Darren Purse
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| Darren Purse | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Darren John Purse | |
| Date of birth | February 14, 1977 | |
| Place of birth | Stepney, England | |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | |
| Playing position | Defender | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Sheffield Wednesday | |
| Senior career1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1994–1996 1996–1998 1998–2004 2004–2005 2005–2009 2009– |
Leyton Orient Oxford United Birmingham City West Bromwich Albion Cardiff City Sheffield Wednesday |
55 (3) 59 (5) 167 (9) 22 (0) 111 (10) 0 (0) |
| National team2 | ||
| England U21 | 2 (0) | |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
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Darren John Purse (born 14 February 1977) is a professional football player who is currently playing for Football League Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.
Contents |
[edit] Club career
Purse was born in in Stepney, London and attended Cardinal Pole RC School in Hackney.[1] 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 debut just three days later and established himself in the side before moving to Oxford United in 1996 for £100,000.[2]
Before moving to Oxford Purse had a loanspell at Finnish second division club BK-IFK (now Vasa IFK) in the summer of 1996. Purse played just a handful of games for the club because of his move from Leyton to Oxford that summer.
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 FA Premier League. During the League Cup final, Purse scored a 90th minute equalizer 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.[3] He spent a single season with Albion in the Premier League, making 24 appearances in all competitions.
In July 2005, Purse moved to Cardiff City where he was appointed team captain.[4] 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.[5] 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.[6]
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.[7] Purse responded by criticizing his manager and stating that he did not deserve to be dropped from the side.[8] 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,[9] but Cardiff could not find a suitable replacement in time and the move was cancelled.[10]
At the end of the season Purse was not offered an extension to his contract and left the club.[11] Following his release, it was announced that Purse had signed for Sheffield Wednesday.
[edit] International career
Purse is a former England under-21 international.
[edit] References
- ^ "Purse makes it to Wembley". Hackney Gazette. 2008-05-15. http://www.hackneygazette.co.uk/content/hackney/gazette/sport/story.aspx?brand=HKYGOnline&category=sportfootball&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=sporthkyg&itemid=WeED14%20May%202008%2014%3A35%3A52%3A627. Retrieved on 2008-05-17.
- ^ "Darren Purse interview" firsttouchonline.com Retrieved on 10 April 2008
- ^ "Baggies snatch Purse". BBC Sport. 2004-06-18. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/west_bromwich_albion/3797713.stm. Retrieved on 2007-05-01.
- ^ "Purse heads triple Cardiff swoop". BBC Sport. 2005-07-28. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/cardiff_city/4697199.stm. Retrieved on 2007-05-01.
- ^ "Cardiff 0-1 Leicester" BBC Sport Retrieved on 26 August 2008
- ^ "Cardiff win Purse red card appeal" BBC Sport Retrieved on 26 August 2008
- ^ "Plymouth 2-1 Cardiff" BBC Sport Retrieved on 12 December, 2008
- ^ "I didnt deserve to get dropped - Bluebirds skipper" South Wales Echo Retrieved on 12 December, 2008
- ^ "Cardiff City captain Purse in talks with Norwich City" South Wales Echo Retrieved on 28 January, 2009
- ^ "Darren Purse staying at Cardiff City after Norwich move called off" South Wales Echo Retrieved on 30 January, 2009
- ^ "Skipper Purse released by Cardiff". BBC Sport. 10 May 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/cardiff_city/8042634.stm. Retrieved on 10 May 2009.
[edit] External links
- Darren Purse career stats at Soccerbase
- Darren Purse Official Website at officialplayerwebsites.com
- Yahoo Sports profile
- Football.co.uk profile
- Cardiff City F.C. Profile
- West Bromwich Albion F.C. Profile
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