Chris Morris (footballer)

For other people named Chris Morris, see Chris Morris (disambiguation).

Chris Morris

Personal information
Full name	Christopher B. Morris
Date of birth	24 December 1963 (1963-12-24) (age 47)
Place of birth	Newquay, England
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Playing position	Defender
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1982–1987	Sheffield Wednesday	74	(1)
1987–1992	Celtic	158	(8)
1992–1997	Middlesbrough	82	(3)
Total		314	(12)
National team
1987–1993	Republic of Ireland	35	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Christopher "Chris" B. Morris (born 24 December 1963 in Newquay, Cornwall, England) is a former professional footballer who made his name as a defender with Celtic in Scotland and Sheffield Wednesday & Middlesbrough in England, among others. Morris also had a successful playing career with the Republic of Ireland national side during the Jack Charlton era.

Club career

Morris first began his career in 1982, signing for Sheffield Wednesday under ex-England international, Jack Charlton, in the old Division Two. He won promotion to the First Division with Wednesday in 1984. Morris made seventy-four appearances between 1983 and 1987, scoring one goal along the way. Morris then moved north of the border to Celtic, signing for £125,000 on 10 August 1987. He made his debut in the 4-0 win over Morton, at age 23. Between 1987 and 1992, Morris was the regular right-back for the Bhoys, with 160 appearances and 8 goals to his name. Morris then moved on to Middlesbrough on 14 August 1992, where he remained for several seasons as a first team regular without ever becoming a crowd favourite. Troubled by an anterior cruciate ligament injury, he retired at the end of the 1996-97 season, when Boro were runners-up in the FA Cup and Football League Cup, but a 3-point deduction for postponing a match at short notice had caused them to be relegated from the Premier League.

International career

In 1988, Morris once again caught the attention of Jack Charton, who by then was the Republic of Ireland boss. Since taking over in 1986, Charlton had begun to make maximum use of the rule that allowed players with Irish heritage to play for the national team. In doing so, Charlton managed to get top players like John Aldridge and Ray Houghton into the national side. Morris, whose mother, Evelyn, was born in Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, also qualified under this rule, and made a promising debut in the 5-0 friendly win against Israel at Dalymount Park on 10 November 1987. Morris soon made the number 2 shirt his own, and played his part in the successful qualification bid for Euro 88, the Republic's first ever major tournament. Morris played in all three games of the championships, including the famous 1-0 win over England. Although the Republic were eliminated following a late goal by Wim Kieft in their final group game against Holland, Morris became a household name in Ireland, along the with rest of the team, who were greeted as heroes on their return home. Morris continued in the side that qualified for World Cup 1990 in Italy, another major first for the Republic. He played in every game This time it was a goal from Salvatore Schillaci of Italy that saw Ireland off in the quarter finals, but it was another high-point for the team, and for Morris. Ireland failed to qualify for the next European Championships in 1992, and Morris played his final game against Wales on 17 November 1992.

Personal life

Morris has a daughter, Rebecca, and a son, Christopher, from his first marriage.

After leaving football, Morris went back to Cornwall to work for the family business "Morris Cornish Pasties," which his parents have run since 1971. He also coaches a college football team who were crowned east cornwall champions in Morris's first season with them.

References

External links

• Morris Cornish Pasties
• Chris Morris career stats at Soccerbase
• Morris at Newcastle Fans

Persondata
Name	Morris, Chris
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	24 December 1963
Place of birth	Newquay, England
Date of death
Place of death