Mike Elwiss born May 2, 1954
A local lad who came through Rovers’ youth system, Mike made a huge impression as a 17-year-old in 1971-72, scoring twice on his League debut at Newport County and going on to score 16 times in his first season in professional football.
The young striker soon attracted plenty of attention and was watched by Liverpool boss Bill Shankly at one point. Elwiss proved his prolific form was no fluke, scoring 13 times in 1972-73 to finish as top scorer for the second consecutive season.
In February 1974 Preston North End paid £70,000 to secure his services and he went on to help them gain promotion to the Second Division. In 1978 he joined Crystal Palace and his seven league goals helped them to the Division Two Championship. Sadly, a knee injury ended his career at the age of 27. In all for Rovers, he scored 35 goals in only 108 games.
