Matt Richards (footballer)
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matthew Lee Richards[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 26 December 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Harlow, England | ||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 8 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Left-Back, Left Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Shrewsbury Town | ||
| Number | 14 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2000–2002 | Ipswich Town | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2009 | Ipswich Town | 138 | (8) |
| 2007 | → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2008 | → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) | 23 | (1) |
| 2009–2011 | Walsall | 86 | (12) |
| 2011– | Shrewsbury Town | 30 | (4) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004–2005 | England U16 | 5 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | England U17 | 5 | (0) |
| 2006 | England U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2004 | England U21 | 1 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:15, 6 March 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Matthew Lee "Matt" Richards (born 26 December 1984 in Harlow, Essex) is an English footballer who currently plays for Shrewsbury Town in the English League Two.
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[edit] Career
[edit] Ipswich Town
Matt is a graduate of the Ipswich Town academy, and made his debut in the UEFA Cup against Avenir Beggen aged just 17. He received his only England under-21 cap for appearing in the England U21 victory over Ukraine U21 in August 2004. He played a prominent role in Joe Royle's Play-Off semi-finalist making teams in 2003/04 and 2004/05. When Club Captain Jim Magilton was made manager in 2006–07 Richards found himself out of favour.Originally regarded as a left-back, he is now much more comfortable as a midfielder, either playing on the left or in the centre.
[edit] Brighton & Hove Albion
On 18 September 2007, Richards joined League One side Brighton & Hove Albion on a provisional one-month loan deal, although the Seagulls had allegedly been tracking the player all through the summer of 2007.
Richards' loan deal at Brighton was extended by a further two months, running up until 18 December 2007[2] .[3] He played 14 League games in total during his three-month loan at the Withdean and ex-Brighton manager Dean Wilkins expressed his interest on loaning the player until the end of the 2007/08 season. On 17 January 2008, it was revealed that Richards had agreed to join Brighton on loan for the remainder of the 2007–08 season.[4]
Richards once again rejoined Brighton on loan until the end of December 2008 on 21 July 2008.[5]
[edit] Return to Ipswich and release
Richards made his Ipswich return in 2009 under new manager Roy Keane starting against Cardiff in a 3–0 win at Ninian Park.[6] This would turn out to be his last game for the club as he was released on 14 May 2009.[7]
[edit] Walsall
Richards had a trial spell with Burton Albion [8] scoring in a friendly against Ilkeston Town, however following a successful trial at League One side Walsall, Richards penned a two-year contract with the Saddlers.[9] Richards left the Saddlers after failing to meet the deadline on signing a new deal. He contacted the club 2 days too late and the offer had been withdrawn by manager Dean Smith. Richards stated his desire to sign on at Walsall on Twitter, however, this was not possible.
[edit] Shrewsbury Town
Richards impressed during a trial period with Shrewsbury Town and underwent a medical at the Greenhous Meadow on the 27th July 2011, with the deal expected to be completed in the following days. He signed a two-year deal with the Shropshire outfit on 28 July 2011, and scored his first goal in Shrewsbury colours on 8 October in a 3-2 home win over Barnet.[10]
[edit] References
- ^ "Search 1984 to 2006 – Birth, Marriage and Death indexes". Findmypast.com. http://www.findmypast.co.uk/birth-indexes-search-start.action. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ Richards to Extend Brighton loan, BBC Football, 18 October 2007. Retrieved 21 July 2008
- ^ Richards Extends Loan at Brighton, BBC Football, 17 November 2007. Retrieved 21 July 2008
- ^ Brighton bag Ipswich's Richards, BBC Football, 17 January 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2008
- ^ Matt Returns to Brighton, itfc.co.uk, 21 July 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2008
- ^ http://www.clubfanzine.com/ipswich_town/v2.showNews.php?id=19375
- ^ http://www.clubfanzine.com/ipswich_town/v2.showNews.php?id=19623
- ^ Burton Albion 2 Ilkeston Town 3 Clough The Magic Dragon, 14 July 2009. Retrieved 13 May 2010
- ^ Walsall Sign Defender Richards, BBC Football, 4 August 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2009
- ^ "Midfielder signs". Shrewsbury Town F C official website. 28 July 2011. http://www.shrewsburytown.com/page/NewsDetail/0,,10443~2403937,00.html. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
[edit] External links
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