Ryan Kirby (born 6 September 1974) is an English former 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, rugb ...

who was last

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

Grays Athletic Grays Athletic Football Club is a football club based in Grays, Essex, England. They are currently members of the and play at Parkside in nearby Aveley. History The club was established as Grays Juniors in 1890, before merging with former S ...

Playing career

Kirby, who played as a right back and

centre half 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 ...

, began his career with the youth team of

Brimsdown Rovers Brimsdown Rovers F.C. were a football club based in Brimsdown in the London Borough of Enfield, England. They played their home games at the Goldsdown Road stadium, Brimsdown in the London Borough of Enfield. Notable former players include David ...

alongside

David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending ...

, and later played for

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 mostl ...

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

Stevenage Borough Stevenage Football Club (known as Stevenage Borough Football Club until 2010) is a professional association football club based in the town of Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier o ...

Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spring ...

and Harlow Town. He moved from Harlow Town to

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authority area with borough status and unparished area in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is part of the London commuter belt and an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The ...

in August 2004. Kirby then returned to Harlow Town, where he was player-manager between November 2006 and December 2008. During 2009 he played for

AFC Hornchurch Hornchurch Football Club is a football club based in Upminster, England. They are currently members of the and play at the Hornchurch Stadium. History 1881 club The first Hornchurch Football Club was founded in October 1881. Based at Grey T ...

and

Boreham Wood Borehamwood (, historically also Boreham Wood) is a town in southern Hertfordshire, England, from Charing Cross. Borehamwood has a population of 31,074, and is within the London commuter belt. The town's film and TV studios are commonly known ...

. He left Harlow Town in June 2012 to join

. In his first season at Grays Athletic, they were crowned champions of the

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 t ...

Division One North. He later became player-manager, before leaving at the end of the 2013–14 season. Kirby made a total of 74 appearances in all competitions scoring once, over two seasons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirby, Ryan 1974 births Living people English men's footballers Brimsdown Rovers F.C. players Arsenal F.C. players Doncaster Rovers F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Crewe Alexandra F.C. players Wigan Athletic F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Stevenage F.C. players Aldershot Town F.C. players Harlow Town F.C. players Thurrock F.C. players Hornchurch F.C. players Boreham Wood F.C. players Grays Athletic F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Isthmian League players Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football central defenders Player-coaches English football managers Harlow Town F.C. managers Grays Athletic F.C. managers Footballers from Chingford