC CSKA Sofia in the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup.[11]

On his only appearance representing the Irish League he scored against the League of Ireland XI at Terryland Park in November 2000.[12]

He was a prolific goalscorer, scoring 248 goals in 404 appearances during his nine-year spell with Portadown. He was an Irish League winner with Portadown in 2001/02. Arkins was the top scorer in the Irish League on five occasions.[13]

He remains the only player from the Republic of Ireland to be top scorer in the Northern Irish Premiership. In July 2002 he scored at FC Belshina Bobruisk in the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League.[14]

Arkins scored in the 2005-06 UEFA Cup against Viking FK.[15]

He made 10 appearances in European competition for the Ports.

In January 2006 he signed for Bohemian.[16]

His last senior goal was scored for Bohs against Bray on 12 May 2006 and his last senior appearance was on 29 August in a losing 2006 FAI Cup tie against his first LOI club Shamrock Rovers where he sustained a long term injury that forced him eventually into retirement. He did subsequently sign for St Patrick's Athletic on a short term deal but never actually appeared in a competitive game for the Saints.

International career

Arkins won representative honours with the League of Ireland XI and the Irish League XI, as well as eight Republic Ireland U21, one B, four schoolboy and three youth caps. Arkins scoring the winner against Turkey in October 1990.[17]

Honours

Notes

  1. ↑ http://www.baldoyleunited.com/2010/08/26/
  2. ↑ Ireland – Player of the Year and Other Awards Rec Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation
  3. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1991/1125/Pg016.html#Ar01602:05942807D43B32A54D3525620874280B043B0F659B11F5AE0C95A80F25BB1085EB1315FE0576BC0806CF19D40D1BA41935954D387562. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1991/1127/Pg017.html#Ar01700:0D33310FB34619355C1B95711405FD14C61214C5FD16561205D1F909225C0931FE0F025A0F21F911925C11B1FE13725A1053311333460D339B1013B00A041B0C843105947908348E10549412E4A90CF4AE0E94C40EC4AE0F84C40C65270EE53C0F05270F453C05859F0635B406459F0815B409B5BA0C45CF0C65BA0C95D014336014E37514F36016D3751793881A539E1B83CB1E23E01E23CB1E63E015642A16143D16142816D43D16F42A17F43D18042818443D14247815D48D16047816D48D. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ↑ "Friday, April 21, 1995 – Page 019". The Irish Times. 21 April 1995. Retrieved 25 December 2012.
  6. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1995/0721/Pg016.html#Ar01603:3E8AF541CB0F426AF5446B0F449AF5459B0F. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1995/0824/Pg018.html#Ar01806:6A35EA6D360466E6AC69C6C65D55FA6066146A46AC6D56C682F6E28506F3. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1995/0812/Pg018.html#Ar01801:1E366E21168821C66E24F6883136A23206B93206A03276BA3276A23456B928C7752B478D2B97732C078D28D8552AF866. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ↑ The Irish Times
  10. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1997/0208/Pg019.html#Ar01907:730A32756A476D89A66F79E16F89A87049E07099A67539E1762A3278BA476E3AA770CABC729AF0752B05754AEF758B04. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. ↑ http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/season=1999/matches/round=1275/match=56585/postmatch/lineups/index.html
  12. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/2000/1102/Pg023.html#Ar02302:72131E75433675431E765336. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. ↑ Northern Ireland – List of Topscorers Rec Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation
  14. ↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2002/07/24/champions_results/.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  15. ↑ http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/season=2005/matches/round=2206/match=81233/index.html
  16. ↑ http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/vinny-sails-out-of-ports-28255444.html
  17. ↑ The Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1990/1017/Pg017.html#Ar01702:1837801A97951B47801DF7951EC81821682D21A81821C82D3537E737D7FC3558FD380912. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  18. ↑ M. Brodie (ed.), Northern Ireland Soccer Yearbook 2009–2010, p. 102; Belfast:Ulster Tatler Publications

References