Dane Lee Whitehouse (born 14 October 1970) 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 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 ...

for Sheffield United. Whitehouse was an accomplished left winger, who was equally comfortable filling in at

left 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 ...

. He served his only club, Sheffield United, for 13 years between 1987 and 2000, making 278 appearances and scoring 51 goals in all competitions.

Club career

Whitehouse signed professionally for Sheffield United in July 1987 and made his first team debut against

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 ...

in 1988, aged just 18. He made a good early impression, but was in and out of the team for most of his early professional career. He played a part in the Blades' promotion from the old

Third Division In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

in 1988, and again in the next season when United were promoted to the top flight. He began to establish himself as a first-team regular during the 1991–92 season. His goals included a double against Chelsea in a 2–1 win, and he also chipped in with three FA Cup goals. In the first Steel City derby of the 1991–92 campaign, Whitehouse scored against local rivals Sheffield Wednesday in a 2–0 win at

Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramal ...

. In the return fixture at

Hillsborough Hillsborough may refer to: Australia *Hillsborough, New South Wales, a suburb of Lake Macquarie Canada *Hillsborough, New Brunswick *Hillsborough Parish, New Brunswick * Hillsborough, Nova Scotia, in Inverness County *Hillsborough (electoral d ...

, he was once again on target, scoring the first goal. After a game against

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...

, Whitehouse broke his leg and missed a large proportion of the 1992–93 season. Despite the seriousness of the injury, he returned to play a part towards the end of the campaign. He starred in the closing stages of the Blades' run to the

FA Cup semi-final The FA Cup semi-finals are played to determine which teams will contest the FA Cup Final. They are the penultimate phase of the FA Cup, the oldest football tournament in the world. Location The semi-finals have always been contested at neutr ...

, making an appearance at Wembley Stadium in the defeat to Sheffield Wednesday. He was also on the scoresheet twice in the final game of the season, when United hammered Chelsea 4–2. Despite an opening day win over Swindon Town the next season, United were again struggling to keep their Premier League status intact. In a 3–2 home win over West Ham United, Whitehouse smashed the ball into the top corner from nearly 30 yards for what was one of the goals of the season. Despite Whitehouse's goals, United were relegated on the final game of the season, losing 3–2 away at Chelsea. Whitehouse was again in good scoring form at the start of the 1994–95 season. He eventually finished with 10 goals in all competitions, which included a hat-trick in the League Cup against Stockport County, but the Blades failed to win promotion. After a disappointing 1995–96 season United parted with longtime manager Dave Bassett. Howard Kendall took charge and, despite a clear out of players, Whitehouse was still a first-team regular in the new regime. He finished with six goals in the 1995–96 season, which included a goal against

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

at Highbury in the FA Cup. During the 1997–98 campaign, Whitehouse was a regular up to November. In a game against

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...

he was crudely tackled by Gareth Ainsworth, and Whitehouse suffered a serious knee injury. Despite an attempt to get back to fitness, which included a few outings for the reserves, Whitehouse was forced to retire.

Career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitehouse, Dane 1970 births Living people Sheffield United F.C. players Footballers from Sheffield English men's footballers Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football wingers Premier League players