Sean Hillier (born 19 April 1986) is an English former semi-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 le ...

who played as a defender. Hillier began his career at

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

and made one professional appearance before dropping 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 ...

upon his release in 2005. He played the majority of his career for

North Greenford United North Greenford United Football Club is a football club based in Greenford in the London Borough of Ealing, England. They play in the . The club is affiliated to the Middlesex County Football Association. History Established in 1944, original ...

and made over 250 appearances across five spells with the club. He is currently assistant coach of Brentford Women.

Playing career

Brentford

Hillier began his career as a youth at

and embarked on a scholarship at the beginning 2002–03 season. He played in the 2–0 2004 Supporters Direct Cup win over

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...

on 20 July 2004 and replaced

Chris Hargreaves Christian Hargreaves (born 12 May 1972) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward and a midfielder from 1989 until 2010. He subsequently managed Torquay United from January 2014 until June 2015, and Yeovil Town from May ...

after 87 minutes. Hillier received his maiden call into the first team squad for a

Football League 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 Leag ...

first round match against Milton Keynes Dons on 28 September 2004. Hillier made his professional debut when he started the match at

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

and played the full 90 minutes of the 3–0 defeat. He was an unused substitute during two further first team matches during the 2004–05 season. Either side of his brief period of involvement with the first team squad, Hillier spent periods away 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 ...

at non-League clubs

Welling United Welling United Football Club is a professional football club, based in Welling in the London Borough of Bexley, England. The club's first team play in the National League South, at the sixth tier of English football. History Welling United Foot ...

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the Borough of Barnet, North-West London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has been part of Great ...

and

. He was released at the end of the 2004–05 season.

AFC Wimbledon

Hillier signed for

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...

Premier Division club AFC Wimbledon on 30 July 2005. He made his only first team appearance for the club as a 51st-minute substitute for Michael Woolner in a 2–0 defeat to

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, char ...

on 25 October 2005 and departed at the end of the 2005–06 season. Hillier rejoined Combined Counties League Premier Division club North Greenford United on loan in November 2005, until the end of the 2005–06 season. He made 28 appearances during his spell and scored a seasonal-best five goals.

Hanwell Town

Hillier signed for Southern League First Division South & West club Hanwell Town during the 2006 off-season. He left the club in early 2007.

Third spell with North Greenford United

Hillier rejoined North Greenford United for the third time in January 2007. He helped the Blues to the 2007 Premier Challenge Cup Final versus Merstham, but suffered a 4–1 defeat. He made 21 appearances and scored one goal during the 2006–07 season. He departed the Blues in February 2008, having made 46 appearances and scored three goals during his year with the club.

Chertsey Town

Hillier signed for Combined Counties League Premier Division club Chertsey Town on 27 February 2008 and made eight appearances during the remainder of the 2007–08 season, before departing the club.

Fourth and fifth spells with North Greenford United

Hillier signed for North Greenford United for the fourth time during the 2008 off-season and was a virtual ever-present during the 2008–09 season, making 42 appearances and helping the Blues to a second-place finish in the Combined Counties League Premier Division. Hillier won the first competitive

silverware Silverware may refer to: * Household silver including **Tableware **Cutlery **Candlesticks *The work of a silversmith * Silverware is also a slang term for a collection of trophies A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achieveme ...

of his career during the 2009–10 season, with the Combined Counties League Premier Division title (which brought promotion to the Southern League First Division Central) and the

Middlesex Senior Charity Cup The Middlesex Senior Charity Cup is a knock-out system football competition that has been running since 1901. It was presented in 1901 by C.S. Goldmann, Esq. and was first played for in the 1901–02 season, the first winners being Clapton Orien ...

. The cup win set up a match versus Middlesex Senior Cup winners

Staines Town Staines Town Football Club was a semi-professional football club based in Staines-upon-Thames, Middlesex. History Early days Staines Town FC was founded in 1892 and was known under various names including ''Staines F.C.'',''Staines Albany F ...

for the

George Ruffell Memorial Shield The George Ruffell Memorial Shield, also known as the Middlesex Super Cup is a cup that has been held every season since 1999 except 2008 between the holders of the Middlesex Senior Cup and the Middlesex Charity Cup. In 2001, because the Middlese ...

in August 2010, but though Hillier got on the scoresheet, the Blues were denied more silverware after suffering a shootout defeat. Playing Southern League First Division Central football for the

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season, Hillier made 50 appearances and scored one goal in a season of consolidation. Hillier played through until the end of the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season, which was his last with the club until his return in 2017. In the interim, he played for

Middlesex County League The Middlesex County Football League is a football competition based in England loosely drawing teams from the central, northern and western parts of Greater London. The league was founded in 1984 and initially had only one division, although ...

Premier Division club New Hanford and spent time recovering from a tendon injury.

Coaching career

In June 2019, Hillier was announced as assistant to Brentford Women head coach Karleigh Osborne. He is also a coach alongside Osborne at 24 Football Academy in Northolt.

Career statistics

Honours

Brentford * Supporters Direct Cup: 2004 North Greenford United * Combined Counties League Premier Division: 2009–10 *

: 2009–10 Individual *

Player of the Year: 2010–11

References

External links

*
Sean Hillier
at brentfordfc.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillier, Sean 1986 births Living people English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Brentford F.C. players Hendon F.C. players AFC Wimbledon players North Greenford United F.C. players Hanwell Town F.C. players Chertsey Town F.C. players Welling United F.C. players National League (English football) players Isthmian League players Southern Football League players Association football coaches Footballers from Hammersmith