Michael Oliver (born 2 August 1975) is an English former

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 le ...

who made 276 appearances in the

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 Engla ...

playing as a midfielder for Stockport County,

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

and Rochdale in the 1990s and 2000s.

Life and career

Oliver was born in Middlesbrough, and began his career in the youth system of Middlesbrough F.C. He turned professional with the club, but his only first-team appearance came on 16 November 1993, as a substitute in the

Anglo-Italian Cup The Anglo-Italian Cup ( it, Coppa Anglo-Italiana, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) is a defunct European football c ...

against Ancona. In 1994, he signed for Stockport County; the fee was determined by tribunal. He made his Stockport and

debut on 28 February 1995, at the age of 19, as a substitute in a 4–0 defeat at

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...

in the Second Division, and played in 12 of the remaining 14 matches in the 1994–95 season. He was used infrequently in his second season, was released at its end, and dropped down two divisions to sign for

. He settled well at Darlington, where he spent four years, and played at least 40 matches in each season in all competitions. His last game for the club was in the 2000 Third Division play-off final defeat to Peterborough United. When his contract expired, he left the club and signed for another Third Division club, Rochdale. He played regularly for two seasons, but his 2002–03 season was disrupted by injury and by disciplinary issues, and he was released at its end. After leaving Rochdale, Oliver moved into

non-league football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

with

Barrow Barrow may refer to: Places England * Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria ** Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, local authority encompassing the wider area ** Barrow and Furness (UK Parliament constituency) * Barrow, Cheshire * Barrow, Gloucestershire * Barro ...

of the

Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English football league that was founded in 1968. It has four divisions: the Premier Division (which stands at level 7 of the English football league system), Division One East, Division One West and Divisio ...

, and went on to play for clubs including

Spennymoor United Spennymoor United Association Football Club was an association football club based in Spennymoor, County Durham, England. History Spennymoor United Association Football Club was formed in 1904 as an amalgamation of Spennymoor Town and Weardale ...

, Thornaby,

Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland () is a market town and civil parish at the confluence of the River Wear and the River Gaunless in County Durham, northern England. It is northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham. Much of the town's early history surro ...

Newcastle Blue Star Newcastle Blue Star F.C. is a football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It was established in 1930 and joined the Wearside League in 1973. In 1978, it won the FA Vase. Having won promotion to the Northern Premier League Premier Divi ...

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

, and Durham City.

References

External links

* . The page merges details for two players of the same name: the statistics up to and including Rochdale are for this Michael Oliver, but the personal details and appearances for Clyde are not. {{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, Michael 1975 births Living people Footballers from Middlesbrough English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Middlesbrough F.C. players Stockport County F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Rochdale A.F.C. players Barrow A.F.C. players Spennymoor United A.F.C. players Thornaby F.C. players Bishop Auckland F.C. players Newcastle Blue Star F.C. players Gateshead F.C. players Durham City A.F.C. players English Football League players Northern Premier League players Northern Football League players