Andy Iro

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Personal information
Andy Iro

Full name	Andy Iro
Date of birth	November 26, 1984 (1984-11-26) (age 23)
Place of birth	Liverpool, England
Height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	Columbus Crew
Number	6
Youth clubs
2004-2007	UC Santa Barbara
Senior clubs¹
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
2008-present	Columbus Crew	004 (0)
¹ Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10 May 2008 (PDT). * Appearances (Goals)

Andy Iro (born November 26, 1984) is an English football defender. Born in Liverpool, Iro currently plays for MLS side Columbus Crew, having previously played in the NCAA Division I for college side UC Santa Barbara.

Iro began his career playing for youth side Kingsley United in England as well as attending St. Edward's School for high school where he played as a forward and midfielder.

He then moved to California to attend the University of California, Santa Barbara on a soccer scholarship. At UCSB, he was coached by Tim Vom Steeg and was played as a central defender and occasionally on the left side of the defense. He was immediately an integral part of the 2004 UCSB team as they marched, unseeded, to the 2004 Division I Men's College Cup in Carson, California, where his side lost in penalties to Indiana University.

His disappointment was not long last though as Iro and the UCSB Gauchos were crowned champions of Division I college soccer by beating the Bruins from the University of California, Los Angeles in the 2006 Division I Men's College Cup in St. Louis, Missouri. This marked UCSB's first ever national championship in soccer and only second overall.

2008 marked the beginning of Iro's professional career. Straight out of UCSB, he was drafted by the Columbus Crew with the 6th overall pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft.^[1] His debut came against Toronto FC on 29 March 2008 in the Crew's season opener as an 89th minute substitution.