Lee Bullen (born 29 March 1971) is a Scottish former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player and coach who is the current manager of

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland Scotland (, ...

side

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is ...

. In a career that spanned more than 20 years, Bullen played football professionally in Scotland, England, Australia, Greece and Hong Kong. Having started his career as a

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

, Bullen converted to

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

midway through his career, and was used in various other positions. Bullen was named as Sheffield Wednesday's greatest ever captain in a 2014 online poll.

Playing career

Bullen was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. He started his career in Scotland with

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...

, but failed to make an appearance before moving to

Penicuik Athletic Penicuik Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football club. They were formed in 1888 and are based at Penicuik Park, in the town of Penicuik. Penicuik Park is ten miles south west of Edinburgh on the A702 road. The team now plays in the East ...

, a Junior Football team. Bullen then spent time at

Meadowbank Thistle Livingston Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Livingston, West Lothian. Livingston currently play in the Scottish Premiership and were founded in 1943 as Ferranti Thistle, a works team. The club was admitted to the ...

Stenhousemuir Stenhousemuir (; gd, Featha Thaigh nan Clach) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies within the Falkirk (council area), Falkirk council area of Scotland. The town is north-northwest of Falkirk and directly adjoins to Larbert in ...

and Whitburn. After failing to become an established player at a professional club in Scotland, Bullen moved to Australia to pursue his footballing career, playing for CYC Stanmore and

Wollongong Wolves Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wat ...

. During his time in Australia, Bullen was scouted by a Hong Kong football club, Kui Tan, and he made the switch to Hong Kong. He played in the

Hong Kong Football League The Hong Kong First Division League () is the second-highest division in the Hong Kong football league system. Established in 1908, it is the third oldest in Asia. The league was formerly the highest division in Hong Kong until the formation o ...

for 4 seasons in total, moving from Kui Tan to

Golden Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...

then on to

South China South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...

. On 26 May 1996, Bullen played for a Hong Kong XI side in an unofficial friendly against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in their build up to

Euro 96 The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...

. In 1998 Bullen moved to Greece and spent two years at

Kalamata Kalamáta ( el, Καλαμάτα ) is the second most populous city of the Peloponnese peninsula, after Patras, in southern Greece and the largest city of the homonymous administrative region. As the capital and chief port of the Messenia reg ...

in the

Greek Football League The Football League ( el, Φούτμπολ Λιγκ) was the second highest professional football league in Greece since its inception in 1962 as ''Beta Ethniki'' and until 2019. It then served as a third tier after the creation of the Super Lea ...

. In 2000 at the age of 29, Bullen returned to Scotland, signing for

. Bullen spent five years at the Scottish club. After leading Dunfermline to the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,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 of ...

on a free transfer in the summer of 2004. He immediately became an integral part of their play-off push after making his debut on 7 August in a 3–0 defeat on the opening day of the season at Hillsborough against

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...

and scoring his first goal the next game on 10 August, away at

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

to lead the team to a 2–1 victory. In November 2005 the Captain's armband was passed onto him by

Chris Marsden Christopher Marsden (born 3 January 1969) is an English former association football, footballer who played in the English Football League, Football League and Premier League for Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United, Huddersfield Town A.F.C., ...

who was forced into retirement by injury. Bullen finished his first season in Sheffield with seven league goals. During his time at Sheffield Wednesday he played in all eleven positions for the Owls, including memorably in goal away at

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, east ...

, and received The ''Wash & Go'' good sport award for his efforts. In January 2008, Bullen was informed by Sheffield Wednesday manager

Brian Laws Brian Laws (born 14 October 1961) is an English former professional footballer and manager. Playing as a defender, Laws made over 100 appearances for each of Burnley, Middlesbrough, and Nottingham Forest. In 1994, Laws became player-manager of ...

that he would not have his contract renewed upon its expiry at the end of the 2007–08 season. Bullen's final appearance for Sheffield Wednesday came in a crucial relegation battle against

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

on the penultimate game of the season which the Owls won 3–1, an injury sustained in this game denied him an appearance for the last match of the season versus

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

on 4 May 2008 and a chance to play at Hillsborough for the last time. He did however appear in the end of season lap-of-honour and received a spectacular reception from the fans. Bullen was given a

Guard of honour A guard of honour ( GB), also honor guard ( US), also ceremonial guard, is a group of people, usually military in nature, appointed to receive or guard a head of state or other dignitaries, the fallen in war, or to attend at state ceremonials, ...

by his Wednesday teammates as he left the pitch for the final time. In May 2008, Bullen joined

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...

side

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a ...

on a two-year deal. Bullen later became an assistant coach at Falkirk. He scored his only goal for Falkirk in a 2–0 win over

Hamilton Academical Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish association football, football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championshi ...

in November 2009. He left Falkirk in October 2011 to move to Sheffield, where his wife runs an

estate agency An estate agent is a person or business that arranges the selling, renting, or management of properties and other buildings. An agent that specialises in renting is often called a letting or management agent. Estate agents are mainly engaged ...

business.

Coaching career

In 2011, Bullen signed a deal to become a youth coach at his former club Sheffield Wednesday and was given the post of development squad head coach. In October 2015, he was promoted to the position of assistant manager at the club, working on first team coaching and organisation alongside head coach

Carlos Carvalhal Carlos Augusto Soares da Costa Faria Carvalhal (; born 4 December 1965) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a centre-back, currently manager of La Liga club RC Celta de Vigo. As a player, he totalled 197 Primeira Liga appearances in ...

. Following the dismissal of Carvalhal on 24 December 2017, Bullen took temporary charge of the first team. Bullen once again took temporary charge of the first team on 21 December 2018, following the dismissal of

Jos Luhukay Jos Luhukay (born 13 June 1963) is a Dutch football manager and former player, who was most recently head coach of VVV-Venlo. Playing career He began his career at the age of 15 at his hometown club FC VVV and he made his league debut in Januar ...

. On 2 January 2019,

Steve Bruce Stephen Roger Bruce (born 31 December 1960) is an English professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a centre-back. He most recently managed West Bromwich Albion F.C., West Br ...

was appointed as the new manager of the club.

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 of ...

announced, that Bullen would still remain as part of the senior coaching set-up. On 15 July 2019, Lee Bullen, for the third time, took temporary charge of the first team after Steve Bruce resigned from

to take charge at

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

. On 14 August 2020, it was confirmed as part of a coaching staff restructure, Bullen would become a coach of the U23 side. On 7 January 2022, he was appointed the manager of

side

Career statistics

Managerial statistics

Honours

Instant-Dict *

Hong Kong First Division The Hong Kong First Division League () is the second-highest division in the Hong Kong football league system. Established in 1908, it is the third oldest in Asia. The league was formerly the highest division in Hong Kong until the formation o ...

: 1997–98 Sheffield Wednesday *

Football League One play-offs The EFL League One play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from third to sixth in the EFL League One table and are part of the English Football League play-offs. , the play-offs comprise tw ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

Individual * Hong Kong Top Footballer: 1994-95 * Football League Good Sport Award: 2006

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bullen, Lee 1971 births Footballers from Edinburgh Living people Association football defenders Association football utility players Scottish footballers Scottish expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Greece British expatriates in Hong Kong Expatriate footballers in Hong Kong Stenhousemuir F.C. players South China AA players Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Falkirk F.C. players British expatriates in China Kalamata F.C. players Scottish Football League players Hong Kong First Division League players Scottish Premier League players English Football League players Super League Greece players Football League (Greece) players Penicuik Athletic F.C. players Falkirk F.C. non-playing staff Whitburn Junior F.C. players Scottish football managers Sheffield Wednesday F.C. managers Ayr United F.C. managers English Football League managers Sheffield Wednesday F.C. non-playing staff