Paul Ince

West Ham United

Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince was born in Ilford, Greater London. He grew up as a West Ham United supporter. He was spotted playing, aged 12, by West Ham manager John Lyall around the time that the club was in the Second Division and achieved a surprise FA Cup final triumph over Arsenal. Ince signed for the Hammers as a trainee, aged 14. Lyall helped Ince through troubled school times eventually signing him as a YTS trainee, on leaving school, in 1984. He is a product of the West Ham youth team and made his debut in English football on 30 November 1986 against Newcastle United in the First Division. He became a regular player in 1987–88, proving himself to have all-round qualities of pace, stamina, uncompromising tackling and good passing ability. He also packed a powerful shot, and was awarded with England under-21 honours to go with the youth caps he acquired as an apprentice. He firmly established himself as the successor in West Ham's midfield for the veteran Billy Bonds, who retired at the end of the 1987–88 season. Unfortunately for Ince, West Ham were not enjoying one of their best spells when he broke into the team. Despite having won the FA Cup in 1980 and finished third in the league in 1986, they had failed to sustain their challenge for major honours and finished 15th in 1987 and 16th in 1988, and worse was to follow. In August 1988, an eventful season for Ince began. In a struggling West Ham side, he shot to national recognition with two…

Ince made his debut for the full England team on 9 September 1992 in a friendly match against Spain in Santander, losing 1–0. Ince made history during the tour of the US when, on his seventh cap against the host nation on 6 June 1993, he became England's first black captain in the absence of David Platt and Tony Adams. England lost 2–0. Ince's only international goals came on his 12th appearance. These were two in a 7–1 win away to San Marino in the final game of the unsuccessful 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification, on 17 November 1993. During Euro 96 Ince was a member of Terry Venables' England team as the midfield ball winner and got the label of "Gazza's minder", whose job was to create room for Paul Gascoigne to exploit with his natural ball skills. Though the first group game ended in a disappointing 1–1 draw at Wembley against Switzerland, England went on to defeat Scotland 2–0 and then met the Netherlands and put on a display subsequently heralded as "the greatest in generations" and "the high point of the tournament for England". Ince was fouled for a penalty which gave England the lead and helped them towards a 4–1 win; he also picked up a yellow card which rendered him unavailable for the quarter-final against Spain, so David Platt replaced him in a match England won in a penalty shoot-out. Venables put Ince back in the side for the semifinal against Germany, replacing the suspended Gary Neville as England switched systems to a back three, accommodating Ince in…

A tenacious, athletic, and hard-working player, Ince was known for his tireless running and ability to provide defensive support to his team in midfield.

Swindon Town (player-coach)

Ince signed a one-year contract with Swindon Town as a player/coach on 31 August 2006. Swindon beat the likes of Birmingham City and West Bromwich Albion for his signature. A key factor in the transfer was Ince's long standing friendship with Town manager Dennis Wise, who had played alongside him in the England team during the 1990s. He made his first start for Swindon in his second game, the 2–1 victory over MK Dons on 12 September, winning a penalty. Having played one more game, he ended his contract by mutual consent on 6 October, citing long travel times from his home in Chester. He said he would remain for his coaching badges.

Macclesfield Town

On 23 October 2006, Ince was confirmed as the new player-manager of Macclesfield Town in succession to Brian Horton. However, he was ineligible to play for the Silkmen until January when the transfer window opened, as Swindon Town still held his registration. He joined Macclesfield with the club bottom of League Two, seven points off their nearest rivals. He then revived confidence and after a 3–0 win against Chester they managed to climb off the bottom of the table. They subsequently avoided relegation, albeit on the last day of the season. On 4 January 2007 Ince was named as League Two Manager of the Month for December. Ince retired as a player while at Macclesfield, where he only made one league appearance, as an 85th-minute substitute for Alan Navarro in a 1–1 home draw with Notts…