BBC NEWS; Plymouth Argyle’s loan agreement with Wolves is a forgotten stop in a career with 90+ goals.
Leon Clarke has played for so many different teams that he has most likely forgotten his early days at Plymouth Argyle.
During his career, the attacker played for 20 teams and had multiple loan stints, living out of a suitcase and traveling around the country.
There were several pauses along the striker’s professional route, from Devon to Derbyshire and London to Lancashire, some of which proved to be more successful than others.
A five-game stretch at Home Park in 2006 is unlikely to be one he would tell his grandchildren about, since neither team nor player benefited from the transfer.
Leon Clarke falls out of favour with Glenn Hoddle at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Months before he moved to Home Park, Argyle had unintentionally contributed to Clarke’s expulsion from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In a January FA Cup match, the striker scored the game’s sole goal, advancing Wolves to the next round. He celebrated by putting a finger to his lips in front of the home crowd (as shown above).
That ill-judged move was not well received by the Molineux crowd, with the bond between player and supporters failing to reignite, prompting Glenn Hoddle to withdraw him from first-team workouts.
In an interview with the Birmingham Mail, Wolves captain Paul Ince stated, “I spoke with Leon and said maybe it was a bit silly to do that, and he accepts it.”
“The only way to silence people is to score a goal, which he has done. That’s his response, and he doesn’t need the resulting theatrics.
“He’s a young lad, and all I ask is that the fans stick with him.” We all make errors; even the 11,000 fans attending the game will have done so at some point.
| Leon Clarke’s Plymouth Argyle stats (Soccerbase) | ||||
| Appearances | 5 | |||
| Starts | 5 | |||
| Minutes played | 327 | |||
| Goals | 0 | |||
But the bridge was soon burned, and Clarke was moved off to Queens Park Rangers before Argyle decided they were pleased enough by his performance early in the season to sign him later in the season.
Leon Clarke’s brief career at Plymouth Argyle
Argyle were a brutal team during the 2005/06 season, with Tony Pulis in the Home Park dugout, with the powerful attackers expected to grind their socks off up top and cause rival defenders problems for 90 minutes.
But Clarke appeared to have other plans, as he struggled to create much of an impression during his time in green, with his attempts seeming less than sufficient as he lumbered around up top.
Despite being picked up by the team coach on the route to Preston North End for his debut, the attacker appeared disconnected on the pitch with Vincent Pericard.
The Pilgrims only scored once during his five games with the club, indicating that his tenure in Devon was not effective in sending a message to people in the Black Country.
The season’s conclusion couldn’t come soon enough for Argyle to send Clarke packing, before he embarked on a career of short-term movements, making the most of his luggage and travel pillow throughout his playing days.
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