Wayne Clarke

Infobox Football biography
playername = Wayne Clarke


fullname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1961|2|28|df=y
cityofbirth = Wolverhampton
countryofbirth = England
dateofdeath =
cityofdeath =
countryofdeath =
height = height|ft=6
position = Striker (retired)
currentclub =
youthyears = 1976–1978
youthclubs = Wolverhampton Wanderers
years = 1978–1984
1984–1987
1987–1989
1989–1990
1990–1992
1990
1991
1991
1992–1993
1993–1995
1995–1996
clubs = Wolverhampton Wanderers
Birmingham City
Everton
Leicester City
Manchester City
→ Shrewsbury Town
→ Stoke City
→ Wolverhampton Wanderers
Walsall
Shrewsbury Town
Telford United
caps(goals) = 148 (30)
092 (38)
057 (18)
011 0(1)
021 0(2)
007 0(6)
009 0(3)
001 0(0)
039 (21)
059 (22)
nationalyears =
nationalteam = England youth
nationalcaps(goals) =
manageryears = 1995–1996
managerclubs = Telford United (player manager)

Wayne Clarke (born 28 February 1961) is an English former professional association footballer who played as a striker. He made nearly 450 appearances in the Football League for several different clubs, scoring nearly 150 goals. He is the youngest of five brothers, Frank, Allan, Derek, and Kelvin being the others, who all went on to play league football.

Playing career

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Clarke was born in Wolverhampton. He joined home-town club Wolverhampton Wanderers as an associate schoolboy on his 15th birthday in 1976, despite competition from leading clubs, [cite news
title=Wolves sign up Clarke No 5 |work=The Times |format=Times Digital Archive 1785–1985 |date=1976-03-01 |page=8 |quote=His signature has been one of the most sought-after in English football, and Wolves have faced competition from nearly all the leading clubs in the country.] and became an apprentice when he left school the following year. He also represented England at schoolboy and youth level.cite book
author=Matthews, Tony |title=Birmingham City: A Complete Record |year=1995 |publisher=Breedon Books |location=Derby |pages=p. 78 |isbn=978-1-85983-010-9]

He signed his first professional contract in March 1978, and made his first team debut as a substitute on 9 May 1978 in a 2–1 win away to Ipswich Town. [cite web
url=http://www.sporting-heroes.net/football-heroes/displayhero_club.asp?HeroID=399 |title=Wayne Clarke Wolverhampton Wanderers FC |work=sporting-heroes.net |accessdate=2008-01-25] He was a member of the 16-man travelling squad when Wolves won the League Cup in 1980, [cite news
title=Lloyd must lose his place at Wembley |work=The Times |format=Times Digital Archive 1785–1985 |date=1980-03-14 |page=14] but did not play. Competing for places with Andy Gray and John Richards, he was a member of the team that suffered relegation from the First Division in 1982 but reclaimed their top flight status the following season. He scored 33 goals in 170 appearances in all competitions [cite web
url=http://s196276845.websitehome.co.uk/shrewsburywolves/swhistorytext.html |title=Shrewsbury & Wolves: A History |publisher=Shrewsbury Wolves Supporters Club |accessdate=2008-01-25] before Ron Saunders took him to Second Division Birmingham City in 1984. The fee of £80,000 was set by tribunal and included a clause entitling Wolves to half of any profit made from a future sale of the player.cite news
url=http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:AWNB:LTIB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0F90F02B7A06F0C2&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0D0CB57AB53DF815
work=The Times |author=Jones, Stuart |title=League to rule on Clarke move |date=1987-03-10 |accessdate=2008-01-25]

Birmingham City

Clarke scored 19 goals in his first season at Birmingham, which made him their leading scorer. His 17 league goals made a major contribution to the club winning the 1984–85 Second Division title. His season in the top flight with Birmingham was interrupted by suspension and minor injuries, and he only managed five goals as the side were relegated. In 1986–87, Clarke again scored 19 goals, which again made him leading scorer. With Birmingham struggling to avoid further relegation to the Third Division and in financial difficulties, the club accepted an offer from Everton who were in need of an emergency replacement for the injured Graeme Sharp.cite web
url=http://www.toffeeweb.com/history/concise/1981-1987.asp |title=VII: Howard's first time (1981-87): A championship for the entire team in 1986–87 |work=Toffeeweb (an Everton fansite) |accessdate=2008-01-26 |quote=Still, perhaps the most important buy was Wayne Clark, bought from Birmingham to replace the injured Graeme Sharp.] Clarke joined Everton in March 1987 together with inexperienced reserve striker Stuart Storer, the pair jointly valued at £300,000. Former club Wolves complained to the Football League because they believed Birmingham were deliberately inflating the valuation placed on Storer in order to reduce the amount they would owe Wolves under the sell-on clause for Clarke. Birmingham's actions may have been an attempt to recoup money lost on the 1981 sale of Joe Gallagher to Wolves, when the club was declared bankrupt the following year [cite web
url=http://www.wolves.premiumtv.co.uk/page/History/0,,10307~482291,00.html |title=A History Of Wolves |publisher=Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. |date=2007-07-16 |accessdate=2008-01-27] still owing most of the £350,000 fee. [Matthews, pp. 89, 127.]

Everton

Clarke's five goals in ten games, notably the winning goal away at Arsenal not long after he joined, [cite news |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19980504/ai_n14154988 |title=The new Arsenal take the title in stirring style |work=The Independent |author=Moore, Glenn |date=1998-05-04 |accessdate=2008-01-27 |quote=Eleven years ago on this ground a Wayne Clarke goal proved the decisive moment as Everton overhauled Liverpool to win their ninth league title.] in the remainder of the 1986–87 season was enough to earn him a championship medal. The following year he scored the only goal in the Merseyside derby not only to beat arch-rivals Liverpool, but also to prevent them setting a new record of 30 games unbeaten from the start of a season.cite news
url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19951202/ai_n14021346 |title=Wayne enjoying his brave new world |work=The Independent |author=Shaw, Phil |date=1995-12-02 |accessdate=2008-01-25] At the end of the 1988–89 season, during which he helped his club to reach the FA Cup final but did not play in it, Everton brought in Mike Newell from Leicester City in part exchange for Clarke and £500,000. [cite web |url=http://www.toffeeweb.com/history/concise/1987-1994.asp |title=VIII: Top to bottom (1987-94): Big investments for a new team |work=Toffeeweb |accessdate=2008-01-26]

Leicester City

His return to the Second Division was brief. After just 11 league games and one goal, Clarke returned to the top flight with Manchester City, managed by Howard Kendall who had bought him for Everton three years earlier. He moved in a part-exchange deal valued at £650,000 which saw David Oldfield join Leicester. [cite news
url=http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:AWNB:LTIB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0F925A35F1761388&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0D0CB57AB53DF815 |title=Kendall admits that City's search for talent is incomplete |work=The Times |author=Ross, Ian |coauthors=Taylor, Louise |date=1990-01-09 |accessdate=2008-01-27]

Manchester City

He was unable to claim a regular place in the City side. While at Maine Road he was loaned to Shrewsbury Town, where he scored six goals in seven games, then to Stoke City, and then back to Wolves, where he was viewed as a potential partner for Steve Bull. However his first appearance for the club lasted just 20 minutes before he punctured a lung, returned to Manchester City, and on his return to fitness was not allowed out on loan again.

Walsall

Clarke's next move came in the summer of 1992 when he joined Walsall in Division Three. He was the fourth of the brothers to play for Walsall, and the move meant he had played in all four divisions of the Football League. He was the club's top scorer in the 1992–93 season with 21 goals in 39 games, helping them to a playoff position, but they were heavily defeated in the playoff semifinal by Crewe Alexandra and Clarke was sold to local rivals Shrewsbury Town, managed by former Wolves goalkeeper Fred Davies.cite web |url=http://www.saddlers.premiumtv.co.uk/page/SaddlersAZ/0,,10428~910684,00.html |title=Ultimate Saddlers A-Z 4 |publisher=Walsall F.C. |author=Edwards, Leigh |accessdate=2008-01-26]

hrewsbury Town

Clarke spent two seasons at Gay Meadow. The 1993–94 season brought the Division Three title and promotion to Division Two, and by the time the club released him at the end of the 1994-95 season, he had scored 22 goals in 59 games.

Managerial career

He was appointed player-manager of Telford United in the GM Vauxhall Conference in July 1995, [cite news
url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19950704/ai_n13992454 |title=Sporting Digest: Football |work=The Independent |date=1995-07-04 |accessdate=2008-01-26] resigning 18 months later after a spell of poor results, though with the club in mid-table. [cite news
url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19961122/ai_n14081833 |title=King marks Telford's change |work=The Independent |author=Metcalf, Rupert |date=1996-11-22 |accessdate=2008-01-26]

In June 1997 he applied for the vacant manager's post at former club Walsall [cite web
url=http://www.4thegame.com/club/leicester-city-fc/news/16673/ |title=Former striker wants Walsall manager's job |work=4thegame.co.uk |date=1997-06-11 |accessdate=2008-01-26] but was unsuccessful.

After football

Clarke works as a representative for a soft drinks company.

Honours

*with Wolverhampton Wanderers
**Second Division promotion 1983
*with Birmingham City
**Second Division promotion 1985
**Club's leading scorer 1984–85, 1986–87
*with Everton
**First Division champions 1986–87
**FA Charity Shield winners 1987
*with Shrewsbury Town
**Division Three (level 4) champions 1993–94 season

References

External links

*soccerbase|1498|Wayne Clarke
* [http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/player/wayneclarke.htm Profile] at Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Database

Persondata
NAME = Clarke, Wayne
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Professional footballer
DATE OF BIRTH = 1961-02-28
PLACE OF BIRTH = Wolverhampton, England
DATE OF DEATH =
PLACE OF DEATH =