Dene Cropper

Dene Cropper

Personal information
Full name	Dene Cropper
Date of birth	5 January 1983 (1983-01-05) (age 28)
Place of birth	Chesterfield, England
Height	6 ft 02 in (1.88 m)
Playing position	Striker
Club information
Current club	Matlock Town
Youth career
1999–2002	Sheffield Wednesday
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2000–2001	Sheffield Wednesday	0	(0)
2001–2002	Worksop Town (loan)	20	(10)
2002–2004	Lincoln City	65	(18)
2004	→ Gainsborough Trinity (loan)	5	(1)
2004	Boston United	5	(1)
2004–2005	Worksop Town	25	(11)
2005–2011	Matlock Town	91	(39)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 12 December 2007. † Appearances (Goals).

Dene Cropper (born 5 January 1983 in Chesterfield, England) is a former professional footballer who now competes in the semi-professional game.

Cropper was a produce of the youth setup at Sheffield Wednesday and signed professional terms with The Owls in August 2000, a few months prior to the clubs relegation from the Premier League. He would only make the reserve team that season, and although he was offered a new deal he left the club on free transfer in the summer of 2002.

During the 2001–02 season Cropper signed on loan for Worksop Town, He notched up a decent scoring rate for them, netting ten goals in twenty games.

Lincoln City

On 10 May 2002, Cropper along with Ben Futcher became Lincoln City manager Keith Alexander's first signings of his second spell in charge at Sincil Bank.^[1] He made his Football league debut in the club's 1-1 opening day draw at Kidderminster Harriers on 10 August 2002, though this was marred when, seven minutes from time, referee Phil Crossley deemed his challenge on Abdou Sall unfair and, following an earlier booking for dissent, dismissed him for two bookings.^[2] His home debut, three days later, was a far happier affair as he notched his first goal for the club in a 2-0 victory over Rochdale.^[3] Cropper had a good season with Lincoln, but failed to score as many goals as his play deseved in a season which saw him and his team lose out in the playoff finals at the Millennium Stadium.

The following season, Cropper found himself overlooked, and was finding himself on the bench on a regular basis due to long lay offs with injury and the performances of the club's other forwards. In February 2004 he signed on loan with Non-League club Gainsborough Trinity, in a month that saw him net once in five appearances at The Northolme. He returned to Lincoln after his month and was subject to another loan offer, this time from Scarborough, but he rejected the chance to play for Scarborough in favour of a permanent switch to local rivals Boston United. Cropper played five times for Boston and scored once but suffered a serious knee injury towards the end of the season which prompted his release from the club.

Upon returning to the game Cropper turned down a move to King's Lynn before re-joining former club Worksop Town. He made a move to Matlock Town in September 2005 for an undisclosed fee.

References

1. ^ "City In Double Signing Swoop". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 10 May 2002. http://www.redimps.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10440~217036,00.html. Retrieved 13 October 2011. 
2. ^ "Harriers 1 Red Imps 1 - Keith Speaks...". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 10 August 2002. http://www.redimps.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10440~253534,00.html. Retrieved 13 October 2011. 
3. ^ "Lincoln City 2 Rochdale 0 - Keith Speaks...". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 13 August 2002. http://www.redimps.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10440~255391,00.html. Retrieved 13 October 2011. 

External links

• Dene Cropper career stats at Soccerbase
• Lincoln City F.C. Official Archive Profile
• Unofficial Dene Cropper profile at The Forgotten Imp

Persondata
Name	Cropper, Dene
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	5 January 1983
Place of birth	Chesterfield, England
Date of death
Place of death