Anthony Gardner

Port Vale

Born and raised in Stafford, Gardner played football for the local junior club Stafford Falcons. He was initially a forward before being moved into defence. He began his career with First Division club Port Vale after signing associate schoolboy forms in 1994. He signed his first professional contract on 31 July 1998. He made his first-team debut under John Rudge on 31 October, in a 3–2 defeat to Sheffield United at Vale Park. He scored his first senior goal on 1 May 1999, in a 2–0 win over Queens Park Rangers. He won the club's young Player of the Year award for the 1998–99 season and making 15 league appearances. He made 29 appearances in the 1999–2000 season under new manager Brian Horton, scoring goals at Queens Park Rangers, Huddersfield Town and Sheffield United.

Tottenham Hotspur

Gardner signed for George Graham's Tottenham Hotspur in January 2000 for a fee of £855,000 rising to £1.2m. He had been scouted by director of football David Pleat. Gardner worked his way up through the reserve team before making his debut as a substitute against Derby County in March 2001. He finished 2000–01 with eight appearances. However, he suffered knee ligament damage in the season finale v Manchester United, which ruled him out until December. He played 19 matches in the 2001–02 campaign. Gardner scored the winner and his first goal for Tottenham in a thriller 3–2 victory over local rivals West Ham United in September 2002. However, he was limited to just…

A squad member of the 2000 under-21 European Championships he represented England at under-21 level, gaining one cap under David Platt in March 2002. Gardner began to impress during 2003–04. He earned his England first call-up as cover for Gareth Southgate in a friendly against Denmark in March 2004. He won his first and only England cap against Sweden on 31 March 2004, after Sven-Göran Eriksson used him as a half-time substitute for Jonathan Woodgate.

Club

International

His cousin, Jordan Fincher, took part in Sky1's Football's Next Star in 2010. He became an avid poker player after retiring from football.