Born in
Prescot, Lancashire, Bamber played for
Leicester University and
St. Helens Town in youth and junior football. Bamber began his professional career at
Blackpool in 1979. His starting debut came on 29 December 1979, in a loss at
Chester City. He scored his first goal for the Seasiders on 7 April 1980, in a league encounter against
Carlisle United at
Bloomfield Road. During the next four years of struggle, Bamber scored 36 goals in 100 games in all competitions under four different managers.
Coventry City came in for his services prior to the
1983–84 season. Bamber moved to
Walsall in 1984, before a short stay at
Portsmouth in 1984. In 1985, he joined Swedish side
Trelleborgs FF, making just four league appearances, scoring one goal, before moving back to England to play for
Swindon Town later that same year. In two years with
the Robins he made 108 league appearances, scoring 31 goals. In 1988, he joined
Watford with whom he made 18 league appearances and scored three goals before moving to
Stoke City later that same year. In 1989, he joined
Hull City, before returning to Blackpool in 1990 to bring his fifteen-year playing career to a close. He was re-signed by
the Seasiders initially on loan, in December 1990, by the departing
Graham Carr, who was immediately replaced by his assistant,
Billy Ayre. "I signed for Graham Carr on the Thursday and got on the coach to go down to Hereford to find out that he'd been sacked," Bamber explained in 2012. "Nobody seemed to know what was going on. Billy Ayre got on the coach further down the M6." A month later, on 5 January 1991, shortly before kick-off in an
FA Cup match against
Tottenham Hotspur, new
Seasiders manager Billy Ayre agreed to pay Hull £50,000 for Bamber, although Bamber claims it was half that amount. Following this loss,
the Gulls named their fanzine ''Bamber's Right Foot'', in mockery of the striker's miss. The following year, however, Blackpool were victorious in the same manner against
Scunthorpe United and were promoted to the new
Division Two. Bamber, who played despite needing an operation on his knee (preserving his record of being an ever-present throughout the season), scored Blackpool's normal-time goal. He did not partake in the penalty shoot-out. == Blackpool F.C. Hall of Fame ==