Place of birth Harare, Rhodesia 1991 →Reading 1987–1992 Tottenham Hotspur Height 1.75 m | Years Team Role Football player Playing position Name Brian Statham Position Defender | |
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Date of birth (1969-05-21) 21 May 1969 (age 46) | ||
Current team Billericay Town F.C. | ||
Brian Statham (born 21 May 1969) is an English former professional association football player, best known for his spells with Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford. He also represented the England under-21 team.
Career
Statham was born in Harare, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and later lived in Saudi Arabia before his parents returned to Essex. The namesake of a former England international cricketer, he was himself a talented cricketer as a teenager, and represented the Essex county schools team. He chose to concentrate on football, however, after being offered an apprenticeship with Tottenham Hotspur. He turned full-time professional with the club in 1987 and soon made his debut for the club's first team. A defender who was good in the air despite being only 5' 9" tall, he made 24 appearances for "Spurs" and performed well enough to be selected for the England under-21 team on three occasions. His time at White Hart Lane was affected by injuries, however, and, after short spells on loan to Reading and A.F.C. Bournemouth, he moved to Brentford in 1992 for a transfer fee of £70,000.
Statham remained with Brentford for over five years and made 166 appearances in The Football League. He also scored the only League goal of his career during his time at Griffin Park. At the end of the 1996–97 season he was sold to Gillingham for a fee of £10,000. He made 26 appearances for the Kent-based club, but dropped out of favour and, after spells on loan to non-league clubs Stevenage Borough and Woking, moved on to Chesham United in 1999, where he combined playing with coaching duties. He went on to play for Chelmsford City, Welling United, East Thurrock United and Erith & Belvedere. He also began a new career working in the City of London. In 2005, he took over as manager of Heybridge Swifts. After three years with the club he resigned as manager in 2008. In April 2009 he was appointed manager of Isthmian League Premier Division team Billericay Town.