Neil Ruddock

Early career

Ruddock began his career at Millwall, before signing for Tottenham Hotspur in 1986. He broke his leg on his Tottenham debut against Liverpool and made only 11 appearances for Spurs, his only goal coming in a 2–1 defeat to third tier Port Vale in the 1987–88 FA Cup. In the summer of 1988 Ruddock rejoined Millwall.

Southampton

Ruddock joined Southampton in February 1989, in a £200,000 transfer from Millwall. A rugged, uncompromising defender, he soon became popular with the Southampton fans especially after confidently scoring a penalty against Newcastle United on 1 April in only his sixth game for the club, thus helping the "Saints" earn their first victory in 18 matches and start Southampton on a climb away from the relegation zone. His goal celebration after the 89th-minute penalty became known as the "Ruddock stomp". Ruddock missed his next two penalties, allowing Matt Le Tissier to take over for the following season. Despite early disciplinary problems at The Dell, Ruddock's talents as a confident, left-footed defender earned him England Under-21 honours. Powerful in the air, he could tackle strongly but was also able to bring the ball forward out of defence. In the 1991–92 season, Ruddock was a member of the Southampton side that reached the final of the Zenith Data Systems Cup, where they were beaten in extra time 3–2 by Nottingham Forest. After three years on the south coast, he was enticed back to Tottenham by Terry Venables in May 1992,…

In August 2018, Ruddock joined the coaching team of Essex Senior League side Enfield. In June 2020 he became a club director.

Ruddock won four caps for the England Under-21 squad and one in 1994 for England B when he captained the team against Ireland B at Anfield. On 16 November 1994, he won his only senior cap for England, playing in a friendly against Nigeria when Terry Venables was the national team's coach.

In 2004, he appeared on the third series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!. After his appearance, he recorded a charity single, a version of "Jungle Rock", with fellow contestants Lord Brocket, Peter Andre and Mike Read, performing as the Jungle Boys. In 2006, he was involved in the television programme Razor Ruddock's Pass & Move Soccer School where children released by academies were coached by Ruddock. In 2007, he appeared in Celebrity Wife Swap UK (Series 10 Episode 1), going to live with English singer and television personality Pete Burns, while wife Leah went to live with Burns' partner Michael Simpson. In 2006, Ruddock helped produce Football Saved My Life a reality sports TV show for Bravo which attempted to change the lives of 15 dysfunctional men through their involvement with football. In November 2011, he appeared in James May's Man Lab on BBC Two, coaching James May on how to score a penalty kick in front of 20,000 Germans at Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen. James May missed the penalty. He appeared again in April 2013 as a member of the Manlab team representing China at the Rock, Paper, Scissors world championships. In 2019 Ruddock appeared on BBC's Celebrity Masterchef Series 14 where he reached the final three. In 2019 and 2020, Ruddock featured in both seasons of ITV show Harry's Heroes, which featured former football manager Harry Redknapp attempting to get a squad of former England international footballers back fit and healthy for a game against…