Phillip Coleman (born 8 September 1960) is an English

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 played as a defender 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 ...

. He began his career in the youth ranks of

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 ...

, where he sometimes played as a midfielder, notably scoring one of two Millwall goals in the 1979 FA Youth Cup Final against

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

. He made his first senior appearance for Millwall, turning professional in August 1978. In 1981

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 ...

manager Bobby Roberts signed Coleman from Millwall for a fee of £15,000. After retiring from playing Coleman trained to be a teacher, receiving a BA Honours degree in Sport and Education from

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

. He also served as a coach for

F.C. Clacton F.C. Clacton is a football club based in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, England. The club are currently members of the and play at the Rush Green Bowl. History The original Clacton Town were established on 27 October 1892 and joined the North Essex L ...

under manager Steve Pitt. Coleman is currently a PE teacher at the Sigma Sports academy at

Philip Morant School and College Philip Morant School and College (originally known as Norman Way School) is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status located within the Prettygate suburb of Colchester, Essex. The school is named after Philip Morant, a local 18t ...

in Colchester, previously having taught at

The Gilberd School The Gilberd School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, in Colchester, Essex, England. History The school originally opened on 12 July 1912 in buildings on North Hill, Colchester. During the 1930s the school became known ...

and

The Colne Community School and College The Colne Community School and College is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status located in Brightlingsea, Essex, England. The school is an inclusive, comprehensive provider that achieved academy status in 2011 and founded the Thri ...

. He is also a

Liberal Democrat Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties ...

councillor for Mile End on

Colchester Borough Council Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colchest ...

. His son,

Liam Coleman Liam Phillip Coleman (born 11 January 1986 in Colchester) is an English ex-professional footballer who is currently retired from football. Career Coleman began his career with Colchester United, turning professional in August 2004. He failed ...

, also played football professionally. Coleman caught

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, being informed of a positive test result on Christmas Day 2020.

References

* 1960 births Living people Footballers from Woolwich English footballers Association football defenders Millwall F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players Wrexham A.F.C. players Chelmsford City F.C. players Exeter City F.C. players Aldershot F.C. players Dulwich Hamlet F.C. players Myllykosken Pallo −47 players Wivenhoe Town F.C. players English Football League players {{England-footy-defender-1960s-stub