Glen Little

Glen Little

Personal information
Full name	Glen Matthew Little
Date of birth	(1975-10-15) 15 October 1975
Place of birth	Wimbledon, London, England
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Playing position	Winger / Deep-lying playmaker
Club information
Current club	Wealdstone
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1994–1996	Crystal Palace	0	(0)
1994–1995	→ Derry City (loan)	1	(0)
1995–1997	Glentoran	75	(26)
1997–2004	Burnley	246	(32)
2003	→ Reading (loan)	7	(1)
2003	→ Bolton Wanderers (loan)	4	(0)
2004–2008	Reading	96	(5)
2008–2009	Portsmouth	8	(0)
2009	→ Reading (loan)	8	(0)
2009–2010	Sheffield United	16	(0)
2010–2011	Aldershot Town	14	(1)
2011–2013	Wrexham	38	(1)
2013–	Wealdstone	12	(2)
Total		565	(68)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:41, 1 December 2013 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Glen Matthew Little (born 15 October 1975) is an English footballer who plays as a winger for Ryman Premier League club Wealdstone. Born in Wimbledon, London he also previously played for Burnley, Derry City, Glentoran, Crystal Palace, Sheffield United, Wrexham and Aldershot Town. He has also appeared in the Premier League for Bolton Wanderers, Reading and Portsmouth.

Career

Crystal Palace and Ireland

Little made his Derry City debut on 20 November 1994 on loan from Palace. While at Irish Premier League club Glentoran, Little gained the status of cult hero. One of the top footballers to play in the Irish League in the 1990s, Little scored a memorable goal to win the 1996 Irish Cup.

Burnley

Little moved from Glentoran to Burnley in November 1996 for a £100,000 fee. After Stan Ternent's arrival at Turf Moor in summer 1998, he became a fixture in the right-wing slot, linking up especially well with full-back Dean West. In Burnley's 1999–2000 Second Division promotion season, Little scored a memorable goal at home to Bristol Rovers. He also helped Burnley beat Tottenham Hotspur in the League Cup in 2002 after a game-turning performance when brought on as a substitute. Little attracted attention during this time, and his club was reported to have turned down big money offers for his signature.

In early 2003 Little joined Reading on loan. In September 2003 he moved to Premier League Bolton Wanderers on loan in a deal which involved Delroy Facey and Gareth Farrelly moving to Burnley. Little made his Premiership debut for the Trotters against Wolverhampton Wanderers and set up the equalising goal for Kevin Davies but his time with Sam Allardyce's team was brief.

Reading

After eight years at Burnley, Little left on a Bosman transfer to sign for Reading in the summer of 2004. Little's talents were widely regarded as one of the main reasons behind Reading's record breaking 106-point Championship lifting 2005–06 season, with Little scoring five goals and setting up fourteen, more than any other player in the league. Little started the 2006–07 season on the sidelines due to an injury sustained during the close season. Seol Ki-Hyeon took Little's place in the Reading team while he was out injured, but due to an injury to Dave Kitson, Seol was pushed up front, freeing the right wing for Little to return to the starting line-up. In November 2006, Little signed a one year extension to his contract with Reading, keeping him at the Madejski Stadium until the summer of 2008.^[1] He went on to make 24 top flight appearances in the season.

Portsmouth

Following Reading's narrow relegation in 2008, and Little's injuries leading to a lack of first team action during the 2007–08 season, he opted to sign for Portsmouth on a one-year contract, on 20 June 2008.^[2] Little played in some big European games for Portsmouth in their only European season when he played against AC Milan, he was a part in first Pompey goal passing the ball to Nwankwo Kanu who crossed the ball for Younes Kaboul to put Pompey 1-0 up. The game finished 2-2 at Fratton Park. However, he found opportunities limited at Pompey, so in March 2009 he rejoined Reading on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season.^[3] However, Reading failed to gain promotion so Little returned to Portsmouth, where he was released at the end of the 2008–09 season playing in just one game for the FA Cup holders.

Sheffield United

In July 2009 Little had a trial with Sheffield United^[4] and subsequently signed a one-year contract at Bramall Lane.^[5] Despite this he struggled to make an impact and made only sixteen appearances for the Blades, many as a late substitute and was released by the South Yorkshire club when his contract expired.

Aldershot Town

In July 2010, Little signed for Aldershot Town on a one-year deal. He struggled with injury during his short stay, meaning he never secured a place in the side, despite his obvious potential. He was released by new manager Dean Holdsworth on 26 January 2011.

Wrexham

In March 2011 Little joined Conference National side Wrexham on trial in the hope of winning a contract.^[6] However, due to the club's financial position and having been placed under a transfer embargo, nothing came of the initial trial.

In June Little rejoined the Welsh club for pre season training, where he impressed in games against Aberystwyth, Rochdale and Wolves, and earned a short term contract with the club just before the beginning of the new season. Unfortunately, he pulled a hamstring on the same day, so his debut for the club was delayed.^[7]

Little eventually made his debut for Wrexham on 10 September 2011, in a 3–1 loss at Barrow; he appeared sporadically over the first half of the 2011–12 season, usually coming on as a late substitute. Little scored his first goal for Wrexham in December 2011 in a 2–1 loss to Hinckley United in the FA Trophy.

In February 2012 Little committed himself to Wrexham signing a deal keeping him with the club until the end of the season.^[8] Over the course of the second half of the 2011/12 season Little was simply known as "Glen" by the fans and firmly became a fan favourite, he is famously known for his "scarf wave" after waving his red and white Wrexham scarf when on the bench in a League game against Luton Town. The scarf's became known as Glen Little scarf's and were branded like this in the Wrexham shop and WST stalls. In the 2012/13 season Glen started well in pre-season scoring a penalty against Scottish Premier League side Kilmarnock in July 2012. Little was well prepared for the new season and scored his first league goal for the Dragons during a 2–0 win over Hyde FC when he tucked away a penalty after coming on as a substitute. His goal put the Reds 1-0 up before Jay Harris scored in injury time to seal the 3 points. In September 2012 Little picked up a slight knee injury and was not sure how long he would be on the sidelines. On Boxing day 2012 and after 3 months out with his knee injury Little returned to action in a 4–1 home league win against AFC Telford United. On 24 March 2013 Little picked up only his third honour in his 18-year career, as Wrexham won the FA Trophy by beating Conference promotion rivals Grimsby Town on penalties. Little did not play in the final at Wembley but played in earlier rounds against Sutton United and was an unused substitute in other rounds against Southport and in both legs of the semi-final against Gainsborough Trinity. In May 2013 Little played at Wembley for the first time in his career as Wrexham played in the Conference National play-off final having defeated Kidderminster Harriers over the two semi-final legs which Little played a part in (coming on as a sub in the 85th minute of the second leg). Little came on as a substitute for Dean Keates in the 80th minute, unfortunately for Little, opponents Newport County scored twice in the last 4 minutes to secure promotion condemning Wrexham to non-league football for the 6th straight season. The game at Wembley was Little's last in a Wrexham shirt as it was revealed on 20 May 2013 Little had been released from the Racecourse Ground, but Little stated we would like to carry on his career even though he was 37 years old. He is still fondly remembered by Wrexham fans leaving the club with legendary status for his superb performances and character.^[9]

Wealdstone

In August 2013, Little signed for Isthmian Premier League club Wealdstone to bolster their squad for another push for promotion to the Conference South. His first involvement in a Royals shirt was in a pre-season game against Uxbridge, he scored in pre-season against Hayes in a 3-2 loss. Little made his competitive debut in an Isthmian Premier League game against Wingate & Finchley. He came on as a sub in the 2-2 draw. His first start for the club came in a 7-1 win over Cray Wanderers. He picked up an injury against AFC Hornchurch on 10 September, he returned from injury appearing as an unused sub against Lewes, he then returned to action starting in The Royals' first loss of the season, 1-0 against Margate on 5 October 2013.^[10] His first goal in a royals shirt came in an FA Trophy First Qualifier Round, a competition Little had won last season with Wrexham, he scored in a 3-0 win over Leiston. Little scored his first goal in an Isthmian Premier League game in a 4-1 win away at Dulwich Hamlet, he scored twice in the match.

Honours

• IFA Cup
  • Glentoran 1995
• Football League Championship
  • Reading 2005/06
• FA Trophy
  • Wrexham 2012/2013

References

External links

• Glen Little profile at readingfc.co.uk
• Glen Little career stats at Soccerbase