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Phil Stant

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English footballer and manager

Phil Stant
Personal information
Full name Philip Richard Stant
Date of birth (1962-10-13) 13 October 1962 (age 62)
Place of birth Bolton, England
Position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1981–1982 Camberley Town
1982–1983 Reading 4 (2)
1986–1989 Hereford United 89 (38)
1989–1991 Notts County 22 (6)
1990 → Blackpool (loan) 12 (5)
1990 → Lincoln City (loan) 4 (0)
1991 → Huddersfield Town (loan) 5 (1)
1991 Fulham 19 (5)
1991–1993 Mansfield Town 57 (32)
1993–1995 Cardiff City 79 (34)
1993 → Mansfield Town (loan) 4 (1)
1995–1997 Bury 62 (23)
1996 → Northampton Town (loan) 5 (2)
1997–2001 Lincoln City 64 (20)
2001 Brighton & Hove Albion 7 (1)
2001–2002 Worcester City 15 (7)
2002 Dover Athletic 4 (0)
2002 Hayes 3 (0)
2002 Hinckley United 7 (2)
2002–2003 Gainsborough Trinity 28 (13)
2003–2004 Ilkeston Town 10 (1)
Total 500 (193)
Managerial career
2000–2001 Lincoln City
2002–2003 Gainsborough Trinity
2003–2005 Ilkeston Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Philip Richard Stant (born 13 October 1962) is an English football manager, former professional footballer and British Army soldier who served in the Falklands War and was attached to the SAS.

As a player he was a striker who after serving in the Army he entered professional football at the relatively late age of 24 but went on to score over 150 times in the Football League, most notably for Hereford United, Mansfield Town, Cardiff City and Lincoln City. He also played professionally for Reading, Notts County, Blackpool, Huddersfield Town, Fulham, Bury, Northampton Town and Brighton & Hove Albion. He spent his formative years in Non-League football for Worcester City, Dover Athletic, Hayes and Hinckley United. He initially managed Lincoln City between 2000 and 2001 whilst continuing as a player and also had similar spells in charge of Gainsborough Trinity and Ilkeston Town.

Military career

Stant joined the army as a teenager and was billeted at Aldershot Garrison for his training and played for local non-League club Camberley Town. In 1982, at the age of just 18, Stant was sent to the Falkland Islands as part of operations of the Falklands War, serving with 5 Infantry Brigade as part of 81 Ordnance Coy. He was deployed to the South Atlantic aboard the Queen Elizabeth 2, a journey that lasted three weeks and included stops in Sierra Leone and Ascension Island before arriving in the South Atlantic, landing on South Georgia.

During his time in the conflict, Stant was witness to the Bluff Cove Air Attacks, having been aboard RFA Sir Tristram earlier in the day. He had been ordered off the ship the day before to man a nearby trench in Port Pleasant. There he was witness to the Argentinian aerial attack on the two warships and was one of the first on the scene afterwards where he helped wounded soldiers. Stant has described his experiences in the aftermath as "the day I grew up" due to the injuries he witnessed. He remained on the island until July 1982, a month after the end of the hostilities there.

He progressed into the SAS and also worked as part of a bomb disposal unit before turning his attentions to football. His experiences in the South Atlantic were the subject of a 2007 ITV documentary, "Falklands 25: A soldier's story".

Playing career

A fan of home town team Bolton Wanderers, his games in The Football League came with Hereford United, although he scored twice in four games for Reading in the 1982–83 season. Bought out of the Army by Hereford for £600, Stant went on to score 38 times in 89 League appearances for the Bulls, including 28 in 1988–89, before he secured a £175,000 move to Notts County.

He played 22 times (six goals) for the Magpies and after loan spells with Blackpool, Lincoln City and Huddersfield Town he joined Fulham for £60,000 in February 1991.

Six months later he was on the move again, scoring 26 goals for Mansfield Town as the Stags won promotion from the Fourth Division, and in December 1992, was transferred £100,000 to Cardiff City.

Stant averaged a goal every other game during his three seasons at Ninian Park, including a hat-trick in the 1993 Welsh Cup final win over Rhyl, before it was Bury's turn to experience his goalscoring talents and it was from the Shakers where City purchased him for £30,000 in December 1996 where in two seasons scored 23 goals in 62 appearances.

He then moved to Lincoln City where he marked his second arrival at Sincil Bank by scoring 16 goals in 22 matches during the second half of the 1996–97 season and whilst the goals dried up the following campaign, he still played his part as the Club gained promotion on the final day of the season, assisting caretaker-manager Shane Westley in the latter half of the season.

In the Second Division campaign the following year, Stant made five substitute appearances in all competitions as he concentrated on assisting Westley and chairman John Reames, who took over as manager in November 1998. In May 2000, Reames handed the managerial reins over to Stant, who came off the bench a further 19 times in the 1999–2000 season.

Stant lasted 30 matches as Imps' boss and, four days after the Lincoln City Membership Scheme's Community Ownership Package for the shareholding of the club was successful, the new board of directors terminated the contracts of Stant and his assistant George Foster, with former Grimsby Town boss Alan Buckley coming in as his successor. A short-term playing contract at Brighton & Hove Albion followed.

Coaching career

Following his departure from Brighton, Stant joined Worcester City. He enjoyed a fruitful spell with the club, scoring a hat-trick in the 4–2 victory over Tiverton Town on 20 October 2001 and going on to notch a total of 12 goals in 23 appearances before moving on to Dover Athletic. After four appearances for Dover, Stant moved on for a brief sojourn at Hayes which saw him make three appearances in a week long stay before finishing the season at Hinckley United, linking up with one-time Notts County colleague Dean Thomas and scoring twice in seven league appearances, as well as in the Leicestershire Challenge Cup Final.

In July 2002, Stant moved back into management, being appointed player-manager at Gainsborough Trinity. Stant enjoyed a successful season at the Northolme, leading the club to the fifth round of the FA Trophy whilst securing a mid-table league finish and winning the Lincolnshire Senior County Cup, but resigned at the end of the season due to work commitments.

In October 2003, Stant returned to management with Ilkeston Town, He would steer Ilkeston to promotion to the Northern Premier League Premier Division in the 2004–05 season but a disappointing start to their campaign at the higher level saw Stant resign from his post in September 2005.

Other work in football

Stant runs the Newark & Sherwood College Football Academy and is a youth development monitor for the Football League.

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Reading 1982–83 Third Division 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 2
Hereford United 1986–87 Fourth Division 9 1 0 0 0 0 2 3 11 4
1987–88 Fourth Division 39 9 2 2 1 1 4 1 46 13
1988–89 Fourth Division 41 28 1 0 2 1 5 3 49 32
Total 89 38 3 2 3 2 11 7 106 49
Notts County 1989–90 Third Division 22 6 1 0 2 1 5 0 30 7
1990–91 Second Division 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 22 6 1 0 2 1 5 0 30 7
Blackpool (loan) 1990–91 Fourth Division 12 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 5
Lincoln City (loan) 1990–91 Fourth Division 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Huddersfield Town (loan) 1990–91 Third Division 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 1
Fulham (loan) 1990–91 Third Division 19 5 0 0 0 0 1 0 20 5
Mansfield Town 1991–92 Fourth Division 40 26 1 0 2 0 2 0 45 26
1992–93 Second Division 17 6 1 0 2 1 0 0 20 7
Total 57 32 2 0 4 1 2 0 65 33
Cardiff City 1992–93 Third Division 24 12 0 0 0 0 2 1 26 13
1993–94 Second Division 36 10 6 4 0 0 4 2 46 16
1994–95 Second Division 19 13 1 0 2 2 2 0 24 15
Total 79 35 7 4 2 2 8 3 96 44
Mansfield Town (loan) 1993–94 Third Division 4 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 5 2
Bury 1994–95 Third Division 20 13 0 0 0 0 3 0 23 13
1995–96 Third Division 34 9 1 0 5 4 2 0 42 13
1996–97 Second Division 8 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 9 1
Total 62 23 1 0 6 4 5 0 74 27
Northampton Town (loan) 1996–97 Third Division 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 2
Lincoln City 1996–97 Third Division 22 15 0 0 0 0 1 0 23 15
1997–98 Third Division 21 2 4 0 2 1 0 0 27 3
1998–99 Second Division 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 5 0
1999–2000 Third Division 18 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 22 3
2000–01 Third Division 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 64 20 8 0 3 1 2 0 77 21
Brighton & Hove Albion 2000–01 Third Division 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1
Worcester City 2001–02 SFL Premier Division 15 7 5 2 0 0 2 1 22 10
Dover Athletic 2001–02 Conference National 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Hayes 2001–02 Conference National 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Hinckley United 2001–02 SFL Premier Division 7 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 2
Gainsborough Trinity 2002–03 Northern Premier League 28 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 48 13
Ilkeston Town 2003–04 NPL First Division 10 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 1
Career total 500 193 28 8 21 12 36 11 585 224

Honours

Cardiff City

Division 3 winner 1992-93

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Falklands: A soldier's tale". Manchester Evening News. 2 April 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  2. ^ "Phil Stant:Football and the Falklands". The Independent. 28 March 2012. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  3. "There are no winners in this shooting match". The Times (subscription required). 20 March 2006. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  4. ^ "Phil Stant interviewed by the Times". Bulls News. 20 March 2006. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  5. "Cardiff City 5-0 Rhyl". Welsh Football Data Archive. Archived from the original on 1 June 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  6. "Striker Stant signs for City". Worcester News. 16 August 2001. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  7. "Worcester City 4 Tiverton Town 2". Worcester News. 22 October 2001. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  8. "Dover move in for City striker". Worcester News. 16 January 2002. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  9. "Now Stant joins Hinckley". NonLeagueDaily.com. 22 March 2002. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  10. "Phil Stant profile". hinckleyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  11. "Stant appoints new number two". NonLeagueDaily.com. 13 July 2002. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  12. "Stant leaves Trinity". NonLeagueDaily.com. 13 May 2003. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  13. "Bishop out — Stant in at Ilkeston". NonLeagueDaily.com. 24 October 2003. Archived from the original on 12 June 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  14. "As does Stant at Ilkeston". NonLeagueDaily.com. 29 September 2005. Archived from the original on 12 June 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
  15. Lynch. The Official P.F.A. Footballers Heroes. p. 147.
  16. Lynch. The Official P.F.A. Footballers Heroes. p. 149.

External links

Awards
English Fourth Division top scorers
1988–89 Football League Fourth Division PFA Team of the Year
1991–92 Football League Fourth Division PFA Team of the Year
Hereford United F.C. – Player of the Year
Phil Stant managerial positions
Lincoln City F.C. – managers
(c) = caretaker manager
Gainsborough Trinity F.C. – managers
(c) = caretaker manager
Ilkeston Town F.C. – managers
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