Rod Wallace: Leeds United’s Marvel Of Movement

I remember when I first became aware of Rod Wallace – a name I’m sure that many of a certain age either won’t know, or have forgotten. I admit, I fall into the latter.

Wow, I must have just been around five or six when Wallace came to my attention – I’d even forgotten he was a striker. I thought he was more of a midfielder to be honest.

He was born in Lewisham in 1969 and probably only those of a certain age will remember that his two brothers, Danny and Ray also played professionally, so it was a real football family. They even lined up together during his early days – a unique feat in top-flight English football in those days.

Having started his career at Southampton, Wallace started to quickly develop a knack for scoring goals and this quickly got the attention of other clubs.

Wallace Moves To Leeds

In the summer of 1991, we signed the player for £1.6 million – a considerable sum in those days and Wallace was a key component of our 1991-92 First Division title-winning season, before it reformed as the Premier League.

He slotted straight in as well, forming an effective partnership up front, with another nineties legend of ours – Lee Chapman. His exploits for us earned him an England call-up in 1992, however, due to injury he missed out on any action and never got another opportunity.

However, Wallace swiftly became a major icon for us and somewhat of a fan-favourite for his penchant for the unpredictable. Before long, he was considered to be one of the most exciting strikers in the top flight and had a knack for exciting Elland Road and lighting up other stadiums.

Wallace experienced a number of career highlights during his time for us, most notably his hat-trick on the last day of the 1992-93 season in an exciting draw at Coventry City. He also scored a spectacular solo strike against Tottenham a season later, which won the Goal of the Season award. People rave about Ryan Giggs’ famous goal in the FA Cup against Spurs, though, personally, I think you could make an argument about this being better.

Between 1994 and 1998, Wallace continued to play a key part for us, helping to steer us to very respectable fifth place finishes in 1994, 1995 and 1998 – his goals and assists proving to be crucial against some very tough opponents.

Following the arrival of another legend – Tony Yeboah, Wallace was used more in a rotation capacity, though for fans, having such a selection of quality strikers to choose from was a huge advantage.

Why Wallace Was Liked Among Leeds Fans

Certainly, one key thing fans remember Wallace for was his contribution to our last league title, though the thing that often stood out was his work ethic, professionalism and upbeat personality.

Adaptable, as well as being able to play up front alongside another striker, he could also play wide in our famous 4-4-2 system that had an array of serious talent.

As a player, Wallace was exciting to watch. He would often light up stadiums and really get fans going with his electric pace and smart movement, combined with his ability to both create and score goals.

During his time with us, he made 212 league appearances, while scoring 66 goals in 257 outings. After George Graham took over as manager, Wallace was marginalised in the squad and eventually left us on a free transfer.

Wallace After Leeds United

I actually didn’t realise this, but Wallace moved to Rangers after his time with us and found success once more winning domestic honours.

After brief stints with Bolton and Gillingham, Wallace then retired taking up coaching at grassroots level.

For many fans it seems, Wallace is still remembered as being an icon of the ‘glory years’ at our club and is one of those ‘vogue’ names that many likely look back on fondly. Anyone eagle-eyed enough, might just be able to find ‘Rod Wallace’ merchandise in our club shop!

Rod Wallace Leeds United Player Stats