Andy Mutch
Encyclopedia
Andrew Todd Mutch is an English
former professional footballer most known for his partnership with Steve Bull
at Wolverhampton Wanderers
.
and Everton
but was not taken on as a professional footballer. He was playing for non-league
Southport
when then-Third Division
Wolverhampton Wanderers
signed him in February 1986. He made his Wolves debut on 8 March 1986 in a goalless draw with , but despite scoring 7 goals in 15 games could not halt relegation to the bottom tier.
The following season saw the start of his prolific goalscoring partnership with Steve Bull
, who arrived in the November. The partnership propelled the team to the play-offs, where they narrowly missed out. In the 1987-88 season, Mutch and Bull scored 53 league goals between them and helped Wolves win Fourth Division
Championship. The following season the duo scored a further 58 (83 in all competitions), to fire Wolves to the Third Division
Championship and a second successive promotion. He would remain at Wolves for five more seasons, but despite his efforts and those of his colleagues he was unable to take them into the top flight.
Mutch also scored in Wolves’ 2–0 victory over Burnley
in the Sherpa Van Trophy at Wembley in May 1988.
Mutch’s goal-scoring prowess was recognised by a call-up to the England B
squad in 1989 - making three appearances against Switzerland
, Norway
and Iceland
. He also represented his country at under-21 level.
In August 1993, Mutch left Molineux
for Premier League new boys Swindon Town
in a £250,000 deal. His total record at Wolves was 106 goals in 288 appearances (13 as substitute). His first game for the Wiltshire
side came against Liverpool
in a 5-0 league defeat, but in his fifth game he made it onto the scoresheet for the first time with an equaliser in a 2-2 draw against also promoted Newcastle United
. He also scored a consolation goal later in September in a 4-2 defeat to Manchester United
at Old Trafford
, and would score a total of six league goals that season (eight in all competitions), but it wasn't enough to stop Swindon from going down with a mere five wins from 42 games and 100 goals conceded.
After two seasons at Swindon - including his one and only season in the top flight - Mutch was loaned to Wigan Athletic
but the move was not made permanent, and he instead moved to Stockport County
in early 1996. He spent two seasons at Edgeley Park
, which saw the club win promotion to the second tier and reach the semi-finals of the League Cup
under Dave Jones.
He left Stockport at the end of the 1997-98 season, signing for non-league Barrow, and later returning to play a game for his former club Southport
. He ended his playing career while working as a coach at Telford United
in 2000.
(while still playing) and Morecambe
(2001–2004). He joined Vauxhall Motors
in July 2007 as assistant manager, but soon stepped up to become manager in October 2007 after the resignation of Carl Macauley. He left the club after their 6-0 defeat at home to Kettering Town
in March 2008, as Macauley returned to the club. In October 2008, he was appointed manager of Burscough
of the Conference North
. By early 2009 he had left the club and has not yet been in management since.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former professional footballer most known for his partnership with Steve Bull
Steve Bull
Stephen George "Steve" Bull, MBE, is an English former footballer who is best remembered for his 13-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers...
at Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
.
Playing career
Mutch was a trainee at LiverpoolLiverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
and Everton
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
but was not taken on as a professional footballer. He was playing for non-league
Non-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
Southport
Southport F.C.
Southport Football Club are an English football club, based in Southport, Merseyside. They are currently in the Conference National, and play their home matches at Haig Avenue, which has a capacity of 6,008...
when then-Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
signed him in February 1986. He made his Wolves debut on 8 March 1986 in a goalless draw with , but despite scoring 7 goals in 15 games could not halt relegation to the bottom tier.
The following season saw the start of his prolific goalscoring partnership with Steve Bull
Steve Bull
Stephen George "Steve" Bull, MBE, is an English former footballer who is best remembered for his 13-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers...
, who arrived in the November. The partnership propelled the team to the play-offs, where they narrowly missed out. In the 1987-88 season, Mutch and Bull scored 53 league goals between them and helped Wolves win Fourth Division
Football League Fourth Division
The Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season...
Championship. The following season the duo scored a further 58 (83 in all competitions), to fire Wolves to the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
Championship and a second successive promotion. He would remain at Wolves for five more seasons, but despite his efforts and those of his colleagues he was unable to take them into the top flight.
Mutch also scored in Wolves’ 2–0 victory over Burnley
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...
in the Sherpa Van Trophy at Wembley in May 1988.
Mutch’s goal-scoring prowess was recognised by a call-up to the England B
England B national football team
England B is a secondary football team run occasionally as support for the England national football team. At times they have played other nations' full teams; they have also played matches against 'B' teams from other football associations...
squad in 1989 - making three appearances against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
, Norway
Norway national football team
The Norway national football team represents Norway in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Norway, the governing body for football in Norway. Norway's home ground is Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo and their head coach is Egil Olsen...
and Iceland
Iceland national football team
The Iceland national football team is the national football team of Iceland and is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland. It has never advanced to the finals of any major international competition....
. He also represented his country at under-21 level.
In August 1993, Mutch left Molineux
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
for Premier League new boys Swindon Town
Swindon Town F.C.
Swindon Town Football Club are a team based in Swindon, Wiltshire. Currently in League Two, Swindon have been managed by Paolo Di Canio since 23 May 2011...
in a £250,000 deal. His total record at Wolves was 106 goals in 288 appearances (13 as substitute). His first game for the Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
side came against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
in a 5-0 league defeat, but in his fifth game he made it onto the scoresheet for the first time with an equaliser in a 2-2 draw against also promoted Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
. He also scored a consolation goal later in September in a 4-2 defeat to Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
at Old Trafford
Old Trafford
Old Trafford commonly refers to two sporting arenas:* Old Trafford, home of Manchester United F.C.* Old Trafford Cricket Ground, home of Lancashire County Cricket ClubOld Trafford can also refer to:...
, and would score a total of six league goals that season (eight in all competitions), but it wasn't enough to stop Swindon from going down with a mere five wins from 42 games and 100 goals conceded.
After two seasons at Swindon - including his one and only season in the top flight - Mutch was loaned to Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
but the move was not made permanent, and he instead moved to Stockport County
Stockport County F.C.
Stockport County Football Club is an English football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester. The club formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, shortly afterwards merging with Heaton Norris F.C., and adopted the current name on 24 May 1890 on the creation of the County Borough of Stockport...
in early 1996. He spent two seasons at Edgeley Park
Edgeley Park
Edgeley Park is an association football and rugby union stadium in Stockport, England. The stadium was initially built for the rugby league club Stockport in 1901, but by 1902, the rugby club was defunct and in the same year, Stockport County Football Club, who were looking for a bigger ground,...
, which saw the club win promotion to the second tier and reach the semi-finals of the League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
under Dave Jones.
He left Stockport at the end of the 1997-98 season, signing for non-league Barrow, and later returning to play a game for his former club Southport
Southport F.C.
Southport Football Club are an English football club, based in Southport, Merseyside. They are currently in the Conference National, and play their home matches at Haig Avenue, which has a capacity of 6,008...
. He ended his playing career while working as a coach at Telford United
Telford United F.C.
Telford United F.C. was an English football club based in Telford, Shropshire.The club existed under various names for a total of 132 years from its formation in 1872. The club was founder members of the Alliance Premier League in 1979 and played at this level for 25 years before being wound up in...
in 2000.
Management career
As his playing career had ended, Mutch went into coaching, with spells as assistant manager of both Telford UnitedTelford United F.C.
Telford United F.C. was an English football club based in Telford, Shropshire.The club existed under various names for a total of 132 years from its formation in 1872. The club was founder members of the Alliance Premier League in 1979 and played at this level for 25 years before being wound up in...
(while still playing) and Morecambe
Morecambe F.C.
Morecambe Football Club is an English football club based in Morecambe, Lancashire. It plays its football in League Two, the fourth division of English football, having been promoted in 2007 for the first time in their history to the Football League. They played their home matches at Christie Park...
(2001–2004). He joined Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors F.C.
Vauxhall Motors Football Club is an English football club based in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, who play in the Conference North. It was originally the works team of the car manufacturer Vauxhall...
in July 2007 as assistant manager, but soon stepped up to become manager in October 2007 after the resignation of Carl Macauley. He left the club after their 6-0 defeat at home to Kettering Town
Kettering Town F.C.
Kettering Town Football Club are a football club originating in Kettering, Northamptonshire but currently based in the nearby village of Irthlingborough. The club play in the Conference National after winning the Conference North in 2007–08...
in March 2008, as Macauley returned to the club. In October 2008, he was appointed manager of Burscough
Burscough F.C.
Burscough F.C. is an English football club based in Burscough, Lancashire. The club are members of the Northern Premier League Premier Division and groundshare with Skelmersdale United...
of the Conference North
Conference North
The Conference North also known as Blue Square Bet North for sponsorship reasons, is a division of the Football Conference in England, taking its place immediately below the Conference National. Along with Conference South it is at Step 2 of the National League System and the sixth overall tier of...
. By early 2009 he had left the club and has not yet been in management since.