Derek Peter Geary (born 19 June 1980 in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, Republic of Ireland) is an Irish retired footballer, who played as a full-back. He is currently the

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

Academy manager.

Club career

Sheffield Wednesday

Derek is one of the few players to have played for both sides in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

. He was signed by

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

from Rivermount Boys of Finglas in

, his only schoolboy club, on 11 November 1997, he made 104 league appearances for the Owls and won the player of the season award for the 2001–2002 season.

Stockport County

On 26 July 2004 he joined

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...

and made 13 appearances before transferring to

for £25,000 on 22 October 2004.

Sheffield United

Geary became the third ex-Sheffield Wednesday player to be signed by Neil Warnock that season (the others being Alan Quinn and Leigh Bromby). Geary made his first start for the Blades in a 3–2 away victory over Crewe at the end of December. His one and only senior career goal came for the Blades in a 2–1 away victory over

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

in December 2004 where he scored a late winner. Making 26 appearances in the Premiership for the Blades in season 2006–07, he subsequently signed a contract extension to keep him at Bramall Lane for a further three years in July 2007. After being out of action for 18 months with a serious knee injury, Geary made his return to the first team in a 2–2 draw with Barnsley at Oakwell on 9 November 2009, replacing

Matthew Kilgallon Matthew Shaun Kilgallon (born 8 January 1984) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Kilgallon began his career at Leeds United, where he came through the youth set up before becoming a fixture in their first ...

shortly before half time. In June 2016 it was announced that he would take over as lead Coach of Sheffield United U18s.

Career statistics

International career

On 8 May 2007, Geary was named in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

squad by manager Steve Staunton for a two match trip to the US to play

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

and Bolivia, of which both games were drawn 1–1. However, due to hip and thigh injuries received in the last game of the season playing for

against

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...

, he was forced to withdraw from the squad.

References and notes

External links

Derek Geary player profile
at stockportcounty.com * {{DEFAULTSORT:Geary, Derek 1980 births Living people Republic of Ireland association footballers Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Stockport County F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players Association footballers from Dublin (city) Association football defenders Rivermount Boys F.C. players