Neil Ruddock
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| Neil Ruddock | ||
 |
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Neil Ruddock | |
| Date of birth | May 9, 1968 (age 38) | |
| Place of birth | Wandsworth, London, England | |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | |
| Nickname | Razor | |
| Playing position | Defender | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 1984-1986 | Millwall | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1986 1986-1988 1988-1989 1989-1992 1992-1993 1993-1998 1998 1998-2000 2000-2001 2001-2003 |
Millwall Tottenham Hotspur Millwall Southampton Tottenham Hotspur Liverpool →Queens Park Rangers (loan) West Ham United Crystal Palace Swindon Town |
0 (0) 9 (0) 2 (1) 107 (9) 41 (4) 115 (11) 7 (0) 42 (2) 20 (2) 15 (1) |
| National team | ||
| 1989 1995 |
England Under-21 England England B |
4 1 (0) 1 |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Neil "Razor" Ruddock (born 9 May 1968 in Wandsworth, London) was an English footballer, playing as a central defender.
He made his debut at Millwall, and he had a long career playing for Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton, Liverpool, West Ham, Crystal Palace, and finally a short-lived spell as a player/coach at Swindon Town.
A crowd favourite, his appearance at Swindon made him an instant cult figure. Relations turned sour when Ruddock refused to quit after being advised to do so by a specialist; during a period of time where the club was in serious financial difficulties. The club responded by appointing Steve Coppell as assistant manager and taking Ruddock's coaching duties away. The board eventually stopped paying Ruddock's wages in an attempt to drive him out. He took the club to a tribunal over the unpaid wages, and a deal was made where Ruddock's contract was terminated, in return for a six-figure payment.
He was also accused by Crystal Palace chairman, Simon Jordan (in his fortnightly article in The Observer), in November 2005, of "taking the team out and getting them wasted when we were fighting relegation."
He only won a single cap for England, playing in a friendly against Nigeria in 1995. He also had four caps for the England Under-21 squad and one for the England B team.
He became a household name after appearing on the third series of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!. He exploited this by recording a charity single, a version of Jungle Rock, with fellow contestants Lord Brocket and Mike Read, but this was only a minor UK hit.
Throughout his career he battled with weight problems and was often criticised for being unfit this is often thought to be one of the reasons he only ever gained one full cap for England.
His nickname of "Razor" is taken from the boxer Donovan Ruddock's nickname. Donovan Ruddock's boxing career peaked at the same time Neil Ruddock was playing football.
Razor is now helping talented young footballers who have been released from Academies with his 'Pass & Move Soccer School', at www.passandmove.net.
Razor is currently (2006) producing "Saved by the Ball" a reality sports TV show for Bravo turning around the lives of 15 guys.
[edit] External links
Categories: 1968 births | Crystal Palace F.C. players | English footballers | Football (soccer) central defenders | England under-21 international footballers | England international footballers | FA Premier League players | I'm a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here! | Millwall F.C. players | Liverpool F.C. players | Living people | Participants in British reality television series | People from Wandsworth | Queens Park Rangers F.C. players | Southampton F.C. players | Swindon Town F.C. players | Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players | West Ham United F.C. players | West Ham United F.C. defenders
