Matt Holland facts for kids
Holland playing for Charlton Athletic in 2008
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matthew Rhys Holland | ||
| Date of birth | 11 April 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Bury, England | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Arsenal | |||
| –1992 | West Ham United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–1995 | West Ham United | 0 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | → Farnborough Town (loan) | 21 | (0) |
| 1994–1995 | → AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 16 | (1) |
| 1995–1997 | AFC Bournemouth | 88 | (17) |
| 1997–2003 | Ipswich Town | 259 | (38) |
| 2003–2009 | Charlton Athletic | 191 | (13) |
| Total | 575 | (69) | |
| International career | |||
| 1999 | Republic of Ireland B | 1 | (0) |
| 1999–2005 | Republic of Ireland | 49 | (5) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Matthew Rhys Holland (born on 11 April 1974) is a former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder, a player who helps both attack and defense. Today, he is a director and club ambassador at Ipswich Town.
Matt Holland started his football journey at West Ham United. Before that, he was part of Arsenal's youth team. While at West Ham, he played on loan for Farnborough Town and AFC Bournemouth. He then joined Bournemouth permanently in 1995.
After playing over 100 games for Bournemouth and becoming their captain, Holland moved to Ipswich Town in 1997. He spent six years at Ipswich, playing over 300 matches. He led the team as captain to the Premier League in 2000. In 2003, Holland joined Charlton Athletic. He played over 200 games for Charlton, also as captain, before retiring in 2009.
Matt Holland also played for his country, the Republic of Ireland. He played 49 times for them and scored 5 goals. He was part of the team that played in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. After his playing career, he started working in sports media.
Contents
Matt Holland's Club Career
Starting Out in Football
Matt Holland first tried out for Arsenal, but they didn't sign him because they thought he was "too small." He then joined West Ham United and played in their youth academy. However, he didn't get to play for their main team. To get more playing time, he went on loan to Football Conference team Farnborough Town during the 1992–93 season. He played 21 games for them.
Playing for AFC Bournemouth
In January 1995, Holland joined AFC Bournemouth to play more first-team football. He quickly became a key player. For the 1995–96 season, he won the club's Player of the Year award. He played a total of 104 games for Bournemouth, scoring 18 goals. He also became the team's captain.
Time at Ipswich Town
In the summer of 1997, Matt Holland moved to Ipswich Town for £800,000. He played his first game for Ipswich on the first day of the 1997–98 season. It was a 0–0 draw against Queens Park Rangers. He scored his first goal for Ipswich on 20 September 1997.
Holland was a very important player in his first season. He played in every league and cup game. Ipswich finished 5th in the First Division, which meant they could play in the play-offs. They lost to Charlton Athletic in the semi-finals. In his first season, Holland played 59 games and scored 12 goals. He also won the Player of the Year award for the 1997–98 season.
He became Ipswich's club captain in his second season. He continued to be a key player. He scored his first goal of that season on 11 August in a League Cup match. He played in every game again as Ipswich finished 3rd in the league. They qualified for the play-offs for the third year in a row. Ipswich were knocked out by Bolton Wanderers. Holland scored two goals in the second game, but Ipswich lost on away goals.
Ipswich kept trying to get promoted in the 1999–2000 season. Holland continued his amazing record of playing every game. He scored 10 goals in the league. Ipswich finished 3rd in the First Division, just missing out on automatic promotion. This meant they were in the play-offs for the fourth season in a row.
Holland played in both semi-final games. Ipswich came back from 2–0 down to draw 2–2 against Bolton. Ipswich won the second game 5–3 at home. They won 7–5 overall and went to the final. Holland was captain in the final on 29 May 2000 against Barnsley at Wembley Stadium. Ipswich won the final 4–2, and they were promoted to the Premier League after five years away.
The next season, Holland led Ipswich to finish 5th in the Premier League. This was Ipswich's best ever finish in the Premier League. He scored his first Premier League goal on 11 November against Charlton Athletic. He also scored in League Cup wins as Ipswich reached the semi-finals. Holland played every league game that season, making 47 appearances and scoring 5 goals. Because they finished 5th, Ipswich qualified for the UEFA Cup.
Holland scored his first goal of the 2001–02 season on 28 October against his old club, West Ham United. He played every match in the Premier League and UEFA Cup. However, Ipswich was relegated from the Premier League after finishing 18th. Holland played 46 games that season, scoring 3 goals.
Even though Ipswich was relegated, Holland stayed with the club for the 2002–03 season. He turned down a big move to Aston Villa. He continued to play regularly, scoring two goals on 18 August in a 6–1 win. He made 54 appearances that season, scoring 7 goals. Ipswich finished 7th in the league. Holland won Ipswich's Player of the Year award for the second time. He was known for his amazing consistency, playing 223 games in a row for Ipswich.
Playing for Charlton Athletic
After Ipswich didn't get promoted in 2003, Holland moved back to the Premier League. He joined Charlton Athletic on a four-year contract. He became captain there too and played in every game in his first season. He played his first game for Charlton on 17 August 2003. He scored his first two goals for the club on 3 November 2003. He played in every league game that season, scoring 6 goals. Holland led Charlton to finish 7th in the league, their highest ever Premier League finish.
Holland continued to be a key player for Charlton in the 2004–05 season. He scored winning goals in away games against West Bromwich Albion and Everton. He scored 3 goals in 36 games as Charlton finished 11th.
He remained a regular player for Charlton in the 2005–06 season. Charlton was relegated from the Premier League the next season. Holland stayed with the club after relegation. He was one of Charlton's longest-serving players. He was voted the Fans' Player of the Year for the 2007–08 season. He continued to play regularly in the 2008–09 season, making 38 appearances. His last game was on 21 April 2009. He left the club after they were relegated to League One.
In July 2009, Holland trained with Colchester United to stay fit after leaving Charlton.
International Career for Ireland
Even though Matt Holland was born in England, he could play for the Republic of Ireland. This was because his grandmother was from County Monaghan in Ireland. He played his first international game on 9 October 1999. It was a Euro 2000 qualifier against Macedonia. He came on as a substitute for the last five minutes.
Holland scored his first goal for Ireland in his fifth game. It was an equalizer in a 1–1 draw against Portugal on 7 October 2000. He was captain for Ireland in three international games. The first time was in a friendly match against Scotland.
He went with the Republic of Ireland to the 2002 World Cup. He scored the equalizer against Cameroon in their first game. Ireland was knocked out of the tournament in the Second Round after a penalty shoot-out against Spain. Holland was one of the players who missed a penalty. He announced his retirement from international football on 5 February 2006. He had played 49 games and scored five goals for Ireland.
Working in Media
After he stopped playing football, Matt Holland started working in the media. He was a commentator and pundit for many different sports channels and radio stations. He worked for BBC Radio Five Live during the 2006 World Cup. He also appeared on BBC television shows like A Question of Sport.
Holland has been a pundit for ESPN and Sky Sports. He has also appeared on BBC's Final Score and ITV. He was a presenter for the BBC regional football show Late Kick Off.
He has also been on many radio shows, including talkSPORT, Absolute Radio, and BBC Radio 5 Live. He was an analyst for Setanta Sports and now co-commentates on BT Sport for the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. He also worked with RTÉ, commentating on games and appearing on their football shows.
Personal Life
Matt Holland is colour blind. He once said that he had trouble seeing during his Charlton debut. This was because Charlton wore red, and Plymouth Argyle wore green.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| West Ham United | 1992–93 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 1993–94 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1994–95 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Farnborough Town (loan) | 1992–93 | Football Conference | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 1994–95 | Second Division | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 |
| AFC Bournemouth | 1995–96 | Second Division | 43 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 52 | 10 |
| 1996–97 | Second Division | 45 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 7 | |
| Total | 104 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 116 | 18 | ||
| Ipswich Town | 1997–98 | First Division | 46 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 59 | 12 |
| 1998–99 | First Division | 46 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 54 | 9 | |
| 1999–2000 | First Division | 46 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 54 | 10 | |
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 38 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | — | 47 | 5 | ||
| 2001–02 | Premier League | 38 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 46 | 3 | |
| 2002–03 | First Division | 45 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 54 | 7 | |
| Total | 259 | 38 | 12 | 0 | 24 | 6 | 19 | 2 | 314 | 46 | ||
| Charlton Athletic | 2003–04 | Premier League | 38 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 41 | 6 | |
| 2004–05 | Premier League | 32 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 3 | ||
| 2005–06 | Premier League | 23 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 30 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 33 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 36 | 1 | ||
| 2007–08 | Championship | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 34 | 1 | ||
| 2008–09 | Championship | 34 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 38 | 1 | ||
| Total | 191 | 13 | 15 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 215 | 14 | ||
| Career total | 575 | 69 | 30 | 1 | 39 | 6 | 22 | 2 | 666 | 78 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic of Ireland | 1999 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2003 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 49 | 5 | |
- Scores and results list Republic of Ireland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Holland goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 October 2000 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal | 6 |  Portugal |
1–1 | 1–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 28 March 2001 | Mini Estadi, Barcelona, Spain | 8 |  Andorra |
3–0 | 3–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 6 June 2001 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 11 |  Estonia |
2–0 | 2–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 1 June 2002 | Niigata Stadium, Niigata, Japan | 20 |  Cameroon |
1–1 | 1–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
| 5 | 27 May 2004 | Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland | 40 |  Romania |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
Honours and Awards
Ipswich Town
- Football League First Division play-offs: 2000 (Promoted to Premier League)
Individual Awards
- AFC Bournemouth Player of the Year: 1995–96
- Ipswich Town Player of the Year: 1997–98, 2002–03
- Charlton Athletic Player of the Year: 2007–08
- Ipswich Town Hall of Fame: Inducted 2014
See also
In Spanish: Matt Holland para niños
