Ashbee playing for Hull City |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ian Ashbee | ||
| Date of birth | 6 September 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Birmingham, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Preston North End | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1994–1996 | Derby County | 1 | (0) |
| 1996 | → Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur (loan) | 8 | (3) |
| 1996–2002 | Cambridge United | 204 | (11) |
| 2002–2011 | Hull City | 243 | (10) |
| 2011– | Preston North End | 26 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 04:10, 27 December 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Ian Ashbee (born 6 September 1976) is an English footballer who plays for Preston North End as a midfielder. He has previously played for Derby County, Cambridge United and Hull City, and has also played in Iceland, on loan to Íþróttafélag Reykjavíkur.[1]
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Purchased by manager Jan Mølby in June 2002 in the Third Division he suffered a nightmare start to his Hull career as he was sent off on his debut. This was, however, due to his no-nonsense approach on the pitch and he soon became a firm favourite with Tigers fans and management alike, with both Mølby and Peter Taylor making him captain.
The goal he scored against Yeovil Town was the goal that promoted Hull to League One and he was also instrumental in Hull's successful promotion campaign to the Football League Championship in the following season.
Ashbee was, however, cursed by an old injury in the subsequent Championship campaign, being diagnosed with an osteochondral defect, a degenerative bone condition in his femur. He underwent surgery that involved drilling fourteen holes in the bone to stimulate re-growth. He was warned by his doctor that this injury threatened not just his career, but his ability to even walk.[2] Ashbee was on crutches for four months and was ruled out for the majority of the 2005–06 season, nevertheless he remained a favourite amongst many Tigers fans, receiving a standing ovation at the last game of the season against Watford despite being sidelined.
He was also retained as captain by Hull's next manager, Phil Parkinson, and his replacement, Phil Brown. But with a poor team performance in their second season in the Championship, finishing just one place outside the relegation zone, Ashbee as captain received a large share of fans' criticisms that were aimed at the team, despite the outgoing chairman Adam Pearson suggesting him as a potential Player of the Season.
The 2007–08 season saw vastly improved performances from the team as a whole, culminating in the club reaching its first ever Wembley Stadium final, taking on Bristol City for a place in the Premier League, a game which they won 1–0. This meant that Ashbee captained Hull to promotion from the bottom division of the Football League to the top. Andy Dawson, Boaz Myhill and Ryan France are the other players to have helped take Hull up through the four divisions.[3] On 16 August 2008 Ashbee was captain of the Hull side that won its first ever top-flight game 2–1 against Fulham, completing an achievement thought to be unique in English football: captaining the same team in all four divisions of the Football League, bottom to top.[4]
Towards the end of the 2008–09 season, in a fixture against Aston Villa on 4 May 2009, Ashbee suffered another career-threatening injury, rupturing a posterior cruciate ligament in his knee. It was initially thought that he would return to action in the Autumn, however on 18 August it was reported that Ashbee required further surgery on the knee and would likely miss the entire 2009–10 season.[5][6]
Upon his return on the first game of the 2010–11 season, Ashbee scored the second goal in Hull 's 2–0 victory over Swansea City.[7]
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