Dean Leacock

Dean Leacock

Personal information
Full name	Dean Leacock
Date of birth	10 June 1984 (1984-06-10) (age 27)
Place of birth	Thornton Heath, London, England
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2 1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Centre back, Right back, Defensive midfielder
Club information
Current club	Derby County
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2001–2006	Fulham	9	(0)
2004	→ Coventry City (loan)	8	(0)
2005	→ Coventry City (loan)	5	(0)
2006–	Derby County	120	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13:45, 7 May 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Dean Leacock (born 10 June 1984 in Thornton Heath, London) is an English footballer of Barbadian descent. He currently plays for Championship side Derby County, primarily as a centre back, but he can also play as a right back or a defensive midfielder.

Career

Fulham

Leacock in a match against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in 2007.

Leacock made his professional début as an eighteen year old for Fulham in a League Cup defeat against Wigan Athletic on 4 December 2002. After playing in another League Cup defeat to Wigan on 23 September 2003, Leacock made his Premier League début in a 2–0 win over Blackburn Rovers on 28 September 2003. He made four consecutive league appearances for Fulham before his run in the team was cut short when he tore knee ligaments in the pre-match warm up before Fulham's 3–1 over Manchester United on 25 October 2003. The injury ruled him out for the season.^[1]

Leacock returned to fitness in time for the start of the 2004–05 season. On 10 September 2004, he joined Coventry City on a loan for a month,^[2] in a deal that was later extended to the end of the year.^[3] He made his début for Coventry in a 3–0 defeat to Leeds United on 11 September 2004. He made 1 cup and 8 league appearances for Coventry before injury prompted an early return to Fulham. He returned to Coventry on loan in January 2005 and made a further 5 league and 2 cup appearances before his spell with the club was again cut short by injury. Leacock then made 5 league and 2 cup appearances for Fulham during the 2005–06 season, signing a new contract at the end of the season.^[4]

In July 2006, Leacock was poised to join League 1 side Swansea City in a £375,000 deal,^[5] but the deal collapsed at the last minute.^[6] However on 10 August 2006, it was announced that he would join Derby County in a £375,000 transfer.^[7]

Derby County

Leacock made his Derby début in a 2–1 win over Hull City on 12 August 2006. He was a regular first team player in his first season at the East Midlands club, playing 38 league games and playing in all 3 games of the Championship playoffs as Derby were promoted to the Premiership as playoff winners.

Leacock played his first Premier League game for Derby on 18 August 2007, in a 4–0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. In what would be a disastrous season for Derby that would end in relegation, Leacock played 26 League games, captaining Derby for the first time in a 2–1 defeat to Liverpool on 26 December 2007 and scoring an own goal in a 2–2 draw against his former employers Fulham on 29 March 2008.

Leacock was out of the first team picture at the start of the 2008/09 season with manager Paul Jewell telling Leacock he would listen to any offers for him. However, following Derby's disappointing start to the season, and with the retirement of Derby captain Alan Stubbs, he found himself brought back into the first eleven, and taken off the transfer list.^[8][9] He made his first appearance of the season in a 1–0 defeat to Southampton on 23 August 2008. Leacock subsequently started seven of Derby's eight game unbeaten run that took them from the bottom of the table to within reach of the playoffs by the start of October, forming a good partnership with Martin Albrechtsen. On 18 October 2008 he was rewarded with a new contract to keep him at the club until 2012.^[10] After suffering a hamstring injury in Derby's 4–1 League Cup win over Brighton on 4 November 2008,^[11] Leacock went on to miss the rest of the season, and was ultimately out for eight months through hamstring and pelvis injuries that at times left him unable to walk.^[12][13][14]

Leacock made his first appearance of the 2009/10 season in a 1–0 defeat to Sheffield United on 12 September 2009. He went on to play 12 out of 17 league games, before bruising his kneecap in a 2–1 defeat against Doncaster Rovers on 12 December 2009. After sitting out three games as a precaution,^[15] Leacock was ruled out for four to six weeks.^[16] After undergoing knee surgery, his comeback was delayed until the end of February^[17] and he returned to full training and reserve team action at the start of March.^[18] Leacock returned to first team action on 16 March, coming on as a substitute in a 2–2 draw against Middlesbrough, making two more substitute appearances before starting his first game in over three months,^[19] in a 1–0 win over Leicester City on 27 March. In Derby's next game, against Coventry City a week later, Leacock was forced off at half time with knee ligament damage, and was ruled out for the rest of the season.^[20]

Leacock returned to full training in time for Derby's pre-season campaign and started the 2010/11 season season as Derby's first choice centre back (alongside Shaun Barker) and played the full 90 minutes of each of the opening eight league and cup games of the campaign, even notching the first goal of his 9 1/2 year senior career, on 18 September 2010, against Barnsley at Oakwell in a 1–1 draw.^[21] He made his 100th career league appearance in a 5–0 win over Crystal Palace on 25 September 2010 but sustained a hamstring injury which ruled him out for several weeks.^[22] He returned to the first team ahead of schedule on 16 October 2010, reuniting with Barker at the heart of the Derby defence as they ran out 3–0 winners over Preston North End.

References

1. ^ "Leacock keen to bounce back". BBC News. 26 May 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/f/fulham/3750241.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
2. ^ "Coventry make double swoop". BBC News. 10 September 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/coventry_city/3646098.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
3. ^ "Leacock to extend City stay". BBC News. 6 October 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/coventry_city/3721740.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
4. ^ "Fulham youngsters agree new deals". BBC News. 1 June 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/f/fulham/5038742.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
5. ^ "Swans signing breaks record deal". BBC News. 15 July 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/swansea_city/5182934.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
6. ^ "Leacock's Swansea move collapses". BBC News. 20 July 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/swansea_city/5198408.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
7. ^ "Leacock will seek medical advice". BBC News. 19 October 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/derby_county/6061920.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
8. ^ "Leacock to stay at Rams – Jewell". BBC News. 22 August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/derby_county/7576716.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
9. ^ "Derby are in no rush to find replacement after Stubbs blow". www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk. 22 August 2008. http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/Derby-rush-replacement-Stubbs-blow/article-283374-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. 
10. ^ "Leacock signs new Derby contract". BBC News. 18 October 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/derby_county/7677657.stm. Retrieved 16 January 2010. 
11. ^ "Brighton & Hove Albion 1–4 Derby County (Tue 04 Nov 2008)". Derby Evening Telegraph. 24 June 2009. http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/Brighton-Hove-Albion-1-4-Derby-County-Tue-04-Nov-2008/article-1115639-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. 
12. ^ "Derby County: Boss won't hurry Dean back after his lay-off". Derby Evening Telegraph. 2 July 2009. http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/Boss-won-t-hurry-Dean-lay/article-1128261-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. 
13. ^ "Derby County: Leacock praying injury woes at an end". Derby Evening Telegraph. 4 July 2009. http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/Leacock-praying-injury-woes-end/article-1136959-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. 
14. ^ "Derby County: Clough boosted by Leacock return". Derby Evening Telegraph. 17 July 2009. http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/clough-boosted-dean-return/article-1173568-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. 
15. ^ "Barker closer to Rams return but Leacock injury is a concern". www.therams.co.uk. 5 January 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Barker-closer-Rams-return-Leacock-injury-concern/article-1669552-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. ^{[dead link]}
16. ^ "Derby's Leacock faces six weeks out". www.therams.co.uk. 7 January 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Derby-s-Leacock-faces-weeks/article-1678633-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. ^{[dead link]}
17. ^ "Rams defender Leacock will be sidelined until end of February". www.therams.co.uk. 12 January 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Rams-defender-Leacock-sidelined-end-February/article-1693629-detail/article.html. Retrieved 17 January 2010. ^{[dead link]}
18. ^ "Leacock aiming to force way back into Rams team". www.therams.co.uk. 4 March 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Leacock-aiming-force-way-Rams-team/article-1883362-detail/article.html. Retrieved 11 November 2010. ^{[dead link]}
19. ^ "Leacock ready for a start". www.therams.co.uk. 26 March 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Undefined-Headline/article-1945358-detail/article.html. Retrieved 11 November 2010. ^{[dead link]}
20. ^ "Rams defender Leacock ruled out for rest of season". www.therams.co.uk. 6 April 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Rams-defender-Leacock-ruled-rest-season/article-1971711-detail/article.html. Retrieved 11 November 2010. ^{[dead link]}
21. ^ "Barnsley 1–1 Derby". BBC News. 18 September 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/8997717.stm. Retrieved 19 September 2010. 
22. ^ "Injured Leacock is facing a spell on the sidelines". therams.co.uk. 27 September 2010. http://www.therams.co.uk/news/Injured-Leacock-facing-spell-sidelines/article-2688438-detail/article.html. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• Dean Leacock player profile at dcfc.co.uk
• Dean Leacock career stats at Soccerbase

Persondata
Name	Leacock, Dean
Alternative names
Short description	English association footballer
Date of birth	10 June 1984
Place of birth	Thornton Heath, London
Date of death
Place of death