Darren Huckerby

Darren Huckerby

Personal information
Full name	Darren Carl Huckerby
Date of birth	23 April 1976 (1976-04-23) (age 35)
Place of birth	Nottingham, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing position	Winger/Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1993–1995	Lincoln City	28	(5)
1995–1996	Newcastle United	1	(0)
1996	→ Millwall (loan)	6	(3)
1996–1999	Coventry City	94	(28)
1999–2000	Leeds United	40	(2)
2000–2003	Manchester City	69	(22)
2003	→ Nottingham Forest (loan)	9	(5)
2003	→ Norwich City (loan)	16	(5)
2003–2008	Norwich City	174	(36)
2008–2009	San Jose Earthquakes	28	(9)
Total		465	(115)
National team‡
1998	England B	1	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 August 2009. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 17 March 2009

Darren Huckerby (born 23 April 1976 in Nottingham) is a former English footballer who played as a forward.

Club career

Early career

Huckerby was born in Nottingham, England. His mother is of partial Georgian descent. Huckerby started playing professionally for Lincoln City, before signing for Newcastle United in a £400,000 deal in 1995. Despite being highly rated by the fans and pundits, Huckerby found first team chances severely limited, especially since manager Kevin Keegan decided to scrap the reserve team, in response to a requirement from the FA that a certain percentage of home reserve fixtures be played at St James Park. Keegan believed that this would negatively affect the pitch condition, which was already in poor state. This of course meant that, with no reserve team football, Huckerby was not match fit for the majority of his time on Tyneside. Huckerby made only one appearance for the Magpies, before being loaned out to Millwall. Huckerby then joined Coventry City for £1 million in time for the start of the next season, signed by then City boss Gordon Strachan.

Coventry City

The striker's pace and dribbling ability, combined with a very successful partnership with Dion Dublin saw Huckerby play a key role at Coventry. Huckerby and Dublin's partnership did not go unnoticed and earned Huckerby a call up to the England B squad, whilst Dublin managed call ups to the full squad, under Glenn Hoddle. Huckerby played a major role in Coventry Premier League survival, culminating with a final day 2–1 win at Tottenham Hotspur in 1997. His success with the Sky Blues continued throughout the following season as Coventry enjoyed a ten-game unbeaten run and reached the quarter finals of the FA Cup, narrowly losing on penalties to Sheffield United. Huckerby scored several goals, most notably the winner in a 3-2 victory over Manchester United at Highfield Road, a dazzling run past a few defenders before slotting past Kevin Pilkington. He notched up 14 goals that season, his best Premier league return of goals.

Leeds United

He was sold to Leeds United the following summer for a reputed £6 million. His time at Elland Road was not a success, in 40 league games he scored only two goals against former club Coventry City^[1] and Watford.^[2] He had to contend with some top players such as Mark Viduka, Alan Smith and Michael Bridges at his time at Leeds, and as a result he was never a regular, although he did play his part in some good European Cup runs for Leeds, scoring against Partizan Belgrade in the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup,^[3] and also scoring once in Leeds' 6-0 thrashing of Besiktas in their successful 2000–01 Champions League campaign.^[4] He scored six goals in total, also scoring twice in the League Cup against Tranmere,^[5] but his time at Leeds will be remembered as disappointing by both the player and the fans.

Manchester City

Manchester City signed him in December 2000 for £3.38 million,^[6] as they attempted to avoid relegation. Although the club did eventually go down, he stayed on and won a First Division championship medal, adding 26 goals in all competitions during the campaign, including two hat-tricks.

Huckerby started the new campaign as first choice, and scored the team's first goal of the season, a header against former employer Newcastle that secured a 1-0 win. However, the arrivals of Nicolas Anelka and Jon Macken meant less playing time, and he eventually ended up playing out the end of the season on-loan to Nottingham Forest^[7], being part of the team that reached the Division One playoffs in 2003.

Norwich City

Huckerby spent a three-month loan spell with Norwich City, before signing permanently in December 2003, for a fee of £750,000, which rose to £1 million when the Canaries were promoted at the end of the season. At Norwich, Huckerby's career settled, and he netted 14 league goals in the First Division in the 2003-04 season. He was instrumental in Norwich's march to the First Division championship in 2003–04, and came second in the supporters vote for player of the season behind Craig Fleming.

Reverting to a left wing role for much of Norwich's Premier League spell in 2004-05, Huckerby scored seven goals. He was linked with a move to Liverpool in January 2005 and to Celtic, the following summer, but spoke of his intention to see out his contract in East Anglia, even after relegation.^{[citation needed]}

He was voted Norwich City player of the year by supporters in 2004-05 and 2006-07, and placed second behind Gary Doherty for the 2005-06 season, winning the award twice and adding two runner-up positions in his first four seasons. He was voted into the Norwich City Hall of Fame in 2004. On 13 April 2008, he played his 200th game for Norwich, in the East Anglian Derby against Ipswich Town.

On 4 May 2008, Huckerby scored in his final game for the club in a 4-1 defeat away at Sheffield Wednesday.^[8] Two days later, it was announced that his contract would not be renewed as he could not be guaranteed a place in the first team in the 2008–09 season.^[9][10] This upset fans who felt that Huckerby, a fan favourite, deserved a proper farewell. However, an opportunity was made with a special tribute at a 'Greatest Ever' event at Carrow Road held later in May.^[11]

Huckerby signing autographs for San Jose Earthquakes fans

San Jose Earthquakes

Huckerby moved to the United States joining Major League Soccer club, San Jose Earthquakes in July 2008.^[12] He made his debut on 19 July 2008 against Toronto, in a 0–0 draw, and scored his first goal against New York Red Bulls on 27 July. Huckerby's move to San Jose went down in English folklore due to American television channel KRON sports anchor Gary Radnich proclaiming several inaccuracies in an interview with him such as "He comes from the Nor Folk team in the North East of England" and proclaiming him to be a "Legend" several times. The video became a YouTube sensation, viewed over 200,000 times.^[13] During his time with San Jose, Huckerby was often linked with a return to Norwich City, particularly after the manager who had released him at Norwich - Glenn Roeder - was sacked in January 2009, but he stayed at San Jose.

In a crucial match for the Earthquakes, on 3 August 2008, Huckerby scored his second goal, against Los Angeles Galaxy, in a 3–2 Earthquakes win. On 30 August, he headed in the winning goal in the side's 2-1 victory over Kansas City Wizards, extending San Jose's unbeaten streak to seven games. During this stretch, Huckerby notched three goals and three assists.

On 11 November 2008, it was announced that Huckerby had won the 2008 MLS Newcomer of the Year Award.^[14]

During the 2009 Major League Soccer season, Huckerby underwent surgery to eliminate his hip injury.^[15] However on 16 September 2009, Huckerby announced that he was '99% sure' of his retirement.^[16][17]

Masters Football

After retiring from football in 2009, Huckerby returned to playing football in the Masters Tournament in June 2011 in which he scored 8 goals in the Yorkshire Masters for his old club Leeds United. In the Grand Masters final Huckerby added a further 6 goals to his tally, making him overall tournament golden boot winner with 14 goals. Leeds were overall runners up in the tournament, losing 8-3 to Glasgow Rangers in the final.^[18]

International career

Huckerby made one appearance with the England B team in 1998.^{[citation needed]}

Career statistics

^[19]

Club performance			League		Cup		League Cup		Continental		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
England			League		FA Cup		League Cup		Europe		Total
1993-94	Lincoln City	Third Division	6	1	0	0	0	0
1994-95			6	2	0	0	0	0
1995-96			16	2	0	0	2	0
1995-96	Newcastle United	Premier League	1	0	1	0	0	0
1996-97	Millwall	Second Division	6	3	0	0	0	0
1996-97	Coventry City	Premier League	25	5	4	2	0	0			29	7
1997-98			34	14	5	1	1	0			40	15
1998-99			34	9	3	3	2	0			39	12
1999-00			1	0	0	0	0	0			1	0
1999-00	Leeds United	Premier League	33	2	3	0	1	0			37	2
2000-01			7	0	0	0	1	2			8	2
2000-01	Manchester City	Premier League	13	1	3	1	0	0	0	0	16	2
2001-02		First Division	40	20	3	1	3	5	0	0	46	26
2002-03		Premier League	16	1	1	0	2	1	0	0	19	2
2002-03	Nottingham Forest	First Division	9	5
2003-04	Norwich City	First Division	36	14	1	0	0	0
2004-05		Premier League	37	6	1	0	2	1
2005-06		Championship	43	8	0	0	2	1
2006-07			40	8	4	5	0	0
2007-08			34	5	2	0	1	0
USA			League		Open Cup		League Cup		North America		Total
2008	San Jose Earthquakes	Major League Soccer	14	6
2009	San Jose Earthquakes	Major League Soccer	11	3
Total	England		437	106
	USA		22	9
Career total			459	114

Honours

• First Division: 2001-02
• First Division: 2003-04
• Norwich City player of the year: 2005, 2007
• Major League Soccer player of the month: September 2008
• 2008 Major League Soccer Newcomer of the Year

References

1. ^ Culley, Jon (11 September 1999). "The day Hedman lost his head". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-the-day-hedman-lost-his-head-1117935.html. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
2. ^ Taylor, Daniel (3 May 2000). "Leeds ready to join Europe's elite". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2000/may/04/match.sport3. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
3. ^ "Leeds United 1 Partizan Belgrade 0". OzWhiteLUFC. 30 September 1999. http://www.ozwhitelufc.net.au/30-09-1999%20LUFC%20v%20Partizan%20Belgrade.htm. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
4. ^ Shaw, Phil (26 September 2000). "Leeds in overdrive to belittle Besiktas". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/leeds-in-overdrive-to-belittle-besiktas-700832.html. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
5. ^ Rich, Tim (31 October 2000). "Parkinson pounces to delight Tranmere". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/parkinson-pounces-to-delight-tranmere-637380.html. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
6. ^ http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/spieler/3136/huckerby-darren/transferdaten.html
7. ^ "Forest seal Huckerby deal". BBC Sport. 13 February 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/nottm_forest/2743735.stm. Retrieved 17 August 2011. 
8. ^ "Sheff Wed 4-1 Norwich". BBC Sport. 2008-05-04. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/7379759.stm. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
9. ^ "Canaries release forward Huckerby". BBC Sport. 2008-05-06. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/norwich/7385477.stm. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
10. ^ "Roeder explains Huckerby release". BBC Sport. 2008-05-09. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/norwich/7392943.stm. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
11. ^ "City fans get Huckerby farewell". BBC Sport. 2008-05-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/norwich/7398239.stm. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
12. ^ "Darren Huckerby joins San Jose Earthquakes". Mirror.co.uk. 2007-07-12. http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/2008/07/12/darren-huckerby-joins-san-jose-earthquakes-89520-20641073/. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
13. ^ "Huckerby on KRON". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B6ucoSoIy4. Retrieved 2010-06-04. 
14. ^ San Jose Earthquakes Media Relations. "Huckerby named Newcomer of the Year". http://web.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20081111&content_id=203066&vkey=pr_sje&fext=.jsp&team=t110. Retrieved 2008-11-11. ^{[dead link]}
15. ^ Beatty, Patrick (September 12, 2009). "Earthquakes Midfielder Darren Huckerby Undegoes Season-Ending Surgery on Right Hip". http://www.mls-rumors.net/3617/2009/09/report-earthquakes-midfielder-darren-huckerby-undergoes-season-ending-surgery-on-right-hip/. Retrieved 2009-10-12. 
16. ^ "Huckerby to hang up boots". www.pinkun.com. 2009-09-16. http://www.pinkun.com/content/pinkun/norwich-city/story.aspx?brand=PINKUNOnline&category=Norwich&tBrand=PINKUNOnline&tCategory=xDefault&itemid=NOED16%20Sep%202009%2009%3A21%3A43%3A073. Retrieved 2009-09-16. 
17. ^ "Huckerby hangs up his boots". .teamtalk.com. 2009-09-16. http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,1811_5562985,00.html. Retrieved 2009-09-16. 
18. ^ http://www.leedsunited.com/news/20110603/darren-huckerby-offer-for-leeds-fans_2247585_2371248
19. ^ WorldSoccer.org stats

Pinkun News Article - Darren Huckerby Trust

External links

• The Official Darren Huckerby Website
• Darren Huckerby Trust

• Darren Huckerby career stats at Soccerbase

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Craig Fleming	Norwich City Player of the Season 2004/05	Succeeded by Gary Doherty
Preceded by Gary Doherty	Norwich City Player of the Season 2006/07	Succeeded by Dion Dublin
Preceded by Luciano Emilio	MLS Newcomer of the Year Award 2008	Succeeded by Fredy Montero

Persondata
Name	Huckerby, Darren
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	23 April 1976
Place of birth	Nottingham, England
Date of death
Place of death