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Kevin Dillon (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Kevin Paul Dillon is an English former professional footballer born in Sunderland. He played in the Football League
for Birmingham City
, Portsmouth
, Newcastle United
and Reading
, and was capped
once for England under-21
. He was firsr-team manager
of League Two
club Aldershot Town
from November 2009 to January 2011.
and signed pro forms in July 1977. He made his debut 4 months later against Leicester City
, when he was the last player to be given a debut by the late Sir
Alf Ramsey
. In the 1980-81 season Dillon made his only England under-21
appearance against Romania
.
After 186 league appearances, he left St Andrew’s in March 1983 and joined Division 3
side Portsmouth
. He was involved in Portsmouth’s Division 3 title run-in that season and he also played his part, as Portsmouth went on to finish fourth in Division 2
in both the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons. Portsmouth were finally promoted to Division 1
in the 1986-87 season, when they finished as runners-up
to Derby County
. Unfortunately Pompey only stayed in the top flight for one season, as they finished 19th and were relegated. Dillon had made 206 league appearances for Portsmouth before leaving Fratton Park
in July 1989.
Dillon joined Newcastle United
and in his first season there, they finished 3rd in Division 2, before losing out to Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals
.
In the summer of 1991, Dillon joined Reading
on a free transfer. He would spend 3 years at Elm Park
and won the Division 2 title in the 1993-94 season before joining Stevenage Borough
. He was also both the youth and reserve team manager whilst at Stevenage Borough. He then joined Yeovil Town
and finally had a brief spell at Fareham Town
at the end of the 1996-97 season.
. He was also reserve team
manager before he replaced Martin Allen
as Alan Pardew’s
assistant in November 2001. Under the guidance of the management duo, the Royals
were promoted to Division 1 after finishing as runners-up to Brighton & Hove Albion
in the 2001-02 season. Pardew resigned in September 2003 and Dillon stepped in as the caretaker manager
, until Steve Coppell
was appointed in October 2003. At this point Dillon reverted back to his role as the number two. Dillon passed his UEFA Pro Licence in 2004 and in the 2005–06
season Reading won the Championship
with a record of 106 points. In their first season in the Premier League Reading finished 8th. In May 2007, Dillon followed Coppell's lead in committing himself to Reading for a further two seasons. Unfortunately they were relegated back to the Championship the next season and in May 2009 following the resignation of Coppell, Dillon alongside other first-team coach Wally Downes
, left Reading following the team's failure to gain promotion back to the Premier League.
On 9 November 2009, Dillon was confirmed as the new manager of Aldershot Town
, succeeding Wycombe Wanderers
-bound Gary Waddock
. His contract was to run until the end of the 2010–11 season. Against all odds he led the club to the 2009–10 playoffs with a game to spare after a run of just one defeat in ten games. The club's sixth place finish is still their highest ever league finish to date. Despite such a successful campaign, Dillon made several changes to his squad for the start of the 2010-11 season. He brought in no fewer than ten new faces, including arguably the most eye catching deal of the summer in League Two when he completed the signing of Glen Little
from Sheffield United
. Despite all the transfer activity, The Shots made a solid start and lost just one of their opening nine league games, as well as progressing through to the second round of the Johnstones Paint Trophy for the first time in the club's history. But on 10 January 2011, after a run of just two wins in the previous ten League games and with attendances declining, Dillon and assistant Gary Owers
left the club by mutual agreement.
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
for Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
, Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
, 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...
and Reading
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
, and was capped
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
once for England under-21
England national under-21 football team
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21, is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team....
. He was firsr-team manager
Manager (association football)
In association football, a manager is responsible for running a football club or a national team. The manager of a professional club is responsible directly to the club president. The position of manager is almost exclusively used in British football...
of League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
club Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town F.C.
Aldershot Town Football Club is an association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England, founded in the spring of 1992 just after the closure of debt-ridden Fourth Division club Aldershot Football Club...
from November 2009 to January 2011.
Playing career
Dillon began his football career as an apprentice at Birmingham CityBirmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
and signed pro forms in July 1977. He made his debut 4 months later against Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
, when he was the last player to be given a debut by the late Sir
Sir
Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
Alf Ramsey
Alf Ramsey
Sir Alfred Ernest "Alf" Ramsey was an English footballer and manager of the English national football team from 1963 to 1974. His greatest achievement was winning the 1966 World Cup with England on 30 July 1966...
. In the 1980-81 season Dillon made his only England under-21
England national under-21 football team
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21, is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team....
appearance against Romania
Romania national football team
The Romania national football team is the national football team of Romania and is controlled by the Romanian Football Federation.Romania is one of only four national teams, the other three being Brazil, France, and Belgium, that took part in the first three World Cups.However, after that...
.
After 186 league appearances, he left St Andrew’s in March 1983 and joined Division 3
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...
side Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
. He was involved in Portsmouth’s Division 3 title run-in that season and he also played his part, as Portsmouth went on to finish fourth in Division 2
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...
in both the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons. Portsmouth were finally promoted to Division 1
Football 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....
in the 1986-87 season, when they finished as runners-up
Runner-up
Runner-up is a term used to denote a participant which finishes in second place in any of a variety of competitive endeavors, most notably sporting events and beauty pageants; in the latter instance, the term is applied to more than one of the highest-ranked non-winning contestants, the...
to 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...
. Unfortunately Pompey only stayed in the top flight for one season, as they finished 19th and were relegated. Dillon had made 206 league appearances for Portsmouth before leaving Fratton Park
Fratton Park
Fratton Park is a football stadium in the English city-port of Portsmouth. It has been the home of professional club Portsmouth F.C. since its construction in 1898.-Description:...
in July 1989.
Dillon joined 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...
and in his first season there, they finished 3rd in Division 2, before losing out to Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals
Football League Championship play-offs
The Football League Championship play-offs are a series of playoff matches contested by the teams finishing from 3rd to 6th in the Football League Championship table. The semi-finals are played over two legs, with 6th playing 3rd and 5th playing 4th, with the return fixtures following...
.
In the summer of 1991, Dillon joined Reading
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
on a free transfer. He would spend 3 years at Elm Park
Elm Park (stadium)
Elm Park was a football stadium in the West Reading district of the English town of Reading. It was the home of Reading Football Club from 1896 until 1998, when they moved to the new Madejski Stadium....
and won the Division 2 title in the 1993-94 season before joining Stevenage Borough
Stevenage Borough F.C.
Stevenage Football Club is an English football club based in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. The club currently participate in League One, the third tier of English football, having won promotion from League Two in the 2010–11 season...
. He was also both the youth and reserve team manager whilst at Stevenage Borough. He then joined Yeovil Town
Yeovil Town F.C.
Yeovil Town F.C. are an English association football team based in Yeovil, Somerset. The club play in League One after having won the League Two championship in 2004–05...
and finally had a brief spell at Fareham Town
Fareham Town F.C.
Fareham Town F.C. is a football club based in Fareham, Hampshire, England. They were formed in 1946 and have reached the 1st round proper of the FA Cup on four occasions in their history. Fareham's most successful exploit in the FA Trophy came in the 1986–87 season when they reached the semi finals...
at the end of the 1996-97 season.
Management career
Dillon returned to Reading in 1995 and held a number of roles within Reading’s academyYouth system
Youth system is a sporting terminology used to refer to a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team if they show enough promise, and to fill up squads numbers in some teams...
. He was also reserve team
Reserve team
Large professional sports clubs often have far more players under contract than could possibly play in a match. As a result, many of these clubs create second teams composed of players who need playing time, but have little hope of playing on the first team. The players on this second team are...
manager before he replaced Martin Allen
Martin Allen
Martin James Allen is a former football player and current manager of Notts County. He played more than 100 games for each Queens Park Rangers and West Ham United before finishing his playing career with Portsmouth and Southend United. Five years later, he took his first job in management, at...
as Alan Pardew’s
Alan Pardew
Alan Scott Pardew is an English football manager and former player, currently the manager of Newcastle United....
assistant in November 2001. Under the guidance of the management duo, the Royals
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
were promoted to Division 1 after finishing as runners-up to Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are an English association football club based in the coastal city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system....
in the 2001-02 season. Pardew resigned in September 2003 and Dillon stepped in as the caretaker manager
Caretaker manager
In association football, a caretaker manager is someone who takes temporary charge of the management of a football club, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a caretaker may also be appointed if the regular manager is ill or unable to attend to his...
, until Steve Coppell
Steve Coppell
Stephen James "Steve" Coppell is an English former footballer and manager, currently without a club.As a player, he was a highly regarded right winger known for his speed and work rate. He won domestic honours with Manchester United and represented England at the World Cup...
was appointed in October 2003. At this point Dillon reverted back to his role as the number two. Dillon passed his UEFA Pro Licence in 2004 and in the 2005–06
2005-06 in English football
The 2005–06 season was the 126th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:*The rebuilt Wembley Stadium was due to open in time for the FA Cup final in May. However, in August 2005, The Football Association reserved the Millennium Stadium as a backup, as there was some doubt whether...
season Reading won the Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
with a record of 106 points. In their first season in the Premier League Reading finished 8th. In May 2007, Dillon followed Coppell's lead in committing himself to Reading for a further two seasons. Unfortunately they were relegated back to the Championship the next season and in May 2009 following the resignation of Coppell, Dillon alongside other first-team coach Wally Downes
Wally Downes
Walter John "Wally" Downes is an English former football player and manager, he is currently a first team coach at West Ham UnitedHe is the nephew of former world middleweight boxing champion Terry Downes.-Playing career:...
, left Reading following the team's failure to gain promotion back to the Premier League.
On 9 November 2009, Dillon was confirmed as the new manager of Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town F.C.
Aldershot Town Football Club is an association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England, founded in the spring of 1992 just after the closure of debt-ridden Fourth Division club Aldershot Football Club...
, succeeding Wycombe Wanderers
Wycombe Wanderers F.C.
Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional football team from High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, which has been promoted to Football League One after finishing third in Football League Two in the season 2010–11. The club's nicknames are "The Chairboys" and "The Blues", and they play...
-bound Gary Waddock
Gary Waddock
Gary Patrick Waddock is a former professional and international footballer. He is currently manager at League One club Wycombe Wanderers. He formerly managed Queens Park Rangers and Aldershot Town...
. His contract was to run until the end of the 2010–11 season. Against all odds he led the club to the 2009–10 playoffs with a game to spare after a run of just one defeat in ten games. The club's sixth place finish is still their highest ever league finish to date. Despite such a successful campaign, Dillon made several changes to his squad for the start of the 2010-11 season. He brought in no fewer than ten new faces, including arguably the most eye catching deal of the summer in League Two when he completed the signing of Glen Little
Glen Little
Glen Matthew Little is an English footballer born in Wimbledon who plays as a right winger for Wrexham. He previously played for Burnley, Derry City, Glentoran, Crystal Palace, Sheffield United and Aldershot Town...
from Sheffield United
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...
. Despite all the transfer activity, The Shots made a solid start and lost just one of their opening nine league games, as well as progressing through to the second round of the Johnstones Paint Trophy for the first time in the club's history. But on 10 January 2011, after a run of just two wins in the previous ten League games and with attendances declining, Dillon and assistant Gary Owers
Gary Owers
Gary Owers is an English former professional footballer and was previously manager of Forest Green Rovers of the Nationwide Conference as well as the Assistant Manager at League Two side Aldershot Town...
left the club by mutual agreement.
External links
- Dillon's Profile at Aldershot Town F.C.'s website
- Dillon's league stats at Neil Brown's site
- Sporting-heroes Birmingham City
- Sporting-heroes Newcastle United