Matthew Thomas Crowell (born 3 July 1984) is a Welsh retired footballer who last played for NSW Premier League side Central Coast Mariners Academy.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matthew Thomas Crowell | ||
| Date of birth | 3 July 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Bridgend, Wales | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2000 | Swansea City | ||
| 2000–2002 | Southampton | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2003 | Southampton | 0 | (0) |
| 2003–2008 | Wrexham | 93 | (4) |
| 2008–2009 | Northwich Victoria | 56 | (5) |
| 2009 | Altrincham | 5 | (1) |
| 2009–2010 | Central Coast Mariners | 13 | (0) |
| 2010 | Altrincham | 9 | (0) |
| 2010 | Farnborough | 2 | (0) |
| 2011 | Port Talbot Town | 4 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | CD Ourense | 20 | (0) |
| 2012–2013 | Port Talbot Town | 24 | (1) |
| 2013–2015 | CCM Academy | 44 | (2) |
| 2016 | Maitland FC | 4 | (1) |
| 2018–2019 | Central Coast United | 32 | (1) |
| Total | 306 | (15) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Wales U17 | 2 | (0) |
| 2002 | Wales U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2003–2005 | Wales U21 | 7 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
editSouthampton
editBorn in Bridgend, Crowell grew up in Coychurch. As a teenager he was part of the youth system at Swansea City before being persuaded to follow Swansea youth coach Malcolm Elias to Southampton at the age of 16 in 2000.[1] Swansea took the case to the Football League appeals committee seeking compensation of £1.5 million. The committee later ordered Southampton to make an immediate payment of £100,000 to Swansea, as well as a further £100,000 when Crowell had made 10, 20, 30 and 40 appearances in the future and 20% of any future transfer fee that the club received for Crowell. Swansea chairman Neil McClure later stated "£500,000 is significantly more than Southampton ever offered at any stage and that must be regarded as satisfactory"[2] However, Crowell never made a first team appearance at Southampton and was released in 2003.
Wrexham
editAfter spending time on trial with Bristol Rovers,[3] Crowell later joined Wrexham, having impressed in a trial spell,[4] and made his professional debut for the club on 9 August 2003 as a substitute in place of Steve Thomas during a 0–0 draw with Chesterfield. In his third season at the Racecourse Ground he made six appearances in the club's Football League Trophy victory, beating Southend United 2–0 in the final.[5] However, he later found himself plagued with injuries in his later years at the Racecourse Ground and, after playing on a six-month contract with the Welsh side in an attempt to show his fitness,[6] he was released in January 2008 having made over 100 appearances for the club.
Non-league
editIn January 2008, Crowell signed for Northwich Victoria on non-contract terms.[7] In July 2009, Crowell left Northwich. He attended a trial with NSW Premier League side Sydney Olympic,[3] but later returned to Britain to sign for Altrincham on a short-term contract, stating that "It was hard at Northwich last season with the club's difficulties but I am pleased to join Altrincham".
Central Coast Mariners
editIn September 2009, Crowell joined A-League team Central Coast Mariners on a one-year deal until the end of the 2009–10 season.[8] He made 13 appearances for the club before returning to England.
Return to Non-league
editHe then rejoined Altrincham before in December 2010 Farnborough announced that he had joined them, apparently on non-contract terms.[9] He left the club after only two appearances.
Port Talbot Town
editIn May 2011, Crowell had a two-week trial with China's Chengdu Blades before he joined Welsh Premier League club Port Talbot Town in July 2011 after a trial.[10] He played all of the club's league games prior to his next move.
CD Ourense
editHe signed a full-time contract with Spanish club CD Ourense in September 2011 where he made 20 appearances for the club.[11]
Return to Port Talbot Town
editIn July 2012 Crowell returned to Wales and his former club Port Talbot Town ahead of the 2012/13 Welsh Premier League season. Crowell's first goal in his second spell at the club came in a 5–0 win away at Aberystwyth FC where he scored a penalty.
Central Coast Mariners Academy
editIn March 2013 Crowell signed for the Central Coast Mariners Academy, feeder seed for Central Coast Mariners FC of the A-League where he had a previous stint in the 2009–10 season.[12]
Retirement
editCrowell retired from professional football in August 2019[13]
International career
editA former captain of the Wales under-15 side,[2] Crowell later went on to represent Wales at under-17 and under-19 levels. He has also played numerous times for the Wales U21 side and has also scored a screamer with his left foot for the side, against Azerbaijan U21 in 2004.[14]
Career statistics
edit- As of 2 September 2010.
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| Wrexham | 2003–04 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 1 |
| 2004–05 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 35 | 0 | |
| 2005–06 | 29 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 3 | |
| 2006–07 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 1 | |
| 2007–08 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| Subtotal | 93 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 107 | 5 | |
| Northwich Victoria | 2007–08 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 |
| 2008–09 | 41 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 4 | |
| Subtotal | 56 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 56 | 5 | |
| Altrincham | 2009–10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Central Coast Mariners | 2009–10 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| Altrincham | 2010–11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 169 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 183 | 11 | |
Honours
editWrexham
References
edit- ^ "Charles out of Swans youth job". Daily Mirror. 1 August 2000. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
- ^ a b "Swans get Crowell compensation". BBC Sport. 26 September 2000. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
- ^ a b "Departed players and staff 2009–10". Altrincham F.C. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
- ^ "Four in race to replace Ferguson". Liverpool Daily Post. 25 November 2003. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
- ^ "Southend 0-2 Wrexham". BBC. 10 April 2005. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ^ "Crowell is ready to seize chance". BBC Sport. 16 June 2007. Retrieved 17 November 2007.
- ^ "Three is the magic number for Dino". Northwich Guardian. 17 January 2008. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
- ^ [1] Archived 13 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Farnborough Football Club". Farnboroughfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
- ^ [2] Archived 31 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "WelshPrem news from Welsh Premier League – Welsh Premier League". Welshpremier.com. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
- ^ Tucker, Steve (16 May 2016). "What became of the young Welsh boys who played with Gareth Bale". WalesOnline. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ^ "Central Coast United". 12 August 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2021 – via Facebook.
- ^ "Azerbaijan U21 0–1 Wales U21". BBC Sport. 3 September 2004. Retrieved 17 November 2007.
- ^ "Southend 0–2 Wrexham". BBC Sport. 10 April 2005. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
External links
edit- Matt Crowell at Soccerbase
- Central Coast Mariners profile
