Dean Saunders

Early career

Saunders was born in Swansea and began his career with Swansea City, where his father Roy had been a player and coach, signing as an apprentice on leaving school in 1980. He turned professional in the summer of 1982, after Swansea had finished sixth in their debut season as a First Division club. Swansea were relegated in 1982–83, and Saunders made his debut in the 1983–84 season. A goalless four-game loan spell at local rivals Cardiff City also came in 1984–85, before he signed for Second Division club Brighton & Hove Albion on a free transfer on 7 August 1985.

Brighton and Oxford

The striker was a success at the Goldstone Ground, scoring 14 league goals in his first season. He scored six goals from 30 league games in 1986–87 before a £60,000 move took him to the First Division with Oxford United. He was an instant success as his six goals in the final 12 league games secured First Division survival. He scored 12 goals in 37 games during the 1987–88 season (during which Michael Cleverly was dismissed as manager and replaced by Mark Lawrenson) but it was not enough to prevent Oxford from going down in bottom place after three seasons in the top flight. He began the 1988–89 season still in the Second Division, with manager Lawrenson and chairman Kevin Maxwell agreeing that they would only sell Saunders if Oxford failed to win promotion at the end of the season. However, he was sold to Derby County for £1 million on 28 October 1988, prompting…

Saunders was one of the Wales national team's most prolific goalscorers. He made his international debut, aged 21 in a 1–0 friendly win against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin on 26 March 1986 coming on as a 60th minute substitute for Gordon Davies. The match was also notable for being Jack Charlton's first match in charge of the Republic of Ireland and Neville Southall breaking his ankle on a routine cross. He scored 22 international goals, putting him fourth on the all time Wales list behind Ian Rush, Ivor Allchurch and Trevor Ford. Among his list of goals was the only goal of the game to defeat Brazil in Cardiff in 1991. He won the last of his 75 caps as a substitute in a World Cup qualifier against Ukraine on 28 March 2001, a few months short of his 37th birthday.

After his playing retirement Saunders initially became a coach at Blackburn Rovers working alongside his former manager Graeme Souness. He moved with Souness to Newcastle United in 2004, initially in the role of striker coach, and then later becoming first-team coach. When Souness was sacked on 2 February 2006 due to a run of poor results, his entire backroom team including Saunders were also replaced. Saunders started the Certificate in Football Management course at the University of Warwick Business School in June 2007 and holds the UEFA Pro Licence coaching badge. In June 2007, he was appointed assistant manager to John Toshack for the Wales national football team, and remained in the role until Toshack's departure in September 2010.

Wrexham

On 2 October 2008, Saunders was appointed as manager of Conference Premier club Wrexham, taking over from Brian Little to become the side's fourth manager in 22 months. He was allowed to combine the role with his position as assistant manager of Wales. Saunders made several signings in the summer of 2010, and after an uncertain start, the team finished in the play-off positions. They failed to win promotion though, after Luton Town defeated them 5–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals. After the club received a takeover at the conclusion of the season after several years of financial instability, Saunders signed a new contract. Despite his new deal Saunders remained at Wrexham for only ten matches of the following season, during which he led the team to second place, before he moved to Doncaster Rovers of the Championship.

Doncaster Rovers

On 23 September 2011, Saunders was named manager of Doncaster Rovers following their sacking of Sean O'Driscoll. His first match gave the club their first win of the season and their first in 20 games, when they beat Crystal Palace 1–0. Despite this opening victory a run of poor results saw a section of fans call for Saunders to be sacked as Doncaster remained at the bottom of the league. His attempts to keep Doncaster in the Championship came to an end on 14 April 2012 as they were relegated following a 4–3 home defeat by Portsmouth at the Keepmoat Stadium, ending their four-year stay in the Championship. In the…