​Rocky Remembered: 15 Years on From the Death of David Rocastle

In the summer of 1992, when David Rocastle first realised that Arsenal were ready to accept Leeds United's £2million bid for his services, his reaction was one of utter heartbreak. A man who was lionised for his bravery, beloved for mixing it with the toughest opponents in the top flight, broke down and cried in front of his teammates.

Gunners boss George Graham had sanctioned one of the most ruthless decisions in Arsenal history, selling as popular and dedicated a player as the club has ever known. Devastating for Rocastle personally, it also spelled the end of the best days of his career.

Still, if that decision stands out as a turning point for "Rocky", it certainly wasn't the only seminal moment of his life in football.

Born in Lewisham in May 1967, the son of Caribbean parents, Rocastle's childhood was overshadowed by the death of his father when he was only five years old. After a youth spent on the football pitches of South London, he joined boyhood club Arsenal in 1982 and turned professional two years later. According to Martin Keown, Rocky's development only really took off when his coaches realised he was seriously short-sighted; prior to that he'd been "dribbling with his head down" and could barely see where the goal was. Contact lenses were procured by the club and, in September 1985, he made his senior debut against Newcastle.

From those difficult beginnings, he was to become an iconic player in a golden age for the Gunners. Instantly impressing the fans with his pace, flair and masterful ball control, Rocky broke into the first team during a protracted barren spell for the club. The Gunners' early-eighties vintage were far from their best, recording a series of mid-table finishes and stodgy, trophyless seasons under Terry Neil and Don Howe. Rocastle brought something different to the side.

As his own debut roughly coincided with the emergence of Tony Adams, Michael Thomas and Paul Merson (amongst others), Rocastle was the midfield lightning rod in a team of electrifying youngsters. Add to that the departure of Howe and the arrival of a gritty, motivated George Graham, and suddenly Arsenal had one of the most exciting young squads in the First Division.

So it came to be that, only three years after his first senior appearance, and just before his 20th birthday, Rocky played a role in securing the club's first major silverware that decade. Arsenal beat an imperious Liverpool in the League Cup Final of 1987, with Rocastle putting in a stylish performance from the midfield. More importantly, he'd previously scored the winner in a hard-fought semi-final replay against Tottenham Hotspur – silencing White Hart Lane with a scrappy, toe-poked goal for the ages.

Though Arsenal lost the League Cup Final to Luton Town the following year, Rocastle's career highlight was just around the corner. The 1988/89 season was one of the most exhilarating of all time.

Rocastle was ever-present as Graham's side soared to the top of the league, only to fall behind Liverpool with two games to go after a surprise home defeat to Derby County and a draw with Wimbledon. This left the Gunners in a seemingly hopeless situation: to clinch their first title since 1971, they needed to go to Anfield on the last day and beat their direct rivals by two clear goals.

Once again, Rocky led from the front. He played a part in Arsenal's first goal, winning the free kick which Alan Smith nodded home early in the second half. Then, in injury time, Michael Thomas burst through the Liverpool defence and sent a dinked shot sailing past Bruce Grobbelaar and into the back of the net. Arsenal had won it. The collective elation was earth-shattering.

As the fans roared and swayed in the stands, Rocky was embraced by his manager on the Anfield turf. It was the pinnacle of their time together.

Nonetheless, not three years later, Rocastle was unceremoniously transferred to Howard Wilkinson's Leeds. Though he'd helped Arsenal to another title in 1990/91, a serious knee injury limited him to only 18 league appearances that campaign. He played almost every game of the 1991/92 season but, while Rocky tried to rediscover his old pace and form, the Gunners could only muster a fourth-place finish.

Hardly a sentimental character, Graham decided that Rocastle's time at the club had come to an end. On 23 July 1992, a decade after he first joined Arsenal, the surprise transfer went through. Many supporters were dumbfounded. Rocky was distraught.

Football seemed tinged with semi-permanent melancholy for Rocastle after that. He never quite established himself at Elland Road and, before long, his nomadic wanderings had seen him turn out for Manchester City, Chelsea, Norwich and Hull in the space of five years. That said, he still showed bursts of his old flair – and always found favour with the fans.

Now, though, he was a cult figure as opposed to a match-winning champion. As his career drew to an end, he decided to make one last move to Malaysian club Sabah. After 13 appearances and a recurrence of his old injuries, he finally retired in 1999.

Two years later, in February 2001, he announced that he was suffering from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. An aggressive form of blood cancer, it claimed his life on 31 March. He was 33 years old.

Rocky's death was cataclysmic for those who knew him but, likewise, it was widely mourned by many who didn't. Tributes poured in from all sides after the news broke, while Arsenal's next match – the North London derby – was preceded by a minute's silence, impeccably observed by both sets of fans.

It's now almost impossible to extricate the circumstances of Rocastle's premature death from those of his career and, as such, he's bound to be remembered as a tragic hero of the beautiful game. However, pathos and poignancy aren't the be-all and end-all of his life in football.

Ultimately, his years playing for Arsenal brought him a huge amount of happiness – happiness for which he paid the club back tenfold, and more.

@W_F_Magee