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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen George Bull | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
| Current team | retired | ||
Stephen George Bull (born 28 March 1965) is an English footballer who had a long and successful career with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Early life
Steve Bull was born on the Moat Farm estate (known locally as the 'Lost City') on 28th March 1965. He started school in 1969 at Ocker Hill Primary School and moved up to Willingsworth High School in 1976, by which time he was excelling in school football teams. He left school in 1981 to join non-league Tipton Town.
Goalscoring exploits
His career was launched with Tipton Town. He transferred to Wolves from the club's arch-rivals, West Bromwich Albion in 1986 for a fee of £65,000 and played there until to 1999, he holds a number of club records:
- Top goal-scorer : 306 goals
- Top league goal-scorer : 250 goals
- Most goals in a season : 52 goals (1987/88)
- Most hat-tricks : 18
- International Caps : 13
- International Goals : 4
He is regarded as such a legend at the club that one of the main stands at their football ground, the Molineux, is named after him.
Wolves debut
His debut for Wolves was against Wrexham on 22 November, 1986. He made 464 league appearances for the club, 561 appearances in total. On leaving Wolves, he went on to play 12 games for Hereford United where he rejoined his old manager Graham Turner.
50 goals per season, 2 promotions and an England cap
Bull scored 52 goals in all competitions during the 1987-88 season as Wolves won the Fourth Division championship and became the first of only two teams (the other is Burnley) to have been champions of all four divisions in the English league. The following season he inspired Wolves to a second successive promotion, this time as Third Division champions, with a total of 53 goals - marking an incredible tally of 105 goals in 2 seasons. While still playing in the Third Division, he was selected for the England team and scored against Scotland on his debut at Hampden Park.
Bull continued to perform well in the second tier of the English league, and stayed loyal to his Midlands roots despite interest from the likes of Aston Villa, Coventry City, Newcastle United and even the Italian giants Juventus. He was determined to restore Wolves to their rightful place in the top division.
International career
Steve Bull was capped 13 times for the England team, and scored a total of 4 goals in the build up to Italia 90. He went on to score 2 more goals in a friendly against Czechoslovakia in 1990 - 1 of which was voted in as number 37 of England's 50 Greatest Goals. His final England goal was against Tunisia, which earned him a place in Bobby Robson's World Cup Squad.
Despite starting his international career well, Steve Bull did not score another goal for England. He played 4 times during Italia 90 - 3 times as a substitute against Republic of Ireland, Holland and Belgium and once as a starter against Egypt. His final match for England was in October 1990 against Poland, but was not picked again by his future Wolves manager, Graham Taylor.
Bull's Premiership dream which never came true
He came close to achieving his amibition of reaching the top flight in 1995 and 1997, but Wolves lost in the playoffs both times. During his final two seasons at the Molineux, his chances of first-team football were reduced by a series of knee injuries. And in July 1999, the 34-year-old Bull finally gave in and announced his retirement.
Comeback with Hereford
But he soon returned to playing as player-coach of Hereford United in the Conference, working under his former Wolves manager Graham Turner.
Stephen George Bull, MBE
Known by his adoring fans as 'Bully' for his club loyalty, rapport with supporters and passion for the game he received an MBE for services to Association Football in December 1999, shortly after retiring as a first class player.
Bull the former Albion player
Steve Bull played a handful of First Division games for West Bromwich Albion during the mid 1980's, but apart from that his career was spent outside the top division.
Ironically, he left Albion just as they began a sharp decline which saw them slide from the First Division to the Third Division in the space of five years. He went on to spark a revival for Wolves, who won two promotions in a row. Many Albion fans were left wandering as to what their team might have achieved if Bull had stayed with them.
External links
- Steve Bull's Official Home Page
- The Unofficial Steve Bull Home Page
- A tribute to Steve Bull
- Steve Bull on wanting to become new Wolves manager