Jeffrey Derek Clarke (born 18 January 1954 in

Hemsworth Hemsworth is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire and had a population of 13,311 at the 2001 census, ...

, England) 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 lea ...

who is currently head academy physiotherapist at

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, also known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Scotland and the highest level of the Scottish football league system. Th ...

club

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish professional association football, football club based in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923. United are nickname ...

. He played as a defender, primarily for

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

and

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

. He has been at Dundee United since November 2003, mainly as physiotherapist for the first team.

Playing career

Clarke began his professional career in 1974 with

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

, featuring in thirteen league appearances before leaving a year later to join

in a swap deal with Dave Watson. In seven years at

Roker Park Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...

, Clarke played in over 200 matches and experienced promotion to the top flight before moving to rivals

on a free transfer in 1982. Another five years in the North East – including another top-flight promotion – preceded short-lived spells at Turkish side Ankaragücü and

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

Physiotherapy career

Following his retirement from playing, Clarke coached at former club Newcastle, studying a physiotherapy degree at the

University of Salford The University of Salford is a Public university, public research university in Salford, Greater Manchester, Salford, Greater Manchester, England, west of Manchester city centre. The Royal Technical Institute, Salford, which opened in 1896, be ...

at the same time. He graduated in 1996. Clarke became a physio at another former club, Sunderland, before taking on the same role at

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...

in 2001. Following his redundancy in 2003, he joined

in November of that year, taking on additional coaching duties at one point in March 2005. By 2020 he was no longer involved with the first team, having been appointed as full-time head physiotherapist within the club's youth academy.

Honours

As a player

* Second Division Title winner: 1975–76

References

External links

* 1954 births Living people Footballers from Hemsworth English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers English Football League players Manchester City F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Newcastle United F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players MKE Ankaragücü footballers Darlington F.C. players Dundee United F.C. non-playing staff Alumni of the University of Salford Association football physiotherapists British physiotherapists Men's association football defenders Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey {{England-footy-defender-1950s-stub