Dave Clements
Encyclopedia
Dave Clements in Larne
in County Antrim
, was a football player and manager from Northern Ireland
. He started his career as a left winger
but also played as a defensive midfielder
and left full back
throughout a career which lasted from 1964 to 1976 in which time he played for Coventry City
, Sheffield Wednesday and Everton
making a total of 392 league appearances and scoring 32 goals. He played 48 times for the Northern Ireland national team between 1965 and 1976 scoring two goals. He then managed the national team for two years in 1975 and 1976 before moving to the NASL
in the United States
.
and excelled at both football and rugby union
, during his time at the school he earned football caps for the national team at schoolboy, youth and amateur level. As a junior he played for the Larne suburban team of Millbrook before signing for Irish league club Portadown F.C.
in 1961. After starring in a 2–0 Irish amateur win over Wales in January 1963 he signed for English Division One club Wolverhampton Wanderers
.
who paid £1,500 for the 18 year old at start of the 1964–65 season. Clements made a fine start to his City career, scoring on his debut on 23 January 1965 against Northampton Town
and netting eight times in his first ten matches. Two months later on the 17th March 1965, aged just 19, he earned the first of his 48 caps for the Northern Ireland national team against the Netherlands
. Clements was an integral part of the Coventry side which won the Second Division
championship in the 1966–67 season and then did well in the top flight. He played as an outside left for much of his time at Coventry for whom he made 228 league appearances (255 including cup games) and scored 30 goals in total over a period of seven seasons. Throughout his time at Highfield Road
he continued to be a regular for the Northern Ireland team, earning 21 caps in total while with the Midlands team. His most famous moment as an international player came in October 1967 when he scored the winning goal in a Euro 68
qualifier against Scotland
at Windsor Park
. Coventry manager Noel Cantwell
surprisingly agreed to let Clements move on after six year at the club and after rejecting a move to Hull City
in February 1971, he moved to Sheffield Wednesday in August of the same year as part of a combined deal that also included Brian Joicey
and cost the Yorkshire club £100,000.
championship before a late slump let in Derby County
. In total, Clements made 85 league appearances in his time with Everton scoring six goals (he took over as the clubs penalty taker) and became one of the most respected midfielder
s in the top flight. During his time at Everton he became player-manager of the Northern Ireland national side for a short time taking over from Terry Neill
in 1975 and being replaced by Danny Blanchflower
in 1976.
. He took over as manager at the age of only 29 and his first game as manager was on 16 March 1975 and was a Euro 76 qualifier against Yugoslavia
in Belfast
. This was the first time that Northern Ireland had played a home match in the province since 1971 and resulted in a fine 1–0 victory which put the Northern Irish in with a chance of qualification. However a home defeat to Sweden
in October 1975 and a loss in Belgrade
to Yugoslavia in the final group qualifier the following month stopped Northern Ireland progressing to the last eight knock out stage.
Dave Clements continued as manager into 1976, however results were disappointing culminating in Northern Ireland losing all three matches in the British Home Championship
in May of that year. They lost heavily to Scotland
0–3 in Glasgow
and to England
0–4 at Wembley before losing 0–1 to Wales
in Swansea. The Welsh defeat was Dave Clements last game as both manager and player for the national team on 14 May 1976.
where he played alongside Pelé
. His performances for Cosmos during 1976 ensured that Clements was named in the All-Star Honourable Mention Team for that year, he was also selected for Team America to participate in the Bicentenary Cup against Italy, Brazil and England. Dave moved to coach the Colorado Caribous
in 1978 (the only year of their existence) and then to the Denver Avalanche
(1981–82), St. Louis Steamers
(1982–85) and Kansas City Comets
(1986–87). He was named US Coach of the year in 1982 and 1987. Dave still lives in the United States, he moved out of football and has run his own Irish shop as well as working as a salesman in St. Louis, Missouri
in recent years.
Larne
Larne is a substantial seaport and industrial market town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland with a population of 18,228 people in the 2001 Census. As of 2011, there are about 31,000 residents in the greater Larne area. It has been used as a seaport for over 1,000 years, and is...
in County Antrim
County Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...
, was a football player and manager from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. He started his career as a left winger
Winger (sport)
In certain sports, such as football, field hockey, ice hockey, handball, rugby union, lacrosse and rugby league, the term winger is the name of a position. It refers to positions on the extreme left and right sides of the pitch . In American football and Canadian football, the analogous position...
but also played as a defensive midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
and left full back
Defender (football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
throughout a career which lasted from 1964 to 1976 in which time he played for Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
, Sheffield Wednesday 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...
making a total of 392 league appearances and scoring 32 goals. He played 48 times for the Northern Ireland national team between 1965 and 1976 scoring two goals. He then managed the national team for two years in 1975 and 1976 before moving to the NASL
North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Early days
Dave attended Larne Grammar SchoolLarne Grammar School
Larne Grammar School is a co-education voluntary grammar school located in Larne, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1886 by Sir Edward Coey and John Crawford, it has around 760 pupils and 50 teaching staff.-Past Headmasters:R.M Jones...
and excelled at both football and rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, during his time at the school he earned football caps for the national team at schoolboy, youth and amateur level. As a junior he played for the Larne suburban team of Millbrook before signing for Irish league club Portadown F.C.
Portadown F.C.
Portadown F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club which plays in the IFA Premiership.The club was founded in the late 1880s and joined the Irish League in 1924. It is based in Portadown in County Armagh and plays its home games at Shamrock Park...
in 1961. After starring in a 2–0 Irish amateur win over Wales in January 1963 he signed for English Division One club 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...
.
English league career
Dave Clements' spell as an apprentice at Wolverhampton Wanderers lasted for just over a year, however in that time he failed to break into the first team.Coventry City
Despite this lack of success at Wolves, he caught the eye of Coventry City manager Jimmy HillJimmy Hill
James William Thomas "Jimmy" Hill OBE is an English association football personality. His career has taken in virtually every role in football, including player, union leader, coach, manager, director, chairman, television executive, presenter, analyst and match official.-Early life:Hill was born...
who paid £1,500 for the 18 year old at start of the 1964–65 season. Clements made a fine start to his City career, scoring on his debut on 23 January 1965 against Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
and netting eight times in his first ten matches. Two months later on the 17th March 1965, aged just 19, he earned the first of his 48 caps for the Northern Ireland national team against the Netherlands
Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands National Football Team represents the Netherlands in association football and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association , the governing body for football in the Netherlands...
. Clements was an integral part of the Coventry side which won the Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
championship in the 1966–67 season and then did well in the top flight. He played as an outside left for much of his time at Coventry for whom he made 228 league appearances (255 including cup games) and scored 30 goals in total over a period of seven seasons. Throughout his time at Highfield Road
Highfield Road
The Highfield Road Stadium was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. until the club moved to the new Ricoh Arena after the 2005-06 season...
he continued to be a regular for the Northern Ireland team, earning 21 caps in total while with the Midlands team. His most famous moment as an international player came in October 1967 when he scored the winning goal in a Euro 68
1968 UEFA European Football Championship
-Semi-finals:-----Third place play-off:-Final:-Replay:-Top scorers:There were 7 goals scored in 4 matches, for an average of 1.75 goals per game.2 goals Dragan Džajić...
qualifier against Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
at Windsor Park
Windsor Park
Windsor Park is a football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland and the home ground of Linfield F.C. and the Northern Ireland national football team. It is also where the Irish Cup and Irish League Cup finals are played.-History:...
. Coventry manager Noel Cantwell
Noel Cantwell
Noel Euchuria Cornelius Cantwell was an Irish cricketer and football player born in County Cork, Irish Free State...
surprisingly agreed to let Clements move on after six year at the club and after rejecting a move to Hull City
Hull City A.F.C.
Hull City Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, founded in 1904. The club participates in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football...
in February 1971, he moved to Sheffield Wednesday in August of the same year as part of a combined deal that also included Brian Joicey
Brian Joicey
Brian Joicey was a professional footballer who played for Coventry City, Sheffield Wednesday and Barnsley, England, in a career that lasted from 1969 to 1979...
and cost the Yorkshire club £100,000.
Sheffield Wednesday
He played as a left back for Wednesday and was a popular and successful player in his time there even though the club was not thriving in Division Two and would eventually drop into Division Three in 1975. His strong, robust style of play earned him the nickname "Tank" from Wednesday fans, he played 87 games for Wednesday in two seasons but became unsettled at the end of the 1972–73 season when his good form had attracted the attention of First Division clubs. He played just the opening game of the following season before moving to Everton at the beginning of September 1973 for a fee of £80,000.Everton
He made his debut on Saturday, 22 September 1973 in a 1–1 draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Dave was made club captain for 1974–75, a season in which Everton were well placed to lift the First DivisionFootball League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
championship before a late slump let in Derby County
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
. In total, Clements made 85 league appearances in his time with Everton scoring six goals (he took over as the clubs penalty taker) and became one of the most respected midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
s in the top flight. During his time at Everton he became player-manager of the Northern Ireland national side for a short time taking over from Terry Neill
Terry Neill
William John Terence "Terry" Neill is a Northern Ireland former football player and manager.-Playing career:Born in Belfast, Neill played as a youth for Bangor, before moving in December 1959 to Arsenal. He spent a year in Arsenal's youth side, before making his debut against Sheffield Wednesday...
in 1975 and being replaced by Danny Blanchflower
Danny Blanchflower
Robert Dennis "Danny" Blanchflower was a former Northern Ireland international footballer and football manager, and journalist who captained Tottenham Hotspur F.C. during its double-winning season of 1961. He was ranked as the greatest player in Spurs history by The Times in 2009...
in 1976.
Northern Ireland Manager
Dave Clements tenure as Northern Ireland manager lasted for eleven matches, he took over in the winter of 1974–75, part way through the qualification matches for Euro 761976 UEFA European Football Championship
-Semi-finals:-----Third place play-off:-Final:-Top scorers:19 goals were scored in 4 games for an average of 4.75 goals per game.4 goals Dieter Müller2 goals Dragan Džajić Ruud Geels...
. He took over as manager at the age of only 29 and his first game as manager was on 16 March 1975 and was a Euro 76 qualifier against Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in association football. It enjoyed a modicum of success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international...
in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
. This was the first time that Northern Ireland had played a home match in the province since 1971 and resulted in a fine 1–0 victory which put the Northern Irish in with a chance of qualification. However a home defeat to Sweden
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...
in October 1975 and a loss in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
to Yugoslavia in the final group qualifier the following month stopped Northern Ireland progressing to the last eight knock out stage.
Dave Clements continued as manager into 1976, however results were disappointing culminating in Northern Ireland losing all three matches in the British Home Championship
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
in May of that year. They lost heavily to Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
0–3 in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
and to England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
0–4 at Wembley before losing 0–1 to Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
in Swansea. The Welsh defeat was Dave Clements last game as both manager and player for the national team on 14 May 1976.
Player and manager in the NASL
He played his last game for Everton in February 1976 and moved to the United States, having received a lucrative offer to play in the NASL for New York CosmosNew York Cosmos
The New York Cosmos were an American soccer club based in New York City, New York and its suburbs. The team played home games in three stadiums around New York before moving in 1977 to Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, where it remained for the rest of its history...
where he played alongside Pelé
Pelé
However, Pelé has always maintained that those are mistakes, that he was actually named Edson and that he was born on 23 October 1940.), best known by his nickname Pelé , is a retired Brazilian footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time...
. His performances for Cosmos during 1976 ensured that Clements was named in the All-Star Honourable Mention Team for that year, he was also selected for Team America to participate in the Bicentenary Cup against Italy, Brazil and England. Dave moved to coach the Colorado Caribous
Colorado Caribous
The Colorado Caribous was a professional soccer team based in Denver, Colorado, that played in the North American Soccer League...
in 1978 (the only year of their existence) and then to the Denver Avalanche
Denver Avalanche
The Denver Avalanche was an American soccer team based out of Denver, Colorado that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1980 to 1982. Their home arena was McNichols Sports Arena...
(1981–82), St. Louis Steamers
St. Louis Steamers (1979–1988)
The original St. Louis Steamers played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979 through 1988. Their home fixtures were held at the St. Louis Arena.-Ownership:* Ben Kerner & Partnership * Thomas M...
(1982–85) and Kansas City Comets
Kansas City Comets
The Kansas City Comets were a professional indoor soccer team based for most of its existence in Kansas City, Missouri. They played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979–1991, when they folded...
(1986–87). He was named US Coach of the year in 1982 and 1987. Dave still lives in the United States, he moved out of football and has run his own Irish shop as well as working as a salesman in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
in recent years.
