Steve Francis (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Stephen Stuart "Steve" Francis (born 29 May 1964) is an English former professional
footballer, born in Billericay
, Essex
, who made nearly 500 appearances in the Football League
playing as a goalkeeper for Chelsea
, Reading
, Huddersfield Town
and Northampton Town
.
He began his career as an apprentice at Chelsea
, making his debut as a 17-year-old. Francis was initially a regular in the side, but the arrival of new goalkeeper Eddie Niedzwiecki
in 1983 saw him relegated to the substitutes' bench for most of the next three seasons. Francis returned to the first team after an injury to Niedzwiecki, but conceded 14 goals in three games over Easter 1986 and never played for the club again. He made a total of 88 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea.
He left in 1987 to join Reading
for £15,000, where he played a further 250 games and won the club's Player of the Year award in the 1986–87 season, before joining Huddersfield Town
in 1993.
He was Huddersfield's first-choice goalkeeper for four seasons, then fell out of favour and left in 1999 to join Northampton Town
, where he made just three league appearances.
Professional
A professional is a person who is paid to undertake a specialised set of tasks and to complete them for a fee. The traditional professions were doctors, lawyers, clergymen, and commissioned military officers. Today, the term is applied to estate agents, surveyors , environmental scientists,...
footballer, born in Billericay
Billericay
Billericay is a town and civil parish in the Basildon borough of Essex, England. It lies within the London Basin, has a population of 40,000, and constitutes a commuter town east of central London. The town has three secondary schools and a variety of open spaces...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, who made nearly 500 appearances in the Football League
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...
playing as a goalkeeper for Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
, 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...
, Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...
and 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...
.
He began his career as an apprentice at Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
, making his debut as a 17-year-old. Francis was initially a regular in the side, but the arrival of new goalkeeper Eddie Niedzwiecki
Eddie Niedzwiecki
Eddie Niedzwiecki is a retired Welsh footballer of Polish origin who played as a goalkeeper for Wrexham and Chelsea.Starting at Wrexham at the age of 14, Niedzwiecki stayed with the club until the summer of 1983, when he was signed for Chelsea by former Wrexham manager, John Neal...
in 1983 saw him relegated to the substitutes' bench for most of the next three seasons. Francis returned to the first team after an injury to Niedzwiecki, but conceded 14 goals in three games over Easter 1986 and never played for the club again. He made a total of 88 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea.
He left in 1987 to join 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...
for £15,000, where he played a further 250 games and won the club's Player of the Year award in the 1986–87 season, before joining Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...
in 1993.
He was Huddersfield's first-choice goalkeeper for four seasons, then fell out of favour and left in 1999 to join 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...
, where he made just three league appearances.
External links
- League stats at Neil Brown's site
- Two pages of league stats and photos at Sporting Heroes