Phil Purnell

Phil Purnell

Personal information
Full name	Phillip Purnell
Date of birth	(1964-09-16) 16 September 1964
Place of birth	Bristol, England
Position(s)	Midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Forest Green Rovers
	Frome Town
????–1985	Mangotsfield United
1985–1993	Bristol Rovers	153	(22)
1991–1992	→ Swansea City (loan)	5	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Phil Purnell (born 16 September 1964) is a former professional association footballer who spent the majority of his career with Bristol Rovers. Before turning professional in 1985, Purnell played for West Country non-league sides Forest Green Rovers, Frome Town and Mangotsfield United, until signing for Bristol Rovers in September 1985. He went on to make 153 league appearances for The Pirates in a 7+1⁄2-year spell at the club, scoring twenty-two goals. He was loaned to Swansea City for a month in December 1991, where he played five league games and scored once.

Purnell's playing career ended when he suffered a broken leg in April 1993. He was awarded a testimonial match in the summer of 1994, when Bristol Rovers faced a Queens Park Rangers side managed by former Rovers manager Gerry Francis, and featuring a number of former Bristol Rovers players.

After retiring from playing, he worked in insurance, and also continued in football on a part-time basis as assistant manager of Yate Town, where his former Rovers teammate Ian Alexander was manager, and also at Winterbourne United.

Sources

• "Past Players". swanseacity.net. Swansea City Football Club. 1 May 2008. Archived from the original on 10 July 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2009.
• Byrne, Stephen; Jay, Mike (2003). Bristol Rovers Football Club - The Definitive History 1883-2003. Stroud: Tempus. p. 504. ISBN 0-7524-2717-2.