Luke Varney

Crewe Alexandra

Varney was born in Leicester and played for Leicester youth up front and began his career as a semi-professional footballer at non-league level with Quorn before being spotted by Crewe's scout Darryl Finney. The Englishman signed for the Railwaymen in 2003 and spent four years at the club, appearing in 95 league games and scoring 27 goals. Varney signed for Crewe Alexandra from non-league Quorn in 2003 for £50,000. Varney's deal also had a 20% sell-on clause with the Leicestershire club. Whilst at Quorn, he worked as a quality controller at a factory. Varney made his Crewe debut five months later in a 3–1 away defeat to Wimbledon. The young Englishman also managed to get his first goal for the club four games after his debut in Crewe's 3–1 away win over Crystal Palace, Dean Ashton scoring the other two goals for The Railwaymen. Unfortunately, Varney picked up a shoulder injury during January 2004, denying him a chance of making any further appearances during the rest of the 2003–04 season. Varney recovered from his injury in time for the following season, making 26 appearances for Crewe, scoring four goals in those appearances. The striker also picked up two yellow cards during the course of the year. He became more involved in the first team during the 2004–05 season, making 27 appearances and scoring five goals. In 2006, Crewe Alexandra were relegated to League One. Varney would make his name during the 2006–07 season, scoring 25 goals in all…

As of match played 7 November 2021

Individual

PFA Team of the Year: 2006–07 League One Crewe Alexandra Fans' Player of the Year: 2006–07 Cheltenham Town Player of the Year: 2018–19