Kevin Horlock (born 1 November 1972) is a football manager and former professional footballer. He is the manager of Needham Market and assistant manager of the Northern Ireland under-21 team.

Kevin Horlock
Personal information
Date of birth (1972-11-01) 1 November 1972 (age 52)
Place of birth Erith, England
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Needham Market (manager)
Northern Ireland U21 (assistant manager)
Youth career
1989–1991 West Ham United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1991–1992 West Ham United 0 (0)
1992–1997 Swindon Town 164 (22)
1997–2003 Manchester City 206 (39)
2003–2004 West Ham United 27 (1)
2004–2006 Ipswich Town 58 (0)
2006Doncaster Rovers (loan) 13 (0)
2006–2008 Doncaster Rovers 2 (1)
2008 Scunthorpe United 0 (0)
2008Mansfield Town (loan) 5 (0)
2008–2015 Needham Market 16 (1)
Total 491 (64)
International career
1995–2002 Northern Ireland 32 (0)
Managerial career
2015–2016 Chatham Town
2016–2018 Maldon & Tiptree
2020– Needham Market
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

As a player he was a midfielder who notably played for Manchester City, for whom he played in three different divisions including the Premier League. He also played for Swindon Town, West Ham United, Ipswich Town, Doncaster Rovers and Mansfield Town. Horlock was well known for his accurate set pieces and is particularly skilled at taking free kicks. Born in England, Horlock is a former Northern Ireland international earning 32 caps.

As a manager he has previously coached non-league teams Chatham Town and Maldon & Tiptree. He has also coached at youth team level for Colchester United.

Club career

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Swindon Town

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Horlock started his career as a trainee with West Ham United in 1989 but did not graduate to the first team and moved to Swindon Town in August 1992 where he spent a single season in the Premier League in 1993–94.[2] Over the next few seasons he made his name as a versatile midfielder capable of playing on the left or in the centre, or at left-back. He also scored goals regularly, with 16 in the 1995–96 season.[3] He made 200 appearances in all competitions, scoring 26 goals, in five seasons at Swindon before joining Manchester City in January 1997.[4]

Manchester City

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Horlock was Frank Clark's first signing for Manchester City for a transfer fee reported as being between £1.25 million and £1.5 million.[5] He made his debut in a 4–1 Division One win against Oxford United and scored his first goal for Manchester City three weeks later against his former club Swindon. The following season, he was a regular in the first team until suffering an injury which sidelined him for four months.[6] During Horlock's absence, Clark was sacked and chairman Francis Lee later observed that Horlock was one of only two good purchases Clark made.[7] City were struggling at the foot of the table, and were relegated on the final day of the season despite a 5–2 win at Stoke City, in which Horlock scored the fifth goal.[8] Horlock became Manchester City's primary penalty taker in the 1998–99 season, a role in which he continued for the next three seasons. Later that season Horlock was sent off in a match against AFC Bournemouth in unusual circumstances, receiving a second yellow card for "walking towards the referee in an aggressive manner while asking a question". Horlock's best season was probably the 2001–02 season where he was deployed in the holding midfield role and helped Manchester City earn promotion in stylish manner, the team scoring 108 goals.[9] One of the most notable moments of his career was the 1999 season play-off final against Gillingham when he scored the first goal of the comeback when Manchester City won on penalties after being 2–0 down until the last five minutes of the game. Horlock wore the number 6 shirt[10] Horlock made 232 league and cup appearances, scoring 44 goals, in seven years at Manchester City.[11]

Later career

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Horlock was signed by Glenn Roeder for West Ham United for a fee of £300,000 in August 2003.[12] He made 27 league appearances for West Ham in the 2003–04 season[13] and scored once against Wigan[14] but fell out of favour with manager Alan Pardew and missed the play-offs games at the end of the season.[2] He was given a free transfer to Ipswich Town in July 2004,[13] where he made 58 league appearances[11] before joining Doncaster Rovers on loan in February 2006[15] and being allowed to leave Ipswich at the end of the 2005–06 season.[16] He joined Doncaster on a permanent two-year contract in May 2006[17] but missed the majority of the 2006–07 season due to a serious knee injury sustained in Doncaster's 3–1 victory over Crewe Alexandra in August 2006,[18] a game in which he also scored his first goal for the club.[19] A dislocated shoulder further restricted his opportunities, and in January 2008 his contract was cancelled by mutual consent.[20] The next day, Horlock was signed by Scunthorpe United on a contract until the end of the season.[21] However, he did not feature in the first team and joined Mansfield Town in March 2008 on loan until the end of the 2007–08 season.[22] Horlock signed for Eastern Counties League Premier Division side Needham Market as player/assistant manager on a twelve-month contract on 8 August 2008.[23]

International career

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Horlock was first capped in April 1995 versus Latvia and went on to make 32 appearances for Northern Ireland,[2] before retiring from international football in 2003 for personal reasons.[24] In August 2013 Horlock was appointed assistant manager of the Northern Ireland under 21 team.[25]

Managerial career

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Horlock progressed through the coaching ranks at his former club Needham Market, where he had been assistant manager and had set up the club's academy in 2010. He left in 2015 when he was appointed as manager of Isthmian League Division One South side Chatham Town on 15 October 2015.[26] Horlock combined both his Needham Market and Chatham Town roles with the assistant manager's job to the Northern Ireland under-21 team, a position he was appointed to in August 2013.[27]

Horlock left Chatham on 1 May 2016 to concentrate on his coaching roles with Northern Ireland and Colchester United, having guided Chatham to a 19th-position finish in the league.[28] Horlock had been coaching Colchester's under-18 side alongside Wayne Brown. He was named as Brown's assistant for the under-21 side following a number of coaching changes at the U's. This coincided with the announcement that Horlock would take charge of Maldon & Tiptree in the Isthmian League Division One North on 16 May, taking over from Steve Ball.[29] He guided the Jammers to second position in the table, securing a place in the play-offs.[30]

In May 2018, Horlock and Wayne Brown switched roles, with Horlock taking charge of Colchester's under-23 team and Brown taking the reins at Maldon & Tiptree.[31] On 20 June 2019, Horlock left Colchester to return to Needham Market as the club's new academy manager.[32] He was appointed manager of Needham Market in February 2020.[33]

Managerial statistics

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As of match played 28 April 2018[34][35]
Team From To Record
G W D L Win %
Chatham Town 15 October 2015 1 May 2016 34 10 4 20 029.41
Maldon & Tiptree 16 May 2016 22 May 2018 109 56 14 39 051.38
Total 143 66 18 59 046.15

Honours

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Swindon Town

Manchester City

Individual

References

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  1. ^ Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2008). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2008–09. Mainstream. ISBN 978-1-84596-324-8.
  2. ^ a b c Hogg, Tony (2005). Who's Who of West Ham United. London: Profile Media. p. 101. ISBN 1-903135-50-8.
  3. ^ Baskcomb, Julian, ed. (1997). Manchester City F.C. Official Handbook 1997–98. Leicester: Polar. p. 23.
  4. ^ "Kevin Horlock". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  5. ^ James, Gary (2006). Manchester City – The Complete Record. Derby: Breedon. p. 201. ISBN 1-85983-512-0.
  6. ^ "Games played by Kevin Horlock in 1997/1998". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  7. ^ Buckley, Andy; Burgess, Richard (2000). Blue Moon Rising: The Fall and Rise of Manchester City. Bury: Milo. p. 154. ISBN 0-9530847-4-4.
  8. ^ "Stoke 2 – 5 Man. City". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  9. ^ "Final 2001/2002 Football League Championship Table". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  10. ^ "Gillingham 2 – 2 Man City". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  11. ^ a b "Kevin Horlock". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  12. ^ "West Ham sign Horlock". BBC Sport. 15 August 2003. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  13. ^ a b "Ipswich seal Horlock deal". BBC Sport. 9 July 2004. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  14. ^ "West Ham 4–0 Wigan". BBC. 29 November 2003. Retrieved 26 October 2009.
  15. ^ "Rovers extend duo's loan spells". BBC Sport. 7 March 2006. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  16. ^ "Ipswich clear way to Horlock exit". BBC Sport. 10 January 2006. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  17. ^ "Doncaster swoop to sign Horlock". BBC Sport. 15 May 2006. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  18. ^ "Horlock faces lengthy spell out". BBC Sport. 12 October 2006. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  19. ^ "Doncaster 3–1 Crewe". BBC. 8 August 2006. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  20. ^ "Veteran Horlock leaves Doncaster". BBC Sport. 7 January 2008. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
  21. ^ "Scunthorpe bag midfielder Horlock". BBC Sport. 8 January 2008. Retrieved 9 January 2008.
  22. ^ "Stags bag Horlock and Wainwright". BBC Sport. 21 March 2008. Retrieved 21 March 2008.
  23. ^ "HORLOCK COUP FOR NEEDHAM". NonLeagueDaily.com. 8 August 2008. Archived from the original on 14 June 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2008.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  24. ^ "Horlock quits international scene". BBC Sport. 27 March 2003. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  25. ^ "Kevin Horlock handed Northern Ireland U21 post". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
  26. ^ "Chatham Town unveil former Manchester City midfielder Kevin Horlock, 42, as their new manager while John Wilfort quits Holmesdale to take charge of Erith & Belvedere". Kentish Football. 15 October 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  27. ^ "Kevin Horlock handed Northern Ireland U21 post". BBC Sport. 13 August 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  28. ^ "Kevin Horlock quits as manager of Chatham Town to rejoin former club Needham Market". Kent Online. 1 May 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  29. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (17 May 2016). "Former Manchester City and Ipswich Town midfielder Kevin Horlock will help coach Colchester United under-21s". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  30. ^ Buckby, Richard (18 April 2017). "Play-Off Confirmation". Maldon & Tiptree FC. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  31. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (22 May 2018). "Colchester United favourite Wayne Brown is new Maldon and Tiptree boss". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  32. ^ Needham Market academy return for former Manchester City and West Ham United player Kevin Horlock after opting to leave Colchester United, buryfreepress.co.uk, 20 June 2019
  33. ^ Kevin Horlock doubling up as new Needham Market manager The Non-League Paper, 4 February 2020
  34. ^ "Matches". Soccerway. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  35. ^ "Fixtures And Results". Maldon & Tiptree FC. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  36. ^ Haylett, Trevor (1 June 1993). "Football / Play Off: Swindon lifted by Hoddle's husbandry: An unsettling sense of deja vu as Wembley proves an unhappy hunting ground for Leicester". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  37. ^ "England 1995–96". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
  38. ^ "Sport: Football Shoot-out success for City". BBC News. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  39. ^ "England 2001–02". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 24 January 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
  40. ^ "England 1999–00". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
  41. ^ "League Trio given October awards". BBC Sport. 8 November 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2004.
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