Phil Babb

Football player infobox
playername = Phil Babb


fullname = Philip Andrew Babb
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1970|11|30
cityofbirth = Lambeth, London
countryofbirth = England
height = height|ft=6|in=0
currentclub =
position = Defender
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 1988–1990
1990–1992
1992–1994
1994–2000
2000
2000–2002
2002–2004
clubs = Millwall
Bradford City
Coventry City
Liverpool
→ Tranmere Rovers (loan)
Sporting Lisbon
Sunderland
Total
caps(goals) = 000 0(0)
080 (14)
077 0(3)
128 0(1)
004 0(0)
037 0(0)
048 0(0)
374 (18)
nationalyears = 1994
1994–2002
nationalteam = Republic of Ireland B
Republic of Ireland
nationalcaps(goals) = 001 0(0)
035 0(0)

Philip Andrew Babb (born November 30 1970 in Lambeth, London) is a former English born Irish international professional football player who played as a central defender.

Career

Babb began his career with Millwall as a trainee, but failed to make an appearance for the first team before signing for Bradford City. Babb played well enough for the Bantams to earn a £500,000 move to Coventry City in July 1992. After a successful spell at Coventry, he subsequently moved to Liverpool for £3.6 million after some impressive performances for the Sky Blues in the Premiership and a number of international call-ups. He enjoyed a relatively successful though fitful few years at Liverpool. Babb was involved in an infamous accident at Anfield in a match between Liverpool and Chelsea. Whilst scrambling to block a shot by Pierluigi Casiraghi Babb slid across the face of the goal missing the ball but managing to hit the post while both of his legs were spread. Casiraghi scored in the 1–1 draw.

Babb fell out of favour with French boss Gérard Houllier, and he had a loan spell at Tranmere Rovers before leaving the club on a Bosman free deal in the summer of 2000. He signed for Sporting Clube de Portugal and was voted the best defender in Portugal in his second season there. He later moved to Sunderland without great success.

His career hit controversy in August 2000 when he and Mark Kennedy were ordered home from the Republic of Ireland squad after appearing in court accused of causing criminal damage, causing a breach of the peace and being drunk and disorderly. They were rolling across car bonnets while replicating scenes from Starsky and Hutch, but unfortunately chose an unmarked police car.

Babb's final cap for Ireland was a Euro 2004 qualifier against Russia, played in Moscow. He would come into the game as an 85th minute sub, with his first touch of the ball being diverted behind Irish keeper Shay Given for an own goal. The Republic of Ireland lost the game 4–2, with ironically all three of manager Mick McCarthy's substitutes (Gary Doherty, Clinton Morrison and Babb) "scoring".

In 2006, Babb helped to save the award-winning publication Golf Punk Magazine. He, alongside former Sunderland teammates Thomas Sorensen, Michael Gray, Jason McAteer and Stephen Wright, had been an earlier investor in Golf Punk Magazine [Cite url|url=http://football.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1975688,00.html|title=Babb bails out Golf Punk] .

References

External links

*soccerbase|306|Phil Babb