Andrew James Feeley (born 30 September 1961) is an English retired 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 ...

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

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the Nation ...

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 w ...

, Bury and Hereford United as a right back. He later became

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

North West Counties League The North West Counties Football League is a football league in the North West of England. Since 2019–20, the league has covered the Isle of Man, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Cumbria, northern Staffordshire, northern ...

club Ramsbottom United and also worked as

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement * Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

Playing career

Hereford United

A right back, Feeley joined hometown club Hereford United as an apprentice and made his first team debut in a

Fourth Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

match versus

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...

on 14 October 1978, at the age of just 17 years and 14 days. He became a regular pick throughout the rest of the 1978–79 season, making 25 appearances and even captaining the club, the youngest player ever to do so. After signing a professional contract, he was again a first team regular during the 1979–80 season, making 29 appearances and scoring three goals. He departed Edgar Street in 1980, after making 53 appearances and scoring three goals.

Moorfields

For a time after leaving Hereford United, Feeley played for Herefordshire Sunday League Second Division club Moorfields.

Trowbridge Town

Feeley signed for Southern League Midland Division club

Trowbridge Town Trowbridge Town Football Club is a football club based in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England. They are currently champions of the and play at The Daykin Estates Ground, Woodmarsh, on the southern edge of the town. History A Trowbridge Town team ...

in 1980. He enjoyed a good season with the club, which finished third and was the only club from the division to win promotion to the Alliance Premier League. Feeley averaged 28 games per season in the Alliance Premier League for struggling Trowbridge, before departing Frome Road in January 1984. He made 85 appearances and scored 12 goals during his time with the club in the Alliance Premier League.

Leicester City

In a surprise move, Feeley signed for First Division club

in January 1984. He had to wait until 10 March to make his debut, which came with a baptism of fire against

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Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after We ...

. Feeley started in the 2–0 defeat and was brought off for Tommy English. He made two further appearances during what remained of the 1983–84 season. He established himself in the first team in the 1984–85 season, making 41 appearances and winning the Supporters Club's Player of the Year award. Knee injuries reduced his appearance-count over the next two seasons and he departed the club in June 1987, after refusing a new contract. Feeley made 86 appearances during years at

Filbert Street Filbert Street was a football stadium in Leicester, England, which served as the home of Leicester City F.C. from 1891 until 2002. Although officially titled the City Business Stadium in the early 1990s, it remained known almost exclusively b ...

Brentford

Feeley dropped down to the

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 ...

to sign on trial for

in August 1987 and he subsequently signed a permanent contract. Though never fully fit during his two years at

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a football ground in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow, England. It was the home ground of Brentford F.C. from its opening in September 1904 to August 2020. The ground is in a predominantly residential area and was ...

, he managed 88 appearances and was a member of the team which reached the quarter-finals of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...

during the 1988–89 season, going out 4–0 to eventual winners

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Bury

Feeley joined Third Division club Bury in July 1989. He made 57 league appearances and scored three goals in two seasons with the Shakers. While later working in the club's

youth system In sporting terminology, a youth system (or youth academy) is a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team in the future if ...

in 2002, Feeley turned out for a Bury Veterans XI in a benefit match against their

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pik ...

counterparts.

Northwich Victoria

Feeley dropped back into

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, 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 s ...

in 1991 to sign for

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club Northwich Victoria. He made 13 appearances and scored one goal during his spell.

Atherton Laburnum Rovers

Feeley joined

First Division club Atherton Laburnum Rovers in 1991. He celebrated promotion to the

Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English Association football, football league that was founded in 1968. It has four divisions: the Premier Division (which stands at level 7 of the English football league system), Division One East, Division ...

First Division as champions at the end of the 1993–94 season and remained with the club until 1996.

Highfield United

Feeley had a spell with Manchester League Premier Division club Highfield United in 1996.

Seedfield Sports

Feeley joined Bolton Combination club Seedfield Sports during the 1996 off-season. He scored with a 30-yard strike to send the club through to the last 16 of the Lancashire Amateur Shield.

Managerial and coaching career

Seedfield Sports

While with Seedfield Sports, Feeley served as the club's assistant manager.

Bury

In the late 1990s, Feeley returned to former club Bury, working in the commercial and community areas. He later returned to the football club, serving as Director of Youth, overseeing the club's Centre of Excellence and managing the club's youth and reserve teams. He oversaw the development of future international players David Nugent and

Colin Kazim-Richards Colin Kazim-Richards (born 26 August 1986), also known as Colin Kâzım, Kâzım or Kâzım Kâzım, is a professional footballer as a forward for Süper Lig club Fatih Karagümrük S.K. Born and raised in England, he qualified for Turkish na ...

. He coached the U19 team to the semi-finals of the 1999–00

Youth Alliance Cup The Football League Youth Alliance is a youth football competition in England, consisting of four regional divisions. It acts as League 2 of the U18 Professional Development League system. Current structure North West Conference * Accringto ...

, losing 2–0 to

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The tea ...

to be denied a chance of a place in the final at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

. For a time Feeley served as first team coach, before being replaced by

Billy Ayre William Ayre (7 May 1952 – 16 April 2002) was an English footballer who played for three clubs in a sixteen-year professional career, making over three hundred League appearances in the process. After retiring from the playing side of the game ...

in December 2000. While Ayre was receiving treatment for cancer in July 2001, Feeley again stepped into the role.

Ramsbottom United

Feeley was appointed manager of North West Counties League Premier Division club Ramsbottom United in June 2008. Despite having to virtually rebuild the playing squad from scratch, he led the Rams to the top of the table early in the 2008–09 season. Feeley departed the club in February 2009.

Personal life

After leaving professional football, Feeley was employed as a psychiatric nurse at Prestwich Hospital. In August 2009, he received a 22-month jail sentence for committing

Grievous Bodily Harm Grievous bodily harm (often abbreviated to GBH) is a term used in English criminal law to describe the severest forms of battery. It refers to two offences that are created by sections 18 and 20 of the Offences against the Person Act 1861. Th ...

Career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Feeley, Andy Living people 1961 births Footballers from Hereford English men's footballers Brentford F.C. players English Football League players Hereford United F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players Trowbridge Town F.C. players Men's association football midfielders Men's association football fullbacks Southern Football League players Leicester City F.C. players Bury F.C. players Northwich Victoria F.C. players National League (English football) players Atherton Laburnum Rovers F.C. players Northern Premier League players English football managers Ramsbottom United F.C. managers