Rick Hooijboer (born 3 August 1974 in

Venhuizen Venhuizen (; ) is a town in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West Friesland (region), West-Frisia, in the municipality of Drechterland. Venhuizen was a separate municipality until 1 January 2006, w ...

) is a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

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 ...

currently playing for

Cambuur Leeuwarden SC Cambuur, also known as Cambuur Leeuwarden, or simply Cambuur, () is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Leeuwarden formed on 19 June 1964. They currently play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following ...

Career

Amateur career: until 1998

Hooijboer started out playing for local team ''De Valken''. He was discovered by

FC Volendam Football Club Volendam () is a professional association football, football club based in Volendam, Netherlands. They play in the Eredivisie, the top tier of the Dutch football league system, following promotion from the Eerste Divisie in the 2024 ...

and played there for several years. He returned to his former home town club and before moving to ''Hollandia'' in

Hoorn Hoorn () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland. It is the largest town an ...

two years later. He did very well for the

Hoofdklasse The Vierde Divisie (; "Fourth Division"), formerly known as Hoofdklasse () is the second-highest league of amateur football in the Netherlands, and the fifth tier in general. Background The league was divided into two sections: Saturday and Sunda ...

club.

AZ Alkmaar Alkmaar Zaanstreek (), better known internationally as AZ Alkmaar, or simply and most commonly as AZ () in the Netherlands, is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan#The Zaan district, Zaan district. ...

noticed the 23-year-old West Frisian who at that point became a full pro. He was the first player

recruited for Eredivisie season 1998–99. Even though the AZ staff appeared to want him badly, the defender/

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 ...

was not given a chance to show his skills.

HFC Haarlem: 2000–2005

Cambuur Leeuwarden: 2005–present

Hooijboer left his club

HFC Haarlem HFC Haarlem was a Dutch football club from the city of Haarlem, established in 1889 and dissolved in 2010. The club won the Eredivisie in 1946 and reached five Cup finals, winning in 1902 and 1912. Haarlem reached the second round of the 1982� ...

together with team mate

Paul Mulders Paul de la Cruz Mulders (born 16 January 1981) is a Filipino professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder. He was last signed by Ceres–Negros in the Philippines Football League. Mulders is also a member of the Philippines n ...

in 2005. Both men left Haarlem on a free transfer for

. The 30-year-old

centre 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 ...

and

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

wanted a new challenge after a five year stay in

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English language, English) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the Provinces of the Nether ...

. Former Haarlem

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Roy Wesseling (manager of Cambuur at the time) persuaded him to join his new club.

Statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hooijboer, Rick 1974 births Living people Dutch men's footballers People from Venhuizen Men's association football defenders AZ Alkmaar players SC Cambuur players HFC Haarlem players Eerste Divisie players Eredivisie players Footballers from North Holland