Photo: Ed g2s / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Jimmy Rimmer, who served as Arsenal's first-choice goalkeeper during the mid-1970s, has died. He was 77.
Rimmer made 146 appearances for Arsenal after joining from Manchester United in April 1974, when manager Bertie Mee signed him for £40,000. He made his first-team debut against Liverpool shortly after arriving.
He succeeded the legendary Bob Wilson as the club's number one following Wilson's retirement at the end of the 1973–74 season, and went on to miss just three matches over the next three seasons. Rimmer was named Arsenal's Player of the Year in 1975 and earned an England cap a year later.
Prior to his time at Highbury, Rimmer had spent nine years as an understudy to Alex Stepney at Manchester United, including as an unused substitute when United won the European Cup against Benfica in 1968. A loan spell at Swansea had drawn Mee's attention.
The arrival of Terry Neill as Arsenal manager brought Pat Jennings from Tottenham, and Rimmer was subsequently sold to Aston Villa. He thrived there over six seasons, winning a First Division title in 1981 and a European Cup and Super Cup winners' medal in 1982. He later played for Swansea City, Hamrum Spartans and Luton Town before retiring in 1986.