Darren Shaun Bazeley (born 5 October 1972) is an English

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach and former player. He played as either a

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

or right-sided

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. He is currently head coach of the

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

team and head coach of the national U-23 and Olympic sides.

Playing career

Watford

Bazeley was born in

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

, England, and began playing football at a young age with local team Northampton Orion. From 11 to 13 years old, Bazeley attended weekly training sessions with the School of Excellence – a coaching scheme run by the FA. It was through these sessions that Bazeley was scouted by

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

, trialling with them before signing at the age of 14. Watford's youth team coach

Colin Lee Colin Lee (born 12 June 1956) is an English football manager and former footballer. He is currently head of football at South Dartmoor Community College in Ashburton, Devon along with Chris Beard. Playing career Lee began his football career w ...

was appointed the club's manager in March 1990 and he gave Bazeley his first-team debut in the final match of the 1989–90 season, bringing the 17-year-old on as a substitute against Hull City. Bazeley made 10 appearances in the 1990–91 campaign, all bar two as a substitute, and none after Lee was replaced by

Steve Perryman Stephen John Perryman MBE (born 21 December 1951) is an English former professional footballer who played as a defender or midfielder. He is best-known for his successes with Tottenham Hotspur during the 1970s and early 1980s. He has won t ...

in November 1990. Bazeley signed his first

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

contract prior to the start of the 1991–92 season and in September 1991 scored his first senior goal in a 3–0 win away at

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

. He finished the campaign with a total of seven goals from his 38 appearances. At the end of the season, Bazeley made his only appearance for the England under-21 team, playing 20 minutes in a 2–2 friendly draw against

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. Bazeley played 26 matches in the 1992–93 season, half of them from the bench. Watford began the following season under a new manager in

Glenn Roeder Glenn Victor Roeder (13 December 1955 – 28 February 2021) was an English professional football player and manager. As a player, Roeder played as a defender for Arsenal, Leyton Orient, Queens Park Rangers, Notts County, Newcastle United, Watf ...

, but a

medial collateral ligament The medial collateral ligament (MCL), also called the superficial medial collateral ligament (sMCL) or tibial collateral ligament (TCL), is one of the major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial (inner) side of the knee joint and occurs in ...

saw Bazeley only make a total of 10 appearances in the campaign. He was a more frequent presence in 1994–95, making 37 appearances and scoring four goals - a hatrick in 4–0 win at Southend United in early February and one in the subsequent match, a 2–0 home win over

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. Bazeley was a regular in the side in the following two seasons, making over 40 league appearances in each. The 1995–96 season saw Watford

relegated Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

in the final match of the campaign, before finishing 13th in the Second Division the following year. In 1997–98, Bazeley only made three appearances before 28 February, but after returning to the side with two substitute appearances he would start every remaining match as Watford won the league title under manager Graham Taylor. Having appeared sporadically initially in 1998–99, Bazeley was an ever present from 20 October as Watford reached the First Division play-offs. Bazeley played the full match in both semi-final legs against

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

, scoring the fourth penalty in Watford's

shootout A shootout, also called a firefight, gunfight, or gun battle, is a confrontation in which parties armed with firearms exchange gunfire. The term can be used to describe any such fight, though it is typically used in a non-military context or to ...

victory, and in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...

, which Watford won 2–0 to gain promotion to the Premiership.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

In the summer of 1999, Bazeley rejected a new contract at Watford. He chose to move on a free transfer to First Division club

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

, who were managed by Colin Lee. He played every minute of every league match for Wolves in the 1999–2000 season. On 23 December 2001, he twisted his knee and tore cartilage in a match against

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

. The match would prove to be his last for Wolves, as the injury kept him out of the remainder of the season and all of the 2001–02 campaign. In total, Bazeley made 80 appearances for the club, scoring four goals.

Walsall

In July 2002, Bazeley moved to First Division club

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

, again working under Lee. Bazeley won the fans' "best new signing" award in 2002–03 season as Walsall finished 17th, their highest-place finish for 41 years. The club suffered relegation in 2003–04 and Bazeley left Walsall in November 2004. He had made 100 appearances for the club and was later described as "one of the best attacking fullbacks the Saddlers ever had."

New Zealand Knights

Bazeley signed with the re-invented New Zealand Knights for the new Australian

A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...

, alongside former Wolves and Walsall teammate Neil Emblen. Bazeley played every minute of the club's 21 A-League matches in the 2005–06 season, and took over the captaincy from Danny Hay when the defender transferred to

Perth Glory Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in Perth, Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under Professional sports league organi ...

mid-season. Bazeley stayed with the Knights for 2006–07 until the club's dissolution. Bazeley played for Waitakere United in the

New Zealand Football Championship The New Zealand Football Championship () was a men's association football league at the top of the New Zealand league system. Founded in 2004, the New Zealand Football Championship was the successor to a myriad of short-lived football leagues in ...

in 2007–08 season, winning the league title. He also represented the club at the

2007 FIFA Club World Cup The 2007 FIFA Club World Cup (officially known as the FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2007 presented by Toyota for sponsorship reasons) was a football tournament played in Japan from 7 to 16 December 2007. It was the fourth FIFA Club World Cup, a tourn ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, where Waitakere lost 3–1 in the play-off round to Iranian side

Sepahan Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan Sport Club (, ''Bâšgâh-e Farhangi-Varzeši-ye Fulâd-e Mobârake-ye Sepâhân''), commonly known as Sepahan, is an Iranian sports club based in Isfahan. It is best known for their football section that play in the P ...

Coaching career

Bazeley holds the UEFA A License.

Waitakere United

In 2008, Bazeley became head coach of Waitakere United youth team. He became assistant of the club's senior team in June 2009, working under his former Wolves teammate Emblen, the side's head coach. The club winning the

for all three seasons.

New Zealand set-up

In 2009, Bazeley was appointed assistant coach for the New Zealand U-17 national team. The side played at the

2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the thirteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup held in Nigeria from 24 October to 15 November 2009. Switzerland national under-17 football team, Switzerland won the tournament, beating the host team and holde ...

in Nigeria, reaching the competition's knock-out stages for the first time. Having continued in the role through the

2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the 14th edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-17 national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It was h ...

in Mexico, where the side again reached the knock-out phases, Bazeley was appointed head coach of the team in June 2012. In April 2013 his side won all five matches at the 2013 OFC U-17 Championship to qualify for the

2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the fifteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The tournament was held in the United Arab Emirates from 17 October to 8 November. Nigeria won the tournament after defeating Mexico 3–0 in the final, claimin ...

in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

. In September 2013, Bazeley was appointed as head coach of the New Zealand U-20 national team, but he remained in charge of the U-17s for the World Cup the following month, in which New Zealand lost all three matches to finish bottom of their group. New Zealand were the host nation of the

2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the twentieth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup since its inception in 1977 as the FIFA World Youth Championship. The competition took place for the first time in New Zealand, the third time on Oceanian soil after ...

and so did not need to qualify. During the build-up to the tournament, Bazeley was appointed head coach of Wanderers SC, an U-20-side competing in the senior

, while in March 2015 he worked as assistant coach of the New Zealand national team for the first time. At the 2015 U-20 World Cup, New Zealand beat

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

5–1 in their final group game, their first ever win in the competition. They qualified for the knock-out stages as one of the best-ranked third-place teams, the first time they had reached that stage in the competition. In the round of 16 they lost 2–1 to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, who scored an 87th-minute winner. Bazeley led the U-20 team to a victory at 2016 OFC U-20 Championship in

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...

, qualifying for the

2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 21st edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its inception in 1977 a ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. At the finals Bazeley's side again reached the knock-out stages, finishing second in their group and securing a 3–1 win against Honduras. They were defeated 6–0 in the round of 16 by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Bazeley continued to work with the senior side as they won at the

2016 OFC Nations Cup The 2016 OFC Nations Cup was the tenth edition of the OFC Nations Cup, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Oceania organised by the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC). The tournament was played between 28 May and 11 Jun ...

and played at the

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup was the tenth and final edition of the FIFA Confederations Cup, a quadrennial international men's Association football, football tournament organised by FIFA. It was held in Russia, from 17 June to 2 July 2017, ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. In September 2017 the side won the

third round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

of OFC qualifying to reach the OFC–CONMEBOL play-off. New Zealand lost the two-legged play-off, held in November 2017, 2–0 on aggregate to

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

to miss out on qualification for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

. By the time of the play-off, Bazeley was the only assistant coach working with head coach Anthony Hudson, following the departures of Peter Taylor and Alex Armstrong.

Colorado Rapids

Following the play-off defeat Hudson was appointed head coach of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

side

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

and in December 2017 Bazeley was appointed his assistant head coach.

Newcastle Jets and return to New Zealand set-up

In April 2020 Bazeley joined A-League side

Newcastle Jets Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from the Australi ...

as assistant coach to his former Wolves teammate

Carl Robinson Carl Philip Robinson (born 13 October 1976) is a Welsh former international footballer who played as a central midfielder. He is currently the assistant coach at Atlanta United FC. Early life Robinson was born and raised in Llandrindod Wells, ...

. In October 2020 he left the role to return to the position of New Zealand U-20 head coach and assistant coach of the national and Olympic sides. Bazeley cited the travel conditions as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and his family in New Zealand as factors in his departure from Newcastle.

Career statistics

Personal life

Bazeley became a New Zealand citizen in 2015 retaining his British Citizenship.

Managerial statistics

Honours

New Zealand U-20 * Qualification for

FIFA U-20 World Cup The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members' men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 when i ...

2015 in New Zealand: Round of 16 *

OFC U-20 Championship The OFC U-19 Championship is a tournament held once every two years to decide the under-19 champions of Oceania and also decides who will represent Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) at the biennial FIFA U-20 World Cup. Between 1974 and 2012, t ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

champion * Qualification for

2017 in Republic of Korea: Round of 16 New Zealand * Qualification for

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...

2017 in Russia *

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification process was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA FIFA#Structure, confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams which would play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Russia national football team, Rus ...

OFC Finals winner *

OFC Nations Cup The OFC Men's Nations Cup, known as the OFC Nations Cup before the 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup, 2024 edition, is the primary association football competition contested by the senior list of men's national association football teams, men's natio ...

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bazeley, Darren 1972 births Living people Footballers from Northampton English men's footballers England men's under-21 international footballers Men's association football fullbacks New Zealand Knights FC players Walsall F.C. players Watford F.C. players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players A-League Men players Waitakere United players Expatriate men's association footballers in New Zealand English expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand Naturalised citizens of New Zealand English emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand Football Championship players English Football League players Coaches at the 2024 Summer Olympics 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup managers