Darren Purse

Darren Purse

Purse playing for Cardiff City in 2009
Personal information
Full name	Darren John Purse
Date of birth	14 February 1977 (1977-02-14)
Place of birth	Stepney, England
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	Plymouth Argyle
Number	5
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1994–1996	Leyton Orient	55	(3)
1996	→ BK-IFK (loan)	?	(?)
1996–1998	Oxford United	59	(5)
1998–2004	Birmingham City	167	(9)
2004–2005	West Bromwich Albion	22	(0)
2005–2009	Cardiff City	111	(10)
2009–2011	Sheffield Wednesday	61	(2)
2011–2012	Millwall	13	(1)
2011	→ Yeovil Town (loan)	5	(0)
2011–2012	→ Plymouth Argyle (loan)	3	(0)
2012–	Plymouth Argyle	9	(1)
National team
1998	England U21	2	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:39, 28 February 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Darren John Purse (born 14 February 1977) is an English professional footballer who plays for Football League Two club Plymouth Argyle as a defender. Purse has more than 450 appearances in the Football League and Premier League, having previously played for Leyton Orient, Oxford United, Birmingham City, West Bromwich Albion, Cardiff City, Sheffield Wednesday, Millwall and Yeovil Town. He was capped by England at under-21 level.

Club career

Early career

Purse was born in Stepney, London and attended Cardinal Pole RC School in Hackney. As a youngster Purse followed Millwall, as well as making trips to watch Arsenal to see one of his heroes in Tony Adams. Having played in the same Sunday league side as Lee Bowyer when he was younger, he was offered a YTS deal by both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur but turned them down in order to complete his A levels. On hearing that he had been offered deals by the two clubs Leyton Orient showed their interest and told him that they would hand him a professional contract when he turned seventeen if he signed for them. On signing his contract with the club he made his début just three days later and established himself in the side before moving to Oxford United in 1996 for £100,000.

Birmingham City

Purse spent just eighteen months with Oxford before he joined Birmingham City for £700,000, despite interest from his former Oxford manager Denis Smith who was then in charge of West Bromwich Albion, in 1997 and his spell included an appearance at the 2001 Football League Cup Final as well as promotion to the Premier League. During the League Cup final, Purse scored a 90th minute equaliser in the 2001 League Cup from the penalty spot to take the game to extra time. Birmingham eventually lost on penalties.

Purse moved to West Bromwich Albion for £750,000 in the summer of 2004. He spent a single season with Albion in the Premier League, making 24 appearances in all competitions.

Cardiff City

In July 2005, Purse moved to Cardiff City where he was appointed team captain. He has gained a reputation for hard work and consistency as the foundation of the Cardiff defence, forming an effective partnership with Glenn Loovens and in July 2007 Purse ended growing speculation about his future by signing a one-year extension to his contract at Cardiff.

On 28 August 2007 he received an injury to his knee cartilage after the 1–0 Carling Cup win over Leyton Orient. It was expected that he would be unavailable for up to four weeks, but he contracted an infection during an operation on the injured knee that delayed his return for a much longer period and caused him to lose weight alarmingly. He made his return to first team football in October, in a match against Wolverhampton Wanderers and went on to score a headed goal in the 2–1 League Cup defeat against Liverpool on 31 October. The 2007–08 season turned into a disappointment for Purse as he was forced out of the side by Cardiff fan favourite Roger Johnson. This being one of a series of blows to strike the veteran centre back in recent times. He scored several own goals including a spectacular volleyed pass back that proved too powerful for Cardiff goalkeeper Peter Enckelman. He was also labelled a "muppet" by Burnley forward Andrew Cole, after Purse was sent off for what was deemed a dangerous tackle against Cole, although Cardiff manager Dave Jones defended the player and the ban was later overturned.

Purse began the following season remaining on the bench but, in August 2008, Glenn Loovens was sold to Celtic and he returned to the starting line-up alongside Roger Johnson. He spent three months in the first team before losing his place in the side again, this time to Hungarian international Gábor Gyepes who was signed as a replacement for Loovens, after a 2–1 defeat to Plymouth Argyle on 22 November after which Cardiff manager Dave Jones slammed the defensive performance of the team. Purse responded by criticising his manager and stating that he did not deserve to be dropped from the side. His comments led to him being dropped from the side completely for the South Wales derby match against Swansea City on 30 November before being recalled to the bench for the following game.

In January Purse was told that he could leave the club if a replacement could be signed during the January transfer window and was allowed to open talks with fellow Championship side Norwich City, but Cardiff could not find a suitable replacement in time and the move was cancelled. At the end of the season Purse was not offered an extension to his contract and left the club.

Sheffield Wednesday

Following his release, it was announced that Purse had signed for Sheffield Wednesday, and was named team captain. He made his début in a 2–2 draw with Barnsley on the opening day of the season. He scored his first goal for Wednesday in a 2–0 win over Coventry City on 17 October 2009. On 20 January 2011 it was announced that Purse had left the club by mutual consent.

Millwall

The day after his release from Sheffield Wednesday, Purse signed with Millwall on 21 January 2011 on a contract until the end of the season. He has supported The Lions since he was a boy. Purse made his début for Millwall two days later in a 4–2 defeat away at Leicester City. He scored his first goal for the club on 23 April, in the 4–0 defeat of Preston North End at The Den which was televised live. In an interview afterwards, Purse dedicated the goal to his "old man", who had been a Millwall supporter for 30–40 years. Having found himself out of the team at the start of the 2011–12 campaign, Purse was loaned out to Yeovil Town for a month. He made five appearances during that time and manager Terry Skiverton would have liked to extend his stay with the club. However, on 24 November, Purse moved to Plymouth Argyle on loan until January 2012 with a permanent 18-month contract to be signed when the transfer window opened.

In January 2012, Purse appeared on the BBC Three documentary Britain's Gay Footballers.

International career

Purse is a former England under-21 international.

External links

• Darren Purse career stats at Soccerbase
• Darren Purse on Twitter
• Millwall F.C. Profile
• Football.co.uk profile

Sporting positions
Preceded by Richard Wood	Sheffield Wednesday F.C. captain 2009–2011	Succeeded by –
Preceded by Graham Kavanagh	Cardiff City F.C. captain 2005–2009	Succeeded by Mark Hudson