Josephus Antoon Louisa "Jef" Mermans (16 February 1922 in Merksem – 20 January 1996 in Wildert), nicknamed "The Bomber", was a football striker from Belgium, who played much of his career at Anderlecht, with whom he won seven Belgian Championship titles and finished top scorer of this competition three times. He played 405 games and scored 369 goals for Anderlecht, making him the club's all time topscorer.[1][2]

Jef Mermans
Mermans for Belgium in 1953
Personal information
Full name Josephus Antoon Louisa Mermans
Date of birth (1922-02-16)16 February 1922
Place of birth Merksem, Belgium
Date of death 20 January 1996(1996-01-20) (aged 73)
Place of death Wildert, Belgium
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
1932–1937 Tubantia FAC
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1937–1942 Tubantia FAC 93 (65)
1942–1957 Anderlecht 382 (339)
1957–1960 Merksem SC 81 (41)
Total 556 (445)
International career
1945–1956 Belgium 56 (27)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Mermans played 56 matches with the Belgium national football team, 2 of which were in the 1954 FIFA World Cup. He is also the 6th top scorer ever for the Belgium national team with 27 goals.

Mermans on the left, as captain of the Belgium team in November 1950

Early career

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In the early 1930s, the young Mermans, along with a couple of friends, could not afford to become members of FC Antwerp. Eventually, the boys tried their luck at Tubantia F.A.C., a small club in the Antwerp suburb, and forced themselves into the youth team.

Five years later, Mermans entered the first team. His progress caught the attention of the federal coach and Jef was selected for a Belgium B squad match against Luxembourg in January 1939. At this point, he received a proposal to play in the Beerschot team twice in two years, but Tubantia Borgerhout refused.

A member of the Anderlecht staff arrived at Borgerhout in 1942 with a blank check that was filled in with the record sum of 125,000 Belgian francs in a quarter of an hour.[3]

Anderlecht career

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On his arrival at Anderlecht, the Championship was quite erratic due to the World War II, but he helped Anderlecht in becoming a regular team. In 1947, Mermans was the key player in the conquest of the first Anderlecht title in first division as he scored 38 goals (succeeding to Bert De Cleyn as top scorer). He was top European goalscorer of the season 1949-1950 netting 37 goals.[4] At the peak of his career, Anderlecht received offers from A.S. Roma, Torino Calcio, Atalanta Bergamo, Real Madrid, S.S. Lazio and Atlético Madrid but refused them all.[5]

 
Jef Mermans, 3 April 1955

Late career

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In 1957, the Bomber, as he was called for his powerful strikes, left Anderlecht for the small K. Olse Merksem club in his native town. With him, the club promoted from 3rd to 2nd division and even finished 4th in 1960 for its first season at this level. Later on, the club was renamed Olse Mermans to celebrate the player.

Career statistics

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Club

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Source:[6]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League
Division Apps Goals
Tubantia Borgerhout 1937–38 Belgian Second Division 18 8
1938–39 Belgian Second Division 22 9
1939–40 Belgian Second Division 17 14
1940–41 Belgian Second Division 19 14
1941–42 Belgian Second Division 17 20
Total 93 65
Anderlecht 1941–42 Belgian First Division 1 1
1942–43 Belgian First Division 30 23
1943–44 Belgian First Division 30 33
1945–46 Belgian First Division 27 32
1946–47 Belgian First Division 34 38
1947–48 Belgian First Division 26 23
1948–49 Belgian First Division 27 17
1949–50 Belgian First Division 28 37
1950–51 Belgian First Division 21 17
1951–52 Belgian First Division 26 19
1952–53 Belgian First Division 27 24
1953–54 Belgian First Division 30 21
1954–55 Belgian First Division 29 23
1955–56 Belgian First Division 24 19
1956–57 Belgian First Division 22 12
Total 382 339
Olse Merksem 1958–59 Belgian Third Division 26 11
1959–60 Belgian Third Division 26 20
1960–61 Belgian Third Division 29 10
Total 81 41
Career total 556 445

Note: The goals that Mermans scored in the games of the uncompleted 1944-45 season are not taken into account.

International

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Mermans scoring for Belgium in a 7-2 win over the Netherlands (Antwerp, 1950)
Appearances and goals by national team and year[7]
National team Year Apps Goals
Belgium 1945 1 0
1946 2 0
1947 3 1
1948 6 3
1949 7 4
1950 7 12
1951 6 1
1952 5 2
1953 5 0
1954 8 3
1955 4 0
1956 3 1
Total 56 27

Honours

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RSC Anderlecht

Olse Merksem

Individual

Books

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  • Mijn voetbal en ik by Jef Mermans in 1952, Uitgeverij STADION 126 p. (Dutch)
  • Joseph Mermans - L Anderlechtois aux ... 50 capes! by Marcel Grosjean in 1954, 36 p. (French)
  • Eeuwige 25: Anderlecht: van Jef Mermans tot Vincent Kompany by Raf Willems in 2019, Willems Uitgevers, 107 p. (Dutch, French) ISBN 9789492419651
  • Jef Mermans. Bombardier: de voetballer die Anderlecht naar de top loodste by Stefan van Loock in 2022, Willems Uitgevers, 276 p. (Dutch) ISBN 9789493242586

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Jef Mermans: bombardier van Anderlecht over de Bevrijding". boeken.doorbraak.be (in Dutch). 1 December 2022. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  2. ^ "Wie was Jef Mermans?". berchem-sport.com (in Dutch). 31 August 2019.
  3. ^ "NIEUW TRANSFERRECORD IN HET JAAR 1948". rbfa.be (in Dutch). 16 January 2024.
  4. ^ "European topscorers by season". Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Mermans, Jef". anderlecht-online.be (in Dutch). 16 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Club Appearances of Jef Mermans". national-football-teams.com. 15 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Jef MERMANS - Footballer stats by year". eu-football.info. 11 January 2024.
  8. ^ "Palmares". Officiele website Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht.
  9. ^ "De Piraten Gazet - Geschiedenis" (in Dutch). 20 October 2022. Archived from the original on 9 November 2018.
  10. ^ "Eerste klasse A - Topsc. per seizoen". voetbal.com.
  11. ^ "World League Topscorers 1889-2005". rsssf.org. 23 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Winnaars Gouden Schoen".
  13. ^ "Jef MERMANS". labdarugo.be (in Dutch). 16 January 2024.
  14. ^ "Soulier d'or belge". www.football-the-story.com.
  15. ^ "City Pirates". www.citypirates.be (in Dutch). 30 December 2022.