| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Franklin Michael Simek[1] | ||
| Date of birth | October 13, 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | St. Louis, Missouri, United States | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Carlisle United | ||
| Number | 2 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1996–2003 | Arsenal | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2003–2005 | Arsenal | 0 | (0) |
| 2004 | → Queens Park Rangers (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 2005 | → Bournemouth (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2005–2010 | Sheffield Wednesday | 119 | (2) |
| 2010– | Carlisle United | 47 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2007 | United States | 5 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 20:44, 4 December 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Franklin Michael "Frank" Simek (born October 13, 1984) is an American football player who plays for English League One side Carlisle United.
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Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Simek played football as a child in the United States, but did not think of the game as a career until his family moved to London after his father was assigned to a position at the English office of Anheuser-Busch when Frank was 12. He was signed by Arsenal to a development contract, but decided to move back to St. Louis, where he played at Saint Louis University High School, as well as Metro F.C., then under the direction of Dave Fernandez and Dale Schilly. However, during this time Arsenal called him back to play on the youth team.
While at Arsenal he rose to assume the captaincy of the reserve side, but had difficulty breaking into the first team; he found himself behind Lauren, Kolo Touré, Emmanuel Eboué and Justin Hoyte in the pecking order. He played a single match for Arsenal, in the League Cup against Wolverhampton Wanderers on December 2, 2003.
Simek joined the Owls on a free transfer from Arsenal in the summer of 2005 and made his Sheffield Wednesday debut on the opening day of the 2005–06 season away at Stoke City. He went on to win a regular starting spot, ousting fan-favourite Lee Bullen from his preferred right-back position. Simek scored his first goal in his first season at Wednesday away at Millwall. The goal gave the Owls a 1–0 win and helped them in their battle against relegation. Simek then managed to get his first home goal against Colchester in the 2006–2007. Simek had managed to gain a regular first team place at Hillsborough became a crowd favourite for his tough tackling and powerful running.
Simek signed a new contract with Sheffield Wednesday on 26 July 2007. The contract will see him remain at Hillsborough until 2010.
Simek suffered a serious ankle injury playing against Crystal Palace in December 2007. The injury kept him out of the Wednesday first team for over ten months. He made a slow return with a number of reserve team appearances followed by an appearance on the substitutes bench against Birmingham City on 25 October 2008, and then finally a return to first team football three days later when he came on as a substitute against Plymouth.
Simek signed for Carlisle United on a 2 year contract and joined the squad on 1 July 2010. Since then he has been the solid right back that Carlisle had been searching for in recent years, earning the captains arm band on several occasions.[2]
Simek received his first call up to the United States national team in 2007, and made his full debut on the international stage on March 28 in a 0–0 draw against Guatemala in Frisco, Texas. He currently has five full caps for his country. Simek came on during the CONCACAF Gold Cup final against Mexico when Jonathan Spector collided heads with Andrés Guardado and had to be substituted off. The USA went on the win the match 2–1 off of a volley from Benny Feilhaber immediately after Simek was substituted on.
He received his first call up since 2007 in the run up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup after losing his place to Spector and Steve Cherundolo. He was called in for the USA's friendly against the Netherlands in March 2010.
Simek was asked to co-commentate in the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Second Leg on April 15, 2009, in the match of Arsenal vs. Villareal on Arsenal TV Online. He would also regularly provide analysis and commentate on Sheffield Wednesday for BBC Radio Sheffield whilst injured.
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