Lee Baddeley

Lee Baddeley

Personal information
Full name	Lee Matthew Baddeley
Date of birth	12 July 1974
Place of birth	Cardiff, Wales
Playing position	Defender
Youth career
	Cardiff City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1990–1997	Cardiff City	133	(1)
1997–1999	Exeter City	66	(1)
2000–?	Merthyr Tydfil	?	(?)
National team
1995	Wales U21	2	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Lee Matthew Baddeley (born 12 July 1974) is a Welsh former professional footballer. He made over 150 appearances in the Football League for Cardiff City and Exeter City.^[1]

Career

Baddeley began his career at his hometown club Cardiff City as a YTS trainee, making his debut on the opening day of the 1991–92 season when he replaced Gareth Abraham against Lincoln City. He eventually managed to establish himself in the side during the 1993–94 season and scored his only goal for the Bluebirds against Brighton in November 1994. After again falling down the pecking order at Ninian Park he decided to leave the club and moved to Exeter City in February 1997.^[2] However his time at the club was blighted by a persistent hamstring injury which meant he struggled to retain fitness. He was eventually forced to retire from injury in 1999 and, despite an attempted comeback in 2000,^[3] he eventually finished his career after a spell at Merthyr Tydfil.

After football

Following his retirement, Baddeley took a job as a trainee greenkeeper at a golf course in Exeter and obtained a Foundation Degree in Sports Turf Science and Management. ^[4]

References

1. "Lee Baddeley". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
2. Hayes, Dean (2006). The Who's Who of Cardiff City. Breedon Books. ISBN 1-85983-462-0.
3. "Exeter offer Baddeley chance". BBC Sport. 13 July 2000. Retrieved 10 March 2008.
4. "Lee Baddeley goes back to his roots". givemefootball.com. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2009.