Simon_Spender

Simon Spender

Simon Spender

Welsh footballer

Simon Spender (born 15 November 1985) is a Welsh football coach and former professional footballer who is currently an academy coach at The New Saints.

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Career

Born in Mold, Flintshire, Spender came up through the youth system at Wrexham and made his debut in a 0–0 draw with Plymouth Argyle in March 2004.[2][3] He made six appearances in the 2003–04 season, impressing in a 2–1 win over Luton Town.[4] He made 19 appearances in the 2004–05 season and was rewarded with his first professional contract in May 2005.[5] Spender made a further 21 appearances in the 2005–06 season and was given a new contract in summer of 2006.[6][7] He established himself as the first-choice right-back and by the end of the 2007–08 season had made over 100 appearances for Wrexham.[8] Spender missed three months of the 2008–09 season with a broken elbow and in March 2009, joined Barrow on loan for the remainder of the season, helping them to avoid relegation.[9] He was not offered a contract by Wrexham at the end of the season,[9] and signed a permanent two-year contract with Barrow.[10]

Spender spent two seasons with Barrow. In his first year at the club he won the FA Trophy and made the most appearances for the club of any player that season.[11] The following year Spender remained a regular and helped Barrow avoid relegation yet again. In May 2011 he was offered a new contract by Barrow,[12] but chose to take up the option of professional football at The New Saints in the Welsh Premier League.[13] His competitive debut for the club took place on 30 June 2011 against Cliftonville in a UEFA Europa League first qualifying round match.[14]

Spender retired in June 2021 and moved into a coaching role at The New Saints.[15]

Honours

The New Saints[16]

Barrow[10]

  • FA Trophy: 2009-10

Individual

References

  1. [1]
    Hugman, Barry J. (2005). The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–2005. Queen Anne Press. p. 579. ISBN 1-85291-665-6.
  2. [2]
    "Simon Spender". Team profiles. Wrexham F.C. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  3. [3]
    "Games played by Simon Spender in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  4. [4]
    "Smith praises stand-ins". BBC Sport. 25 April 2004. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  5. [5]
    "Spender gets first Wrexham deal". BBC Sport. 27 May 2005. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  6. [6]
    "Games played by Simon Spender in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  7. [7]
    "Smith excited by Wrexham signings". BBC Sport. 5 July 2006. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  8. [8]
    "Simon Spender". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  9. [9]
    "Spender released by Wrexham boss". BBC Sport. 30 April 2009. Retrieved 15 May 2009.
  10. [10]
    "AFC Return to Spender". Barrow A.F.C. 15 May 2009. Retrieved 16 May 2009.
  11. [11]
    "SPENDER TURNS DOWN AFC AND SIGNS FOR TNS". North-West Evening Mail. 11 May 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  12. [12]
    "Forrest, Goodfellow and Masters released by Barrow". BBC Sport. 6 May 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  13. [13]
    "The New Saints sign Jermaine Johnson and Simon Spender". BBC Sport. 11 May 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  14. [14]
    "New Saints 1–1 Cliftonville". The New Saints FC. 30 June 2011. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
  15. [15]
    "As Simon Spender Hangs up His Boots, We Chat with the TNS FC Legend". 11 June 2021.
  16. [16]
    Simon Spender at Soccerway. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  17. [17]
    "Dream team 2014/15". welsh-premier.com. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  18. [18]
    Sam Williams. "Players Recognised in WPL Team of the Year". Llandudno F.C. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  19. [19]
    "2016/17 Dafabet WPL Team of the Season". Welsh Premier League. 17 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
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