Wednesday, 20 October 2010

Where are they now?

Many memorable faces have come and gone at Walsall FC. Here are what some of them are doing now:

  • Alan Buckley - The former Saddlers striker, famous for his club record transfer to Walsall of  £175,000 in 1979, went on to manage a number of clubs including Walsall, West Brom and most recently Grimsby.
  • Adrian Viveash - After over 200 apps for the Saddlers in Defence, Viveash went on to play for a number of small town clubs such as Kidderminster and Aldershot. He now works in a coaching role at Chelsea's academy.
  • Jimmy Walker - The popular former Walsall goalkeeper left Walsall for Premier League football. After five years at West Ham, he joined Spurs on a short-term contract before being released in July 2010.
  • Jorge Leitao - After 230 apps for Walsall over six years, Jorge moved back to Portugal due to 'homesickness' where he still plays football for Arouca.
  • Don Goodman - The former Saddlers Striker is now a commentator and pundit for Sky Sports.
  • Ray Graydon - After leading Walsall to promotion in 2002 to the 2nd tier of English football, the ex- Saddlers manager went on to manage Bristol Rovers and in 2004, was part of the coaching staff that managed the Chinese national football team.
  • Paul Merson - Merson has become somewhat of a cult since leaving Walsall. He appears weekly on Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday as a pundit and also features in Nuts magazine. Merson also continues to play for England Legends.
  • Matty Fryatt - After leaving Walsall, Fryatt joined Leicester City where he remains to this day.
  • Ian Roper - The former Walsall defender went on to have a brief spell at Luton before moving to Kettering Town. He is the favourite to win the Player of the Year award for 2010.
  • Anthony Gerrard - After four years at Walsall, Gerrard moved to Cardiff City. He is now playing for Hull on a season-long loan from Cardiff.
  • Zigor Aranalde - The former Walsall left-back went on to have a lengthy spell at Carlisle. After his retirement in 2008, he became chief scout at Brighton and Hove Albion.
  • Richard Money - The former Walsall boss has been manager of Luton Town since leaving the Saddlers in 2008.
  • Clayton Ince - After retiring from football at the end of the 09/10 season, Ince moved back to his home country of Trinidad and Tobago to work with young goalkeepers. He occasionally plays for local teams.
  • Troy Deeney - After launching his career at Walsall, the striker left the Saddlers in August for Watford in a deal reportedly worth £500,000. He still plays for Watford and has scored 2 goals in 8 apps.

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