David Irving (footballer)
Encyclopedia
David Irving is a former professional football striker
. His childhood ambition was to play for then Football League side Workington
. He is currently the head coach of USL Pro
side Wilmington Hammerheads
, having joined the Hammerheads at the beginning of the 1998 season.
in the old English Football League First Division
for £
30,000 - the highest youth transfer fee of the time. Later on he moved to Sheffield United on loan and Oldham Athletic. In the mid-1970s he crossed the Atlantic
to play in the United States
for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Whilst with the Strikers, he played alongside such legendary players as Gordon Banks
, Gerd Müller
, Guy Newman and the late George Best
. He also played against footballers like Pelé
and Franz Beckenbauer
. After Fort Lauderdale, he featured for other American
teams such as the Tulsa Roughnecks
, the San Jose Earthquakes
and the Atlanta Chiefs
.
He signed for Shamrock Rovers in October 1977. He made his debut on the 23rd at Milltown
scoring against Drogheda United. He netted a hat trick at Galway on his fourth appearance and scored further goals against Home Farm and against St. Patrick's Athletic on his last appearance in the famous green and white Hoops. In total he played 16 times scoring six goals.
After retiring from professional football, Irving earned himself an FA
coaching badge. He began his manegerial career with Oulun Palloseura
where he was the player/assistant manager for a season. He moved back to the United States
in 1989 when he rejoined the Fort Lauderdale Strikers as the assistant coach, helping The Strikers to the Pro Soccer League National Championship title in 1989.
In 1990, he became the head coach of the Miami Freedom
of the American Professional Soccer League
. That year the Freedom finished 8-12. He continued with the club into the 1991 season, but was fired after nine games with the team at 1-1-7 (win-draw-loss).
Irving was the Head Coach of the Carolina Vipers
of the now defunct Continental Indoor Soccer League
in 1994.
At the beginning of the 1998 season, Wilmington Hammerheads
found themselves needing a new coach and managed to get Irving back into management. He brought success to the Hammerheads, winning them the USL Second Division
title in 2003. He also tries to get English football clubs to play pre-season friendlies against Wilmington, most recently attracting Sunderland and Sheffield Wednesday
. He has a good record at the club with 86 wins, 37 draws and just 12 defeats in eight seasons and has an excellent player recruitment track record, identifying many players from combines and try-outs. In the USL-Pro 2011 season he recruited five such players from combines in California as well as the 2011 USL-Pro 'Rookie of the Year' Luke Mulholland.
Striker
Forwards, also known as strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals...
. His childhood ambition was to play for then Football League side Workington
Workington A.F.C.
Workington A.F.C. is an English football club from Workington, Cumbria. They are in the Conference North, and play their home matches at Borough Park, which has a capacity of 3,101 . The club play in red, and are known locally as the Reds...
. He is currently the head coach of USL Pro
USL Pro
The USL Professional Division, commonly known as USL Pro , is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011....
side Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads is an American professional soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team plays in the American Division of the new USL Professional Division, the third tier of the American Soccer Pyramid....
, having joined the Hammerheads at the beginning of the 1998 season.
Career
He started his professional playing career with Workington AFC before signing for EvertonEverton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
in the old English Football League First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
for £
Pound (currency)
The pound is a unit of currency in some nations. The term originated in England as the value of a pound of silver.The word pound is the English translation of the Latin word libra, which was the unit of account of the Roman Empire...
30,000 - the highest youth transfer fee of the time. Later on he moved to Sheffield United on loan and Oldham Athletic. In the mid-1970s he crossed the Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
to play in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Whilst with the Strikers, he played alongside such legendary players as Gordon Banks
Gordon Banks
Gordon Banks, OBE is a retired English football goalkeeper. The IFFHS named Banks the second best goalkeeper of the 20th century – after Lev Yashin and ahead of Dino Zoff ....
, Gerd Müller
Gerd Müller
Gerhard "Gerd" Müller is a former German football player and one of the most prolific goalscorers of all time.With national records of 68 goals in 62 international appearances, 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga games and the international record of 66 goals in 74 European Club games, he was one of the...
, Guy Newman and the late George Best
George Best
George Best was a professional footballer from Northern Ireland, who played for Manchester United and the Northern Ireland national team. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders...
. He also played against footballers like Pelé
Pelé
However, Pelé has always maintained that those are mistakes, that he was actually named Edson and that he was born on 23 October 1940.), best known by his nickname Pelé , is a retired Brazilian footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time...
and Franz Beckenbauer
Franz Beckenbauer
Franz Anton Beckenbauer is a German football coach, manager, and former player, nicknamed Der Kaiser because of his elegant style, his leadership, his first name "Franz" , and his dominance on the football pitch...
. After Fort Lauderdale, he featured for other American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
teams such as the Tulsa Roughnecks
Tulsa Roughnecks
-NASL:The Tulsa Roughnecks were a North American Soccer League team from Tulsa, Oklahoma. They played at Skelly Stadium on the campus of the University of Tulsa. The Roughnecks were a regular in the NASL playoffs, and won the NASL Soccer Bowl in 1983, defeating the Toronto Blizzard at B.C. Place...
, the San Jose Earthquakes
San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes professional soccer team is located in the San Jose, California, United States suburb of Santa Clara, and participates in Major League Soccer , the top level soccer league in the United States and Canada....
and the Atlanta Chiefs
Atlanta Chiefs
The Atlanta Chiefs were a soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia that played in the NPSL and NASL from 1967 to 1972. Their home fields were Atlanta Stadium and Tara Stadium . The club was the brainchild of Dick Cecil, then Vice President of the Atlanta Braves baseball franchise who were the Chiefs'...
.
He signed for Shamrock Rovers in October 1977. He made his debut on the 23rd at Milltown
Glenmalure Park
Glenmalure Park, often simply known as "Milltown", was a football stadium on the Southside of Dublin city in Ireland. Located in the suburb of Milltown, it was home to Shamrock Rovers from 1926 to 1987, when it was sold to property developers by the club's directors...
scoring against Drogheda United. He netted a hat trick at Galway on his fourth appearance and scored further goals against Home Farm and against St. Patrick's Athletic on his last appearance in the famous green and white Hoops. In total he played 16 times scoring six goals.
After retiring from professional football, Irving earned himself an FA
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
coaching badge. He began his manegerial career with Oulun Palloseura
Oulun Palloseura
Oulun Palloseura, OPS for short, is a Finnish football club based in Oulu.The football team is currently playing in the Finnish second tier, Ykkönen.-Season to season:-Current Squad 2011:-External links:*...
where he was the player/assistant manager for a season. He moved back to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1989 when he rejoined the Fort Lauderdale Strikers as the assistant coach, helping The Strikers to the Pro Soccer League National Championship title in 1989.
In 1990, he became the head coach of the Miami Freedom
Miami Freedom
The Miami Sharks were an inaugural franchise of the third incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1988. The team were renamed the Miami Freedom and joined the American Professional Soccer League in 1990 when the ASL merged with the Western Soccer League...
of the American Professional Soccer League
American Professional Soccer League
The American Professional Soccer League is a former professional men's soccer league which featured teams from both the United States and Canada. It was the first outdoor soccer league to feature teams from throughout the United States since the demise of the original North American Soccer League...
. That year the Freedom finished 8-12. He continued with the club into the 1991 season, but was fired after nine games with the team at 1-1-7 (win-draw-loss).
Irving was the Head Coach of the Carolina Vipers
Carolina Vipers
The Carolina Vipers were an indoor soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League. They played only one season in 1994...
of the now defunct Continental Indoor Soccer League
Continental Indoor Soccer League
The Continental Indoor Soccer League was an indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997.-History:When the Major Soccer League folded in the summer of 1992, two of its former teams joined a group of hockey and basketball arena owners led by Ron Weinstein who wanted to create a league to...
in 1994.
At the beginning of the 1998 season, Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads
Wilmington Hammerheads is an American professional soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team plays in the American Division of the new USL Professional Division, the third tier of the American Soccer Pyramid....
found themselves needing a new coach and managed to get Irving back into management. He brought success to the Hammerheads, winning them the USL Second Division
USL Second Division
The United Soccer Leagues Second Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, part of the United Soccer Leagues league pyramid...
title in 2003. He also tries to get English football clubs to play pre-season friendlies against Wilmington, most recently attracting Sunderland and Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
. He has a good record at the club with 86 wins, 37 draws and just 12 defeats in eight seasons and has an excellent player recruitment track record, identifying many players from combines and try-outs. In the USL-Pro 2011 season he recruited five such players from combines in California as well as the 2011 USL-Pro 'Rookie of the Year' Luke Mulholland.
External links
- David Irving Biography - a general overview of his playing career, managerial career and other details.
- David Irving News Story - a story about his youth, playing career and personal description.
- NASL stats