Marcus Tudgay (born 3 February 1983) is an English professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
for
South Normanton Athletic. He has played in the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
for
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 188 ...
,
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 ...
,
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
,
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
,
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...
and
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
.
Club career
Derby County
Tudgay was born in
Worthing
Worthing () is a seaside town in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 111,400 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Brighton and Hov ...
, West Sussex. He came through the ranks at
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 188 ...
and made his senior debut in August 2002. His final Rams goal came against future 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 ...
at Hillsborough in November 2005.
Sheffield Wednesday
![Marcus Tudgay May 2007](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Marcus_Tudgay_May_2007.jpg)
Tudgay joined Sheffield Wednesday for an undisclosed fee in January 2006, penning a contract to keep him at Hillsborough until 2010. He had initially signed on
loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...
with the club but manager
Paul Sturrock
Paul Whitehead Sturrock (born 10 October 1956) is a Scottish former association football, football coach and former player.
As a player, Sturrock spent his entire senior career with Dundee United, making more than five hundred appearances betwe ...
decided to make his move permanent after he scored a debut goal in a 3–0 win over
Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
.
The manager's faith in him was justified as Tudgay scored vital goals in Sheffield Wednesday's successful attempt to avoid relegation from the
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, including a goal against his former employers on the last day of the season in a 2–0 win.
Tudgay was ruled out for the start of the
2006–07 campaign due to a bizarre injury sustained at a family barbecue over the summer. The player cut his toe on glass, severing tendons and requiring surgery which ruled him out of competitive action for three months. But he bounced back on his return, forming a good partnership with
Deon Burton
Deon John Burton (born 25 October 1976) is a football coach and former professional footballer who played as a striker and who is the current Under-23's Manager of EFL Championship club West Bromwich Albion. His numerous clubs in English footba ...
, to score six goals in five games. He was moved out to the wing after injuries to
Wade Small and
Jermaine Johnson but still finished the season with 11 goals. The
2007–08 season saw Tudgay add eight goals to his career record, the most notable of these was a second half volley to lead his team to a 2–0 victory in the
Steel City derby
The Steel City Derby (also known as the Sheffield Derby) is a local derby that takes place between Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday, the two professional football league teams based in the city of Sheffield, England. It is widely consi ...
at Hillsborough and another goal against Derby County in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
which helped to earn his team a replay. He missed the end of the season due to an injury.
At the start of the
2008–09 season Tudgay scored twice in the opening game against
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
, the first coming within 30 seconds of kick off. He played in almost every position during the season. He won the Fans player of the month awards for February and March 2009 and the PFA Fans Championship Player of the Year award, as well as the Sheffield Wednesday Player of the Year.
On 15 July 2009 it was reported that ''the Owls'' had rejected an offer from newly promoted
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
club Burnley, describing the bid as unwelcome. Later that month he signed a new four-year contract until the summer of 2013.
On 25 August 2010 it was reported that newly promoted Premier League club
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 ...
had tried to sign Tudgay the previous month and were about to make an improved offer for him.
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...
reported that Blackpool manager
Ian Holloway
Ian Scott Holloway (born 12 March 1963) is an English professional football manager, former player, media personality and television pundit who was most recently the manager of Grimsby Town.
A midfielder, he notably played in the Premier League ...
had watched Tudgay in action the previous night. Two days later, the Yorkshire club rejected at £500,000 bid from Blackpool, calling the sum "derisory".
Nottingham Forest
On 25 November 2010, Tudgay moved to Nottingham Forest on loan, with a view to a permanent deal in January 2011. He scored on his Forest debut in a 3–0 win against
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
on 18 December 2010 at the City Ground. In his next appearance for Nottingham Forest, he scored a brace in Forest's 5–2 victory over their
East Midlands rivals Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 188 ...
. On 5 January 2011, the loan deal was made permanent and he signed for Forest for an undisclosed fee. He scored the winner against
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
in a 2–1 victory for Forest. Tudgay's next goal came on 5 February against
Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne.
Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
, and it again proved decisive. He then did not score until April, when he opened the scoring in a 3–2 win 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 ...
. His final goal of the 2010–11 season came on the final day of the regular season, in a 3–0 win over
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
.
Tudgay's first league goal in the 2011–12 season came in a 2–0 win against
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
on 18 October 2011. His second league goal of the season was the only goal of the game against
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on 1 November. His next goal came in the 3–2 win at home
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
on 19 November. Tudgay scored two in the return fixture as Forest beat Ipswich 3–1 on 2 January 2012. They were Tudgay's last goals of the season.
After making an appearance and scoring a goal for Forest's reserves on 13 November 2012, on the next day, Tudgay signed for
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
on loan until January with a view to a permanent deal. His first goal for Barnsley was the equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Burnley on 27 November 2012. His second goal for Barnsley came in a 4–1 away defeat at Watford on 1 December. His third goal for the club was the winner in a 2–1 win 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, eas ...
.
On 28 November 2013, Tudgay re-joined Barnsley for his second loan spell at the club.
On 21 February 2014, Tudgay joined
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...
on loan for the remainder of the
2013–14 season. On 27 March 2014, the loan was cut short and he returned to
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
.
Coventry City
Tudgay joined
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
on a one-year deal on 29 July 2014. He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–0 win against Walsall on 3 January 2015. He helped ensure Coventry's survival in League One by scoring in a 2–1 win against Crawley on the final day of the 2014–15 season.
[
After scoring 4 goals in 23 appearances in his first season to help the club avoid relegation he signed another one-year deal for the 2015–16 season.
In his second season with the club he scored 5 goals in all competitions. He then signed a third one-year deal with the club for the 2016–17 season. He came on as a late substitute as Coventry won the 2017 EFL Trophy Final.]
Following Coventry's relegation in 2016–17, Tudgay was released by the club. He then had spells in non-League with Sutton Coldfield Town and South Normanton Athletic.
Career statistics
Honours
Coventry City
*EFL Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...
: 2016–17[
]
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tudgay, Marcus
1983 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Worthing
Footballers from West Sussex
English footballers
Association football forwards
Derby County F.C. players
Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players
Nottingham Forest F.C. players
Barnsley F.C. players
Charlton Athletic F.C. players
Coventry City F.C. players
Sutton Coldfield Town F.C. players
South Normanton Athletic F.C. players
English Football League players
Black British sportspeople