Billy Clarke
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| Billy Clarke | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Charles Clarke | |
| Date of birth | 13 December 1987 | |
| Place of birth | Cork, Ireland | |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | |
| Playing position | Forward | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Blackpool | |
| Senior career1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2005–2009 2006 2008 2008 2009 2009 2009– |
Ipswich Town → Colchester United (loan) → Falkirk (loan) → Darlington (loan) → Northampton Town (loan) → Brentford (loan) Blackpool |
49 (3) 6 (0) 8 (1) 20 (8) 5 (3) 8 (6) 0 (0) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2007– | Republic of Ireland U21 | 11 (2) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
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William Charles "Billy" Clarke (born 13 December 1987) is an Irish footballer who plays in England for Blackpool. He is a striker and has played for the Republic of Ireland under-21 side.
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[edit] Club career
Born in Cork, Clarke is a product of the Ipswich Town Academy and signed professional for the club in May 2005. He made his professional début as a substitute against Cardiff City in late November 2005. He won the Irish Examiner Junior Sports Star of the year award for Soccer in 2005 and was nominated for the Irish Under-19 Player of the Year award in 2006. He also made a big contribution to Ipswich's youth team in winning the FA Youth Cup in 2005.
At the end of the 2005-06 season he was sent on loan to Colchester United to gain first team experience, playing six league games. During the January 2008 transfer window, he joined Scottish side Falkirk on loan. He scored his first goal, a late winner, in a crucial match against Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
After returning to Ipswich Clarke scored his first league goal in the 2-1 victory over Southampton and followed it up three days later with the winning goal in the 2-1 victory over Coventry City. He also scored in a 3-1 victory over Essex side, Southend United.
Clarke was transfer-listed and on 8 August 2008 went to Darlington on one month's loan, which was extended to January 2009. He scored four times against Macclesfield Town on 30 August 2008. He also scored a vital goal in the Carling Cup against Walsall, knocking the League One side out of the cup.
He joined Northampton Town on a month's loan in January 2009.[1] He scored a hat-trick on his debut in a 5-1 victory over Crewe Alexandra. It was the first hat-trick scored by a Cobblers player since 2002. [2]
Clarke joined Brentford on loan in the run-in to their attempt to win promotion out of League Two. He was recruited mainly to cover for the absence of fellow Ipswich loanee Jordan Rhodes, who was injured. Clarke scored his first goal for the Bees in the 1-1 draw at Bradford City. He ended his loan spell scoring six goals in eight games. He had scored 18 goals overall during his three loan spells that season with Darlington, Northampton and Brentford. He was nominated twice during the season for the League Two Player of the Month.
Clarke was released by new Ipswich manager Roy Keane on 8 May 2009. On 26 June he signed for Blackpool on a two-year contract with an option for a further year; his contract starting on 1 July, once his Ipswich contract expired.[3] Clarke said of the move, "It happened very quickly. I met the manager (Ian Holloway) on Tuesday and I had my medical this morning. I am delighted to be here and I can't wait for the season to start," adding "It is brilliant for me to be still playing in the Championship.[4]
[edit] International career
Clarke has played at various levels for the Republic of Ireland. He has made 45 appearances at under-16, under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 scoring 14 goals. His latest goal came in an under-21 International Tournament in Malaysia in May 2008.
[edit] References
- ^ "Cobblers sign Ipswich striker". bbc.co.uk. 20 January 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/northampton_town/7840721.stm. Retrieved on 24 January 2009.
- ^ "Northampton 5-1 Crewe". bbc.co.uk. 24 January 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/7842906.stm. Retrieved on 24 January 2009.
- ^ "Clarke set to become Ollie's First Signing". Blackpool F.C.. 26 June 2009. http://www.blackpoolfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10432~1703917,00.html. Retrieved on 26 June 2009.
- ^ "We Speak To Billy Clarke". Blackpool F.C.. 26 June 2009. http://www.blackpoolfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10432~1704035,00.html. Retrieved on 26 June 2009.
[edit] External links
- Billy Clarke career stats at Soccerbase
- Billy Clarke player profile at itfc.co.uk
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