Declan Thomas Rudd (born 16 January 1991) 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, rugby lea ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

Early life

Born in Diss,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, he was originally spotted by Norwich City when playing for local side Bressingham as a striker.

"I think my size helped me," said Rudd speaking to Club's official matchday programme, 'On The Ball', back in October 2007. "I was quite tall for my age and I've always enjoyed playing in goal in the past. But the coaches at my old club always felt I was better outfield. It was only at Norwich when they said I wouldn't make it as a striker that I became a goalkeeper."

Club career

Norwich City

As a youth player, Rudd was heavily involved with Norwich's run in the

FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...

in 2008–09. In the fifth round, he saved three penalties against Everton, having also scored a penalty in an earlier round. Norwich manager

Bryan Gunn Bryan James Gunn (born 22 December 1963) is a Scottish former professional goalkeeper and football manager. After beginning his career at Aberdeen in the early 1980s, he spent most of his playing career at Norwich City, the club with which he ...

said:

It's all in Declan's hands, literally, but then again it's in his feet as well. He showed the confidence he's got as a young goalkeeper. He stood up and took the winning penalty kick against
Stoke Stoke may refer to: Places Canada * Stoke, Quebec New Zealand * Stoke, New Zealand United Kingdom Berkshire * Stoke Row Bristol * Stoke Bishop * Stoke Gifford * Bradley Stoke * Little Stoke * Harry Stoke * Stoke Lodge Bucking ...
– last night he just saved the three. I'm sure he'll be in there with a big smile on his face today and rightly so. He's got an opportunity to be a top quality goalkeeper. He's just got to be focused on his job ahead and not get rushed into things. We have to try and develop him in the right way. When he comes into the first team training he doesn't look out of place. He's got a great opportunity of being a top class goalkeeper.

Rudd was named as a substitute for the final game of the 2007–08 season at Hillsborough 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 ...

. In summer 2008, Rudd signed a professional contract with the Canaries. In season 2008–09, he was allocated a squad number of 13. He made his professional debut on 26 September 2009, in an away match at Gillingham, coming on as a substitute following the sending off of

Fraser Forster Fraser Gerard Forster (born 17 March 1988) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur. He will becom ...

. His full debut came three days later at

Carrow Road Carrow Road is a association football, football stadium in Norwich, Norfolk, England, and is the home of EFL Championship club Norwich City F.C., Norwich City. The stadium is east of the city, near Norwich railway station and the River Wensum. ...

in a 4–0 win against

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...

. Rudd made his first appearance in the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

in a 2–1 victory over

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 ...

on 11 September 2010, due to an injury to

John Ruddy John Thomas Gordon Ruddy (born 24 October 1986) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper. He is currently a free agent. Ruddy began his career at Cambridge United, before signing for Everton as a 19-year-old. He spent f ...

. Rudd made his first appearance in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

on 27 August 2011, after John Ruddy was sent off in a 3–1 defeat to Chelsea. His first taste of Premier League football was to concede a penalty from

Frank Lampard Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of English club Coventry City. Widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, one of Chelsea's greates ...

. Due to Ruddy's subsequent suspension, Rudd made his full Premier League debut on 11 September at home to

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

, saving a penalty from

Peter Odemwingie Peter Osaze Odemwingie (born 15 July 1981) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward. Born in what is now Uzbekistan, Odemwingie began his career with Bendel Insurance in the Nigeria Premier League. He then earned a move to E ...

in a 1–0 defeat. Following Norwich's 4–1 FA Cup victory over Burnley in January 2012, Rudd was ruled out for a few months with a thigh injury sustained in training. On 12 August 2014, following two loan spells at

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

, Rudd signed a new three-year contract at Norwich, with the option for a further twelve months.

Preston North End

It was announced on 20 June 2017 that Rudd had signed a permanent deal with

for an undisclosed fee. On 31 March 2022, Rudd announced his retirement from football due to a knee injury.

International career

Rudd played for England at various youth levels. He gained his first Under-21 call up in August 2011.

Career statistics

Honours

Norwich City *

Football League Championship play-offs The English Football League (EFL) Championship play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from third to sixth in the EFL Championship table and are part of the English Football League play-of ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

England U19 *

UEFA European Under-19 Championship The UEFA European Under-19 Championship, or simply the Euro Under-19, is an annual football competition, contested by the European men's under-19 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Spain is the most successful team in this competit ...

runner-up:

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rudd, Declan 1991 births Living people People from Diss, Norfolk English men's footballers England men's youth international footballers England men's under-21 international footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Norwich City F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Charlton Athletic F.C. players English Football League players Premier League players Footballers from Norfolk 21st-century English sportsmen