Darren Randolph facts for kids
Randolph with West Ham United in 2022
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 12 May 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Bray, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.88 m | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1998-2003 | Ardmore Rovers | ||
| 2003–2004 | Charlton Athletic | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2010 | Charlton Athletic | 14 | (0) |
| 2004 | → Welling United (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2005 | → Accrington Stanley (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2006 | → Gillingham (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 2008 | → Bury (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2008 | → Hereford United (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2010–2013 | Motherwell | 111 | (0) |
| 2013–2015 | Birmingham City | 91 | (0) |
| 2015–2017 | West Ham United | 28 | (0) |
| 2017–2020 | Middlesbrough | 106 | (0) |
| 2020–2023 | West Ham United | 5 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | AFC Bournemouth | 0 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2003 | Republic of Ireland U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2004–2006 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 15 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 8 | (0) |
| 2006 | Republic of Ireland B | 1 | (0) |
| 2012–2020 | Republic of Ireland | 50 | (0) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Darren Edward Andrew Randolph (born May 12, 1987) is an Irish professional footballer. He plays as a goalkeeper and has also played for the Republic of Ireland national team.
Darren started his youth career at Ardmore Rovers. He then joined Charlton Athletic, a Premier League club. He became a professional player in 2004. He spent time on loan at several clubs like Welling United and Accrington Stanley.
He made his first appearance for Charlton in 2007. After playing for Charlton for six years, he moved to Scottish Premier League team Motherwell in 2010. He played regularly for Motherwell for three years. Then, he joined Birmingham City in England. He played almost every game for them for two seasons. Later, he signed with West Ham United in 2015 and Middlesbrough in 2017.
Darren also played for Ireland's youth teams. He made his first full international appearance for the Republic of Ireland in 2012. He also played for his country at the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament.
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Club Career Highlights
Starting at Charlton Athletic
Darren Randolph was born in Bray, Ireland. He played school football with Ardmore Rovers. In 2003, he joined Charlton Athletic. His old club, Ardmore Rovers, even put him in their Hall of Fame!
As a young player, Darren went on loan to Welling United in 2004. He played four league games there. In 2005, he was loaned to Accrington Stanley. He later signed a new contract with Charlton until 2009. In 2006, he joined Gillingham on loan for a month.
Darren played his first game for Charlton's main team in 2007. This was in their last match of the 2006–07 Premier League season against Liverpool. He played well, helping his team get a 2–2 draw. He was the second-choice goalkeeper in 2007–08. In 2008, he went on loan to Bury. After 14 games, Charlton called him back. He then started a game against Southampton. In this game, he accidentally dropped the ball into his own net.
Darren joined Hereford United on loan in July 2008. He played 14 of their first 17 games. He had a great game against Leeds United, letting in only one goal from many shots. However, he later refused to play in an FA Cup match. He was fined and returned to Charlton in January 2009.
In his second game back at Charlton, he let in four goals against Sheffield Wednesday. This was his last game of that season. He signed a new one-year contract for the 2009–10 season. He became the main goalkeeper again in March 2010. He played in the play-offs, where Charlton lost on penalties.
Playing for Motherwell
Charlton offered Darren a new contract, but he decided to join Scottish Premier League club Motherwell. He joined them on July 1, 2010, for free. He signed a three-year contract. Darren played his first game for Motherwell in the Europa League. They won 1–0 against an Icelandic team.
Darren quickly became Motherwell's main goalkeeper. In his first season, he set a new club record of 15 clean sheets (games without letting in a goal). He helped Motherwell reach the 2011 Scottish Cup Final, but they lost to Celtic.
He played every game in the 2011–12 SPL season. He was the only Motherwell player chosen for the PFA Scotland Team of the Year. Motherwell finished third in the league. This meant they got to play in the Champions League for the first time! Darren played in the Champions League against Panathinaikos. They lost, but then played in the Europa League.
In 2012, Darren was charged with "violent conduct" after kicking an opposing player. Motherwell appealed, but he was banned for two games. He was named in the PFA Scotland Team of the Year again for the 2012–13 season. Motherwell finished second in the league that year.
Moving to Birmingham City
Darren's contract with Motherwell was ending. On May 14, 2013, Championship club Birmingham City announced he would join them for free. He signed a two-year contract. He became the starting goalkeeper right away. He played his first game for Birmingham on August 3, 2013. He played every Championship game that season.
His streak of playing every game continued into the next season. However, he was sent off in a game in October 2014. This meant he missed the next match. He played every league game for the rest of that season. Birmingham's manager, Gary Rowett, said he wanted to keep Darren at the club. But Darren decided not to sign a new contract. He left Birmingham for free in May 2015.
Joining West Ham United
On May 30, 2015, West Ham United announced that Darren would join them. He made his first appearance for West Ham on July 2, 2015. This was in a Europa League qualifying match. He made his league debut in a 4–3 loss to AFC Bournemouth.
He then kept a clean sheet in a 3–0 win against Liverpool. This was West Ham's first league win at Anfield since 1963! Darren played in West Ham's last three games of the 2015–16 season. This included their final game at the Boleyn Ground, which they won 3–2. He played 15 games in total that season. In July 2016, Darren signed a new four-year contract with West Ham. He became West Ham's regular goalkeeper in November 2016.
Time at Middlesbrough
On July 22, 2017, Darren signed a four-year contract with Championship club Middlesbrough. He played his first game for them on July 29, 2017. He was reunited with his former West Ham teammate, Ashley Fletcher, at Middlesbrough. Darren wore the number 25 shirt for the 2017–18 season.
He made his league debut for Middlesbrough on August 5, 2017. He got his first clean sheet the next week in a 1–0 win. He had another clean sheet in their next game. In March 2019, he was chosen for the 2018–19 Championship Team of the Season. He was also named Middlesbrough's Player of the Year in 2019.
Back to West Ham and Bournemouth
On January 15, 2020, Darren returned to West Ham United. He played 5 league games during his three years back at the club.
On January 26, 2023, Darren joined Bournemouth. He signed an 18-month contract. However, he did not play any competitive games for the club. On June 5, 2024, Bournemouth announced that he would leave the club when his contract ended.
International Career
Darren Randolph has played for the Republic of Ireland at many different age levels. These include U15, U16, U17, U18, U19, U21, and B teams. He was first called up to the Republic of Ireland senior squad in March 2011.
He made his first full international appearance in a friendly game against Oman on September 11, 2012. He came on as a substitute in a 4–1 win. His second game was against Spain in 2013. He made a great save in that game.
On October 8, 2015, Darren came into a game against Germany. This was a qualifying match for the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament. He provided a long pass that led to Shane Long's winning goal. Ireland won 1–0! Darren played every game for the Republic of Ireland at Euro 2016. They played against Sweden, Belgium, and Italy. They were eventually defeated by France.
Personal Life
Darren's father, Ed Randolph, played basketball for UCD Marian. He was one of the first American players in the Irish Basketball League. His mother, Anne Randolph, is a folk singer. Darren went to St. Cronan's Boys National School and Presentation College, Bray.
Darren and singer Alexandra Burke started a relationship in 2021. Their first child was born in July 2022. They got engaged in September 2024.
Honours
Accrington Stanley
- Conference National: 2005–06
Motherwell
- Scottish Cup runner-up: 2010–11
Individual
- PFA Scotland Team of the Year: 2011–12, 2012–13
- PFA Team of the Year: 2018–19 Championship
- Middlesbrough Player of the Year: 2019
See also
In Spanish: Darren Randolph para niños
