Wayne Graham Jacobs (born 3 February 1969) is an English football coach and former professional player who is the assistant manager to Darren Moore at EFL League Two club Port Vale.
He was twice named the club's Player of the Year and made 357 appearances, including 45 in the Premier League, before he departed into non-League football in May 2005.
[4] He made his debut in the Football League for Sheffield Wednesday on 18 August 1987, when he came on as a substitute in a 1–1 draw with Oxford United at Hillsborough.
[5] He later credited "very strong and sergeant majori-sh" manager Howard Wilkinson for instilling him with the discipline needed for a good career in the game.
[8] He featured 34 times under the stewardship of Terry Dolan in the 1991–92 campaign before he snapped a cruciate ligament in a game against Stoke City in January.
[20] He was sent off for the first time in his career during a 1–0 defeat at Cardiff City on 29 March 1994, having received a second yellow card for tugging Tony Bird's shirt.
[1][23] In December 1995, Jacobs scored two goals, including one from a bicycle kick, in an FA Cup win over Preston North End in a match shown live on television amidst a thick fog.
[24] Chris Kamara succeeded Lennie Lawrence as manager midway through the 1995–96 campaign and led Bradford into the play-offs with victory over Jacobs' former club Hull at Boothferry Park on the final day.
[25] Jacobs then played in the play-off final victory over Notts County after having prayed on the pitch at Wembley Stadium alongside teammates Richard Huxford and Andy Kiwomya before the game.
[1] He was linked with a move to Stockport County in September 1998 with Gary Megson needing a replacement for Damon Searle; Bradford valued Jacobs at £150,000.
[32] However, he featured in 24 of the club's 38 league games and was a late substitute on the final day of the 1999–2000 season as Bradford escaped relegation by beating Liverpool 1–0 at Valley Parade.
[33] He played in European competition for the first time in the 2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup, featuring in both legs of the second round victory over Lithuanian club FK Atlantas.
[34] He competed with Ian Nolan and played 20 Premier League games under Chris Hutchings and Jim Jefferies as Bradford were relegated in last place at the end of the 2000–01 season.
[1] Manager Nicky Law blamed the match officials for not spotting the ball crossing the touchline before Jacobs made the challenge that earned him the second yellow card.
[47] In March 2022, Jacobs joined Sheffield Wednesday to work alongside Jamie Smith as an assistant to manager Darren Moore.
[51] He was reported to be off work in February 2025 due to health-related reasons as Moore stated that he was on a "slow but sure road getting back to full fitness".
[52] In November 1988, Jacobs and an accomplice pleaded guilty to a charge of assault following an altercation with a 60-year-old man at a hotel in Attercliffe; he was fined £500 and ordered to pay £650 in compensation.