Mark Atkins (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Mark Nigel Atkins is an English
former footballer who won the Premier League title with Blackburn Rovers
. He is currently the manager of non-league Matlock Town
.
He was primarily a central midfielder but started out as right-back, and showed his versatility by playing in a number of roles.
to Premier League champions in 1995
. He joined Rovers for £45,000 from Scunthorpe United
in 1988, being then relocated to midfielder, and staying in the team despite the big investment in new players from owner Jack Walker
.
His part in Rovers' championship success is often understated, with many falsely believing that David Batty
formed the strong midfield partnership with club captain Tim Sherwood
in that team. In fact, a foot injury kept Batty out until the final five matches and Atkins proved to be an unlikely hero for Blackburn, playing 34 matches and scoring six goals in the title season
, including important ones against Liverpool
and Southampton
.
Atkins moved on from Rovers soon after the club's championship success, joining First Division
Wolverhampton Wanderers
in September 1995 for £1million. He was a first choice player throughout his time at Molineux
as the club fought to reach the Premier League. He reached the play-offs with the team in 1996-97 but they lost 3–4 on aggregate to Crystal Palace
, despite Atkins scoring in the return leg to give them a 2–1 win.
After four seasons with Wolves, Atkins was released in 1999, joining York City
in the fourth tier on a three-month contract. After leaving this expired, he had an unsuccessful trial at Reading
, before training with Conference
side Doncaster Rovers
, who subseuqently offered him a deal. He remained at Doncaster for the next two seasons, and served as joint caretaker-manager (with Dave Penney) for the final five fixtures of the 1999-2000
campaign after the sacking of Ian Snodin
.
Atkins returned to a purely playing role during the next season, which ended with him being loaned out to Hull City
for the run-in. He helped the club reach the Third Division
play-offs, but was denied a Wembley final by Leyton Orient
's 2-1 aggregate triumph.
He joined Shrewsbury Town
in July 2001, enjoying a decent ninth-placed finish to his first season at Gay Meadow
. The 2002-03
season was one of mixed fortunes for the Shrews, from the highs of runs to the fourth round of the FA Cup
and area final of the LDV Vans Trophy
to the lows of seven successive defeats, resulting in relegation to the Conference
.
Shrewsbury manager Kevin Ratcliffe
resigned with one game remaining, and Atkins took charge of the team as they attempted to restore some pride in a home encounter against his original club Scunthorpe United
. However, the Shrews succumbed to a 2–1 defeat, and Atkins left at the end of the season. He continued his playing career for one more season, at non-league
level with Harrogate Town
, also serving as their coach, before finally hanging up his boots for good in 2004.
Atkins remained assistant manager at Harrogate, but both he and manager John Reed left for Stalybridge Celtic
in January 2005, from where they were later sacked in April 2007. He was appointed manager at Northern Premier League
outfit Matlock Town
, on 18 November 2008.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former footballer who won the Premier League title with Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
. He is currently the manager of non-league Matlock Town
Matlock Town F.C.
Matlock Town F.C. is an English football club based at Causeway Lane in Matlock, Derbyshire.-History:The club was established in the late 1870s and have competed in the Central Alliance and the Midland Counties League before reaching the Northern Premier League.In the 1974–75 season the club won...
.
He was primarily a central midfielder but started out as right-back, and showed his versatility by playing in a number of roles.
Career
Atkins was an integral part of Blackburn's rise from the old Second DivisionFootball League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
to Premier League champions in 1995
1994-95 in English football
-Premiership:Blackburn Rovers ended their 81-year wait for the league title thanks to the strike partnership of Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton which scored a total of more than 50 league goals. Manchester United would have made it three league titles in a row if they had been able to turn a 1-1 draw...
. He joined Rovers for £45,000 from Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United F.C.
Scunthorpe United Football Club is an English association football team based in the town of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, who play in the Football League One....
in 1988, being then relocated to midfielder, and staying in the team despite the big investment in new players from owner Jack Walker
Jack Walker
Jack Walker was a British industrialist and businessman, from Blackburn, Lancashire. Walker invested tens of millions of pounds in Blackburn Rovers football club after amassing a personal fortune of £600 million...
.
His part in Rovers' championship success is often understated, with many falsely believing that David Batty
David Batty
David Batty is an English retired professional footballer, who played as a defensive midfielder....
formed the strong midfield partnership with club captain Tim Sherwood
Tim Sherwood
Timothy "Tim" Sherwood is an English former professional footballer who was captain of Blackburn Rovers' Premiership title-winning side...
in that team. In fact, a foot injury kept Batty out until the final five matches and Atkins proved to be an unlikely hero for Blackburn, playing 34 matches and scoring six goals in the title season
FA Premier League 1994-95
-Promoted teams:Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest were promoted from the Football League First Division as winners and runners-up respectively. Leicester City won the 1993-94 playoff.-Controversial incidents:...
, including important ones against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
and Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
.
Atkins moved on from Rovers soon after the club's championship success, joining First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
in September 1995 for £1million. He was a first choice player throughout his time at Molineux
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
as the club fought to reach the Premier League. He reached the play-offs with the team in 1996-97 but they lost 3–4 on aggregate to Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
, despite Atkins scoring in the return leg to give them a 2–1 win.
After four seasons with Wolves, Atkins was released in 1999, joining York City
York City F.C.
York City Football Club is an English football club based in York, North Yorkshire. The club participates in the Conference National, the fifth tier of English football. Founded in 1922, they joined the Football League in 1929, and have spent most of their history in the lower divisions...
in the fourth tier on a three-month contract. After leaving this expired, he had an unsuccessful trial at Reading
Reading F.C.
Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...
, before training with Conference
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
side Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers F.C.
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The team currently competes in the Football League Championship, after being promoted via the League One play-offs in 2008, and have remained there since.The club was founded in...
, who subseuqently offered him a deal. He remained at Doncaster for the next two seasons, and served as joint caretaker-manager (with Dave Penney) for the final five fixtures of the 1999-2000
1999-2000 in English football
-Premier League:Manchester United were crowned FA Premier League champions with an 18-point margin over runners-up Arsenal and with just 3 league defeats all season. This was despite their failure to retain the European Cup and withdrawal from the FA Cup in order to compete in the FIFA Club World...
campaign after the sacking of Ian Snodin
Ian Snodin
Ian Snodin is a retired footballer most notable for playing for Doncaster Rovers and Everton. He also played for Leeds United, Sunderland, Oldham Athletic and Scarborough.-Early career:...
.
Atkins returned to a purely playing role during the next season, which ended with him being loaned out to Hull City
Hull City A.F.C.
Hull City Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, founded in 1904. The club participates in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football...
for the run-in. He helped the club reach the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
play-offs, but was denied a Wembley final by Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...
's 2-1 aggregate triumph.
He joined Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
in July 2001, enjoying a decent ninth-placed finish to his first season at Gay Meadow
Gay Meadow
The Gay Meadow is the former home ground of Shrewsbury Town FC, a football club in England. It was situated just outside the town centre of Shrewsbury, on the banks of the River Severn and it opened in August 1910....
. The 2002-03
2002-03 in English football
The 2002-03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.-Most Memorable rise:*Wigan Athletic marked their 25th season of Football League membership by winning the Division Two championship and reaching the league's second tier for the very first time.-Most Memorable...
season was one of mixed fortunes for the Shrews, from the highs of runs to the fourth round of the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
and area final of the LDV Vans Trophy
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
to the lows of seven successive defeats, resulting in relegation to the Conference
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
.
Shrewsbury manager Kevin Ratcliffe
Kevin Ratcliffe
Kevin Ratcliffe is a former Welsh footballer who spent most of his career playing for Everton. He was born in Mancot, near Queensferry in North Wales.-Club career:...
resigned with one game remaining, and Atkins took charge of the team as they attempted to restore some pride in a home encounter against his original club Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United F.C.
Scunthorpe United Football Club is an English association football team based in the town of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, who play in the Football League One....
. However, the Shrews succumbed to a 2–1 defeat, and Atkins left at the end of the season. He continued his playing career for one more season, at non-league
Non-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
level with Harrogate Town
Harrogate Town F.C.
Harrogate Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. The club was founded in 1914 and currently competes in the Conference North division of the Football Conference.-History:...
, also serving as their coach, before finally hanging up his boots for good in 2004.
Atkins remained assistant manager at Harrogate, but both he and manager John Reed left for Stalybridge Celtic
Stalybridge Celtic F.C.
Stalybridge Celtic are an English full time professional football club from Stalybridge, Greater Manchester in North West England. The club, which plays its home matches at Bower Fold, is currently in the Conference North in the sixth tier of the English football league system...
in January 2005, from where they were later sacked in April 2007. He was appointed manager at Northern Premier League
Northern Premier League
The Northern Premier League, is one of the regional English football leagues which sits directly below the Football Conference featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs. Geographically, the league covers all of Northern England, and the northern areas of the Midlands. Originally just one...
outfit Matlock Town
Matlock Town F.C.
Matlock Town F.C. is an English football club based at Causeway Lane in Matlock, Derbyshire.-History:The club was established in the late 1870s and have competed in the Central Alliance and the Midland Counties League before reaching the Northern Premier League.In the 1974–75 season the club won...
, on 18 November 2008.
Honours
- Blackburn Rovers:
- Premier LeagueFA Premier LeagueThe Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
: 1994-95FA Premier League 1994-95-Promoted teams:Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest were promoted from the Football League First Division as winners and runners-up respectively. Leicester City won the 1993-94 playoff.-Controversial incidents:...
- Premier League
External links
- Detailed Premier League Record at EPLInfo.com