Full name Simon Craig Russell 000?–2002 Hull City Name Simon Russell Height 1.70 m Position Midfielder | Playing position Years Team Role Footballer Current team Gainsborough Trinity F.C. | |
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Date of birth (1985-03-19) 19 March 1985 (age 30) Place of birth Kingston upon Hull, England | ||
Simon Craig Russell (born 19 March 1985) is an English footballer who plays for Gainsborough Trinity as a midfielder.
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He previously played for Hull City, Kidderminster Harriers, York City, Tamworth, Cambridge United, Lincoln City and Alfreton Town.
Career
Born in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, Russell began his career as a trainee at Hull City, making his first team debut after coming on as a 60th minute substitute in a Football League Trophy match against Port Vale on 22 October 2002, which was lost 3–1. He made his league debut in the Third Division in a 4–1 victory against Kidderminster Harriers on 26 April 2003. He made no appearances for Hull's first team during the 2003–04 season, but helped the reserve team win the East Riding Senior Cup after scoring in the final, which finished 3–0. He was released by Hull in the summer of 2004 after making two substitute appearances for the club, and was signed by Kidderminster, whose manager Jan Molby described him as, "...[having] a tremendous engine and is likely to pop up with a goal or two."
He finished his first season aft Kidderminster with 29 appearances and 2 goals as the side were relegated to the Conference National. He received a broken wrist in November 2005 that ruled him out for three months of the 2005–06 season, but made his return after two months when he featured as a 63rd-minute substitute against Altrincham on 2 January 2006. He finished the season with 35 appearances and 2 goals. After making 52 appearances and scoring 6 goals in the 2006–07 season he signed a new one-year contract with the club, which saw him become their longest serving current player. He picked up a thigh injury that ruled him out of the beginning of the 2007–08 season and returned to action in a 3–1 victory against Droylsden on 18 September 2007. He finished the season with 36 appearances and 6 goals.
Having made three appearances for Kidderminster up to that point in the 2008–09 season, Russell joined fellow Conference Premier side York City on a free transfer on 22 August 2008. He made his debut a day later as a 54th-minute substitute in a 2–2 draw against Northwich Victoria. He suffered from a tight hamstring during York's game against Grays Athletic in December, which resulted in him missing the Histon game. He scored his first goal for York directly from a corner kick in a 3–1 defeat to Barrow in the Conference League Cup on 20 January 2009. He came on as a substitute in the 2009 FA Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium on 9 May 2009, which York lost 2–0 to Stevenage Borough. Russell turned down loan moves to two Conference North teams in September, as he wanted to stay and fight for his place at York.
He joined fellow Conference Premier side Tamworth on a one-month loan on 17 September, after failing to play any games for York up to that point during the 2009–10 season. The loan was extended until 1 January 2010 in October. He returned to York on 19 December and joined Cambridge United on loan until the end of the 2009–10 season on 22 January 2010. He made his debut in a 1–0 defeat to Crawley Town on 6 February. He returned to York at the end of the season after making 17 appearances on loan at Cambridge, and manager Martin Ling said Russell would be offered a permanent contract by the club if he was to be released by York. He re-signed for Cambridge permanently on a two-year contract on 10 May. Russell started the season in fine form for Cambridge, scoring his first goal in the 2–2 home draw against Crawley on 17 August and adding four more to lead the club's goalscoring charts in November.
Russell signed for newly relegated Conference Premier side Lincoln City on a one-year contract on 20 July 2011 after he was made available by Cambridge. He finished the 2011–12 season with 30 appearances and one goal for Lincoln before signing for Alfreton Town on a one-year contract on 13 July 2012. He joined Conference North side Gainsborough Trinity on a free transfer on 10 January 2013.