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Neil Jason Shipperley (born 30 October 1974) is an English
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
manager and former professional player who played as a
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...
. He notably played in the Premier League for Chelsea, Southampton, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United as well as featuring 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 Watford,
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
,
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
and
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 whi ...
. He scored the only goal of the 2004 Football League First Division play-off Final for Crystal Palace. He was also capped seven times by the England U21 team, scoring three goals. Following retirement he moved into management with non-league clubs Bedfont, Walton Casuals and
North Greenford United North Greenford United Football Club is a football club based in Greenford in the London Borough of Ealing, England. They play in the . The club is affiliated to the Middlesex County Football Association. History Established in 1944, original ...
.


Playing career


Chelsea

Shipperley got his break in football at the age of 15, when playing for Spartan League side Brook House in the Middlesex Charity Cup. The tournament's patron, celebrity astrologer Russell Grant, was friends with Chelsea chairman Ken Bates, whose club sent a team to the tournament. Shipperley bettered Chelsea centre-back Frank Sinclair for strength and pace, and was scouted by the club. An article in '' The Independent'' in January 1994 predicted that Shipperley could become Chelsea's first homegrown star striker since Peter Osgood in the 1960s. In the inaugural Premier League season of 1992–93, Shipperley made his professional debut towards the end of the campaign. On 10 April, he came on as a 65th-minute substitute for Robert Fleck in a 1–0 loss at his future club Southampton, and two days later on his first start and first game at
Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to: * Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England ** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066 * Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge * Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...
he scored their last goal in a 4–2 win against
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
.


Southampton and Crystal Palace

Shipperley was signed for Southampton by Alan Ball for a record fee of £1.25 million on 6 January 1995. New manager
Graeme Souness Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit. A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...
signed Norwegian Egil Østenstad, prompting Shipperley to drop to the First Division by signing for Crystal Palace for a £1 million fee in October 1996. He scored 13 times for the Eagles over the rest of the season as they were promoted via the play-offs, including one on 10 May in a 3–1 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the first leg of the semi-finals. In 1997–98, he scored seven times – including five consecutive games from October to December – in a season that ended with relegation.


Nottingham Forest and Barnsley

In September 1998, Shipperley returned to the Premier League by signing for Nottingham Forest for £1.5 million. He scored only once in 21 games as Forest went down, that coming on 13 March 1999 to round off a 3–1 win at his future club Wimbledon. For 1999–2000, Shipperley signed for First Division club
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
for £700,000. He scored 15 times in 46 total games in his first season, including both of a 2–0 home win over South Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United on 6 November. On 13 May 2000, he opened the scoring in a 4–0 win at Birmingham City in the first leg of the play-off semi-finals, though his team would lose 4–2 to Ipswich Town in the final at Wembley.


Wimbledon and return to Palace

Ahead of the 2001–02 season, Shipperley joined Wimbledon for £750,000, and scored on his debut on 11 August to open a 3–1 win over Birmingham. He scored 12 times in his first season with the Dons, including braces in both games against eventual champions
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
(4–0 away and 2–1 home wins). He captained the side, and built a prolific partnership with Irishman David Connolly in 2002–03, the club's final season. In July 2003, Shipperley returned to Palace on a three-year deal. On 29 May 2004 at the
Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...
, he captained the side and scored the only goal of a
play-off final The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
win against West Ham United to take the Eagles back to the Premier League.


Later career

After Palace's immediate relegation, Shipperley moved on to Sheffield United on a two-year deal on a free transfer in July 2005. He scored 11 times as the Blades won promotion as runners-up to Reading, including two on 10 December in a 3–0 home win over Burnley. On 15 January 2007, his contract with Sheffield United was terminated by mutual consent, and he signed a four-month contract with
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 whi ...
, eight days later. He failed to score in his eleven appearances for Brentford, and on 25 April 2007 announced his retirement from professional football. In June that year, he rejected the chance to play for Wimbledon's successor
AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...
, telling the ''
Surrey Comet The ''Surrey Comet'' is a weekly local newspaper covering the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South West London, and surrounding areas. It is now a free sheet but can also be purchased. It was founded in 1854 and is among the oldest Lo ...
'' that he was in the Middle East to coach a club there.


Managerial career

On 20 May 2009, it was announced that Shipperley had become manager of Bedfont in the Combined Counties League. In the summer of 2010, Shipperley was appointed manager of Walton Casuals in the Isthmian League Division One South. In October 2011, after 15 months in the role he re resigned from the role. On Boxing Day 2011, Shipperley was confirmed as the successor to Steve Ringrose at
North Greenford United North Greenford United Football Club is a football club based in Greenford in the London Borough of Ealing, England. They play in the . The club is affiliated to the Middlesex County Football Association. History Established in 1944, original ...
a post he held until May 2012 when he resigned to look for management experience at a higher level, though he returned in October 2012 following the sacking of Jon-Barrie Bates. He made an appearance as a player against Leighton Town in the final game of the 2012–13 season. Shipperley's second spell as manager at North Greenford United came to an end when he resigned in February 2014 following a 4–1 defeat to
Dunstable Town Dunstable Town Football Club is a football club based in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated with the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Creasey Park. History The club was establ ...
.


Personal life

Shipperley's father was
Dave Shipperley David John Shipperley (12 April 1952 – 21 January 2017) was an English professional footballer. His clubs included Charlton Athletic, Plymouth Argyle, and Gillingham, where he made over 140 Football League appearances. At Gillingham he was na ...
, who played for many years at centre back for Charlton Athletic and Gillingham. In December 2019, Shipperley was found guilty of public
masturbation Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrators, or combinatio ...
and was given a 12-month community order, ordered to complete 120 hours' unpaid work plus costs and compensation. He was also made subject to a five-year sexual offences notification requirement order and told to report to Hayes police station within three days. Shipperley had been receiving counselling for personal issues, including the death of his father and gambling addiction, as well as debts.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shipperley, Neil 1974 births Living people Sportspeople from Chatham, Kent Footballers from Kent English footballers Association football forwards Chelsea F.C. players Watford F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Crystal Palace F.C. players Nottingham Forest F.C. players Barnsley F.C. players Wimbledon F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Brentford F.C. players North Greenford United F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players Isthmian League players England under-21 international footballers English football managers Bedfont F.C. managers Walton Casuals F.C. managers North Greenford United F.C. managers Isthmian League managers Sportspeople convicted of crimes