Scott Dobie

Scottish footballer

Dobie was transferred to West Bromwich Albion on 6 July 2001 for an initial £150,000 fee, with another £50,000 being paid once he reached 25 appearances for his new club. He made his Albion début against Walsall on 11 August 2001. His first goal for the club came on 22 August 2001 in a League Cup tie at Cambridge United, when he lobbed the opposition goalkeeper from 30 yards out. He enjoyed an impressive September, scoring his first league goal for Albion in a 4–0 win over Manchester City, and thus commencing a scoring streak of eight goals in seven games. However he struggled to find the net after that, not scoring again until February. Nonetheless, he finished the season as the club's top scorer with 11 league goals, 13 in total. His performances helped Albion get promoted to the Premier League in 2001–02. Two of his goals came on 16 March 2002 in a 3–0 win at Sheffield United; the game was dubbed the "Battle of Bramall Lane" as it was the only game in English professional football to be abandoned due to a team having insufficient players left on the pitch. In the summer he handed in a transfer request, reportedly because he wanted a wage increase after breaking into the Scotland national side. Albion refused to sell the player however, and eventually Dobie was rewarded with an improved four year contract. Dobie was Albion's first Premier League substitute when he replaced Danny Dichio in the opening game against Manchester United at Old Trafford. He scored five times in Albion's first Premiership season and his strike against Tottenham Hotspur on 8 December 2002 was named 'Goal of the Week' by the BBC Sport website, but this wasn't enough to save the club from relegation. Dobie again won promotion with West Brom in 2003–04, helping the club bounce back to the top flight at the first attempt. He scored five league goals including three in as many matches in consecutive wins against Stoke, Millwall and Gillingham. Albion returned to the Premier League for the 2004–05 season, and Dobie scored what turned out to be his last goal for the club in a 2 1 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park on 28 August 2004.

With the likes of Kanu and Robert Earnshaw ahead of him in the West Brom pecking order, Dobie struggled to gain first team action at the start of 2004–05, and on 8 November 2004 moved to Millwall in a deal worth "up to" £750,000. Owing to a sell on clause, his former club Carlisle received at least £37,500 from the deal.

On 25 February 2005 he joined Nottingham Forest in a £525,000 move from Millwall, signing a three and a half year deal. His Forest career got off to a slow start, as he scored only one goal in 12 appearances. He then started to find his form, but a series of injuries, including a hip injury that required ground breaking surgery in America, checked his progress, meaning he scored just two goals in the 2005–06 season. At the start of the 2006–07 season new manager Colin Calderwood expressed his faith in Dobie and said his career was safe at Forest. But injury again slowed his progress, after suffering a thigh injury on his comeback game, forcing him down the pecking order behind Grant Holt, Junior Agogo and Nathan Tyson. Most of Dobie's appearances in 2006–07 were from the substitutes bench. His only goal that season came in the 2006–07 League One play off semi final against Yeovil. His header from a corner, put Forest 3–1 up in the tie, but they ended up losing 5–4 on aggregate after extra time. Dobie began the 2007–08 campaign as a lone striker against AFC Bournemouth but was quickly dropped to the bench, and then cut from the matchday squad altogether, although he returned as a substitute in Forest's 2–0 win at Port Vale.

On 23 January 2008, Dobie returned to Carlisle United, now in League One, where he signed a two and a half year contract after moving for a nominal fee. He was on the losing side in a play off semi final for the second year running when Carlisle were defeated 3–2 on aggregate by Leeds United, whose team included Dobie's half cousin Paul Huntington. Dobie received the first red card of his career in a 0–0 draw against Leyton Orient in August 2008.

Dobie signed for Scottish Premier League club St Johnstone on a one year contract in May 2010. Dobie had previously played alongside Saints manager Derek McInnes at West Brom. However, he was released a month later on 28 September 2012 after failing to break into the team.

Dobie represented Scotland at international level.