Stephen Paul Whitton (born 4 December 1960) 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 played as a striker. He was born in

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a Major Centre. The population is 76,186. It was originally part of the Becontree Hun ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Career

In a playing career spanning 20 years (1978–1998), Whitton made more than 450 league appearances. He played 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 ...

and

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 ...

in England, the Swedish

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; en, the All-Swedish, also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan, en, the Football All-Swedish) is a Swedish professional league for men's association football clubs. It was founded in 1924 and is the top tier of the Swedish football lea ...

and the

Hong Kong First Division 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 ...

. After being forced to retire with injury he became assistant manager at

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 ...

under

Steve Wignall Steven Leslie Wignall (born 17 September 1954) is an English former professional football manager and player. During his playing career, Wignall, who played as a central defender, made over 600 appearances in the Football League. Career Playing ...

and his successor

Mick Wadsworth Michael Wadsworth (born 3 November 1950) is an English association football, football coach and former player. Born in Barnsley his playing career spanned only one season in The Football League with Scunthorpe United F.C., Scunthorpe United, a ...

. He went on to manage the team after Wadsworth resigned just weeks before the start of the season. He continued as manager until he left by mutual consent in early 2003.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Club

;Ipswich Town *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

: 1991–92 ;Colchester United *

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 ...

runner-up: 1996–97

Individual

* Colchester United Player of the Year: 1994–95

References

;General * * ;Specific 1960 births Living people Footballers from East Ham English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Coventry City F.C. players Seiko SA players West Ham United F.C. players Birmingham City F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Halmstads BK players Ipswich Town F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players English Football League players Hong Kong First Division League players Allsvenskan players Premier League players English football managers Colchester United F.C. managers English expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Hong Kong Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden English Football League managers {{England-footy-forward-1960s-stub