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Ricky Hill became the first South Asian Briton to represent England at senior level when he ran for the Three Lions in the ’80s, according to a new book that has just been released.
“ Love of the game: the man who brought the Rooney rule to the UK ” is written by Hill and co-written by Adrian Durham. The autobiography focuses on Hill’s role as the pioneer who designed an equivalent of the NFL’s Rooney Rule for English football.
The book also describes how Hill is the first player of Indian descent to represent England and how that would make him the first South Asian player in English history.
The former central midfielder made three international appearances during the 1980s, with his debut as a substitute in a European qualifier against Denmark on September 22, 1982.
His only departure to England came three weeks later against Germany at Wembley Stadium, where Hill had sold match schedules as a child. Hill’s third and final international appearance came in a friendly against Egypt in Cairo in 1986.
Hill’s mother is Jamaican but her family on her father’s side is from the town of Lucknow in India. Coincidentally, the father of the first British South Asian to play in the Premier League, Jimmy Carter, was also raised in Lucknow, capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
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Hill’s great-grandparents are both Indians and moved to Jamaica from India shortly after the turn of the 20th century. Hill’s grandparents are also Indian, and his grandfather John Hill was originally called Gurcharan. Loosely translated from Hindi or Punjabi, Gurcharan means “at the teacher’s feet”.
Hill’s father, Joseph, who was one of 11 children, eventually moved to London where he married Ricky’s mother, Doris, a Jamaican woman Joseph had previously attended in school in Jamaica. The book says that Joseph was the only brother of the 11 to marry a non-Indian person.
A talented footballer in his early years, Ricky Hill grew up in the London Borough of Brent, not far from Wembley Stadium. He was spotted playing for John Kelly Boys Technology College in Neasden by David Pleat, then Luton’s reserve team leader, during a schools cup tie at Hitchin in 1975.
Given his debut in the Hatters’ first team by Harry Haslam a year later, Hill would become a mainstay of Luton’s midfielder, playing a central role in the 1981-1982 campaign, as they won promotion to the top. of the hierarchy as champions of the former Second Division.
Hill was also part of one of the biggest shocks in the English national football cup when his close friend Brian Stein scored in the last minute to seal a 3-2 victory over Arsenal in the League Cup final 1988. The game is often described as the greatest in Luton history by Hatters fans.
The former midfielder racked up more than 500 appearances in 14 years for Luton and he also played English league football for Leicester. Hill went on to play for the French team in Le Havre before becoming the American teams of the Cocoa Expos and the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
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Hill had two periods as manager of the Rowdies and was also a youth coach at Sheffield Wednesday and Tottenham. He returned to Kenilworth Road as manager just over 20 years ago, during a time of financial upheaval for Luton.
Speaking about that four-month spell at the helm of the Hatters last year, Hill said Sky Sports News: “I returned there as a manager in 2000, I took over a declining club at this stage, I had been in the administration for three and a half years.
“Soul had been ripped from the club, but I was only given four months in this position. So that’s the sad part of my trip in that regard.”
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There was no second chance in the English game. Hill was forced to look aside as former teammates carved out lasting management careers.
“Someone like Danny Wilson who’s been in 1,000 games as a coach, I take my hat off to him,” said Hill, who won league titles with the Rowdies and Trinidad and Tobago San Juan Jabloteh.
“Iain Dowie has had a number of chances and the list goes on and on. And obviously one of my great friends Brian Horton did really well in 2,000 games which is wonderful.
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Hill told Sky Sports News in February 2021 he felt ‘invisible’ in the UK, despite his success as an overseas coach
“For me, personally as an individual, I wish I could have thought to myself that I could emulate what they have done and what they have accomplished.”
Hill, who celebrated his 62nd birthday earlier this month, said: “I dreamed of having a similar managerial career to what I had as a player. It didn’t happen until present, but my dream did not stop. “
British South Asians in Football
For more stories, features and videos visit our dedicated South Asians in Football page on skysports.com and stay tuned to Sky Sports News and our Sky Sports digital platforms.
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