 Davis in 2012 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Steven Peter Davis[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1965-07-26)26 July 1965 (age 60)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Birmingham, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1982–1983 | Stoke City | 0 | (0) |
| 1983–1987 | Crewe Alexandra | 145 | (1) |
| 1987–1991 | Burnley | 147 | (11) |
| 1991–1998 | Barnsley | 107 | (10) |
| 1997 | →York City (loan) | 2 | (1) |
| 1998 | →Oxford United (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 1998–2000 | Oxford United | 35 | (2) |
| 2000 | Macclesfield Town | 0 | (0) |
| 2000–2002 | Northwich Victoria | 21 | (0) |
| 2004–2009 | Nantwich Town | 68 | (2) |
| Total | 464 | (26) | |
| International career | |||
| 1982 | England youth | 1 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2003 | Northwich Victoria | ||
| 2004–2009 | Nantwich Town | ||
| 2011–2017 | Crewe Alexandra | ||
| 2017 | Leyton Orient | ||
| 2022 | Wolverhampton Wanderers (caretaker) | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Steven Peter Davis (born 26 July 1965) is an Englishfootball manager and former professionalfootballer who is currently a trainer scout forWolverhampton Wanderers.
As a defender, he played over 100 league games at each of three clubs:Crewe Alexandra,Burnley andBarnsley. After managingCheshire-based non-league teamsNorthwich Victoria andNantwich Town, he was appointed assistant manager at Crewe Alexandra in 2009. Two years later, in November 2011, he was appointed Crewe manager, winning a Wembley play-off final in 2012 and theEFL Trophy in 2013. He left Crewe in January 2017 (at which date he was the fourth longest serving manager in the top four divisions ofEnglish football) and then head coach atNational League clubLeyton Orient for just over four months to November 2017. He later joined Wolves as under-18s coach. In October 2022 he became interim manager of Wolves' first team ahead ofJulen Lopetegui taking charge from 14 November 2022.
Born inBirmingham, Davis started his career withStoke City as an apprentice[1] in 1982 but never made a senior appearance. However, he played more than 140 matches for bothCrewe Alexandra andBurnley, making his Crewe debut at the age of 18, and captaining the team aged 19. He was also a key figure in the time he was at Burnley. He then played over 100 matches forBarnsley in Division 1, including 24 appearances in the season in which they were promoted to the Premier League.[2] He had loan spells atYork City andOxford United, eventually being signed by Division 1 outfit, Oxford United in 1998.
The final years of his playing career saw him in Cheshire withMacclesfield Town, and withNorthwich Victoria andNantwich Town – where he was player-manager of both clubs.
Davis wascapped by theEngland national youth team.[1]
He was appointed as player-manager ofNorthwich Victoria in June 2003.[3] He resigned in September 2003, after the team were second bottom of theConference National in the2003–04 season.[4]
However, his managerial career at Nantwich Town was the most successful time in the club's long history, converting a club that had never achieved anything above the North West Counties League to one that was challenging for a Conference spot. He led Nantwich to two promotions in successive seasons[5] and aFA Vase victory, just missing out on promotion to theConference North at the end of the 2008–09 season. His abilities attracted the attention ofCrewe Alexandra, where he had spent four seasons as a player. On 17 May 2009, it was announced that he would become assistant manager toGudjon Thordarson at Crewe.[6]
Davis remained as Thordarson's assistant through the Icelandic's short lived tenure at Gresty Road before the former Stoke City manager was relieved of his role in October 2009. Taking up the vacant manager's role wasDario Gradi, now in his third stint as Crewe manager kept Davis as his assistant manager. Gradi remained in the managerial position at the club until the autumn of 2011 his position was starting to become questioned by the Crewe fans, this was only galvanised further by a 3–0 home defeat toTorquay United which left the club near the relegation zone.[7] Although Gradi was still manager of the club, Davis took charge of the next match againstOldham Athletic in theFootball League Trophy after the Crewe manager could not attend after feeling unwell.[8] Although Crewe lost the match 3–1, Davis was appointed the new Crewe manager a couple of days later with Gradi moving to his former role as Technical Director – a role he took following the appointment of Steve Holland as first team coach back in the summer of 2007.[9][10]
Promoting coach Neil Baker as his assistant manager,[11] Davis' first match, officially, as Crewe manager was a homeFA Cup tie toColchester United. Although the railwaymen lost the tie 4–1,[12] Davis' brief for the remainder season was specific: keep Crewe in the football league.[11] Davis was successful in his target keeping Crewe in the football league and, in a run that saw the club go 16 matches unbeaten, the English manager helped Crewe qualify for the League Two play-offs. Following a 3–2 win over two legs withSouthend United and a 2–0 win overCheltenham Town at Wembley, Davis' team were promoted to League One.[13]
Davis had lost two key figures in that season's promotion campaign in the summer withNick Powell completing a three million pound transfer toManchester United and captainAshley Westwood for an undisclosed fee toAston Villa but they were replaced by a number of summer signings such as forwardMathias Pogba, defenderMark Ellis and midfielderAbdul Osman. Davis successfully secured safety in League One in his first season and also guided his team to a second Wembley appearance this time in the final of the Football League Trophy against Southend. The Railwaymen won the tie 2–0 with goals fromLuke Murphy andMax Clayton.[14]
As with the previous summer, Davis lost a key member of his midfield this time in the form of Luke Murphy who left the club for Championship clubLeeds United in 2013 for a million pounds. Despite a brief period linking him with the vacantWolves managerial position,[15] Davis remained at the Alex. The 2013–14 season was less successful than Davis' previous seasons, compacted even more after seven first team players were held byDevon and Cornwall Police for an alleged sexual assault during the team's pre-season training inRedruth.[16] The players were cleared of all charges in November,[17] a few months into the new campaign. Davis described the decision as a "noose being removed from our necks" citing the case as one of the reasons for the team's poor start to the campaign.[18] Further to the sex assault allegations, Davis was also having attitude issues with summer signingAnthony Grant and formerNewcastle youngsterBrad Inman – listing the pair on loan and isolating them from the rest of the squad in training labelling the pair as a "disruption."[19][20] The pair were later reinstated to the squad and first team duties following an improvement in their attitudes and helped Crewe avoid relegation on the last day of the season with a 2–1 victory over local rivalsPreston North End.
The2014–15 season was no better in terms of Crewe's performance. The team lost 10 of their first 12 matches, and eventually finished in 20th position – remaining in League One despite losing the final match of the season, againstBradford City, because of results in fixtures elsewhere.
The following season started in a similar pattern, with the team winning just two of their first 15 league matches, and crashing out of the FA Cup in the first round, defeated at Gresty Road by non-leagueEastleigh,[21] forcing Davis to defend his position as the 'right man' for the job.[22] Crewe's relegation to League Two was confirmed following a 3–0 defeat at Port Vale on 9 April 2016, with five matches remaining.[23]
Davis was sacked as Crewe Alexandra manager on 8 January 2017,[24] at which date he was the fourth longest serving manager in the top four divisions ofEnglish football.[25]
On 10 July 2017, Davis was appointed as head coach of newly relegatedNational League clubLeyton Orient on a two-year contract.[26] After the club won just five of their 19 league matches, he was sacked on 14 November 2017.[27]
In September 2018, Davis was reported to be in the running to be appointed manager ofCheltenham Town.[28]
He subsequently joinedWolverhampton Wanderers as under-18s head coach.[29] In October 2022, following the sacking ofBruno Lage, Davis was appointed interim manager of his boyhood club, with under-23s coachJames Collins, also formerly at Crewe, as his assistant.[30] His first game in charge was a 3–0 defeat atChelsea.[31] His first win was a 1–0 victory atMolineux againstNottingham Forest.[32] After multiple failed attempts by the club to sign a permanent manager, it was initially announced Davis would remain in charge for the rest of 2022.[33][34] However, Wolves re-approachedJulen Lopetegui and, on 5 November 2022, announced he would become their new head coach, taking charge from 14 November 2022.[35]
After the success for the under-18s squad, and brief caretaker stint for Wolves' first team, the club appointed Davis as Player Pathways Manager to help link the academy players with the first team players. This had proven successful during his time as caretaker manager, withJoe Hodge,Hugo Bueno andDexter Lembikisa given more first team experience and regular game time. Davis's former assistant manager at under-18s level, James McPike took over as caretaker manager, until a permanent replacement was found.[36]
Davis's sonHarry was at Crewe Alexandra but now plays forAFC Fylde, and is also a centre-back. He made his professional debut at the end of the 2009–10 season, playing for Crewe against Bradford City.[37]
Another son,Joe, is a former defender, having made his professional debut atPort Vale during his first spell in April 2011.[38] During Steve Davis's time as Crewe manager, for 33 minutes of a match at Port Vale on 22 February 2014, his sons played on opposite teams against each other.[39][40] Joe later played atNantwich Town before retiring.
Source:[41]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Stoke City | 1982–83 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Crewe Alexandra | 1983–84 | Fourth Division | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 0 |
| 1984–85 | Fourth Division | 40 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 45 | 0 | |
| 1985–86 | Fourth Division | 45 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 51 | 1 | |
| 1986–87 | Fourth Division | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 0 | |
| 1987–88 | Fourth Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 145 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 166 | 1 | ||
| Burnley | 1987–88 | Fourth Division | 33 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 41 | 5 |
| 1988–89 | Fourth Division | 37 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 44 | 1 | |
| 1989–90 | Fourth Division | 31 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 1 | |
| 1990–91 | Fourth Division | 46 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 59 | 5 | |
| Total | 147 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 182 | 12 | ||
| Barnsley | 1991–92 | Second Division | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 1992–93 | First Division | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| 1993–94 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1994–95 | First Division | 36 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 2 | |
| 1995–96 | First Division | 27 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 5 | |
| 1996–97 | First Division | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | |
| Total | 107 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 119 | 10 | ||
| York City (loan) | 1997–98 | Second Division | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Oxford United | 1997–98 | First Division | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 |
| 1998–99 | First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1999–2000 | Second Division | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 1 | |
| Total | 42 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 48 | 3 | ||
| Career total | 443 | 26 | 16 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 28 | 1 | 517 | 27 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Northwich Victoria | 4 June 2003 | 29 September 2003 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 009.1 | [4][42][43] |
| Crewe Alexandra | 10 November 2011 | 8 January 2017 | 272 | 84 | 71 | 117 | 030.9 | [44][45] |
| Leyton Orient | 10 July 2017 | 14 November 2017 | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 027.3 | [45] |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2 October 2022 | 14 November 2022 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 025.0 | |
| Total | 313 | 93 | 80 | 140 | 029.7 | — | ||
Barnsley
Individual
Nantwich Town
Crewe Alexandra
Footnotes
Bibliography
