Ivan Sproule
 Sproule playing for Bristol City. |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ivan Sproule | ||
| Date of birth | 18 February 1981 [1] | ||
| Place of birth | Castlederg, Northern Ireland[1] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | ||
| Playing position | Winger | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Hibernian | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2000–2001 | Moyola Park | ? | (?) |
| 2001–2004 | Omagh Town | 95 | (19) |
| 2004–2005 | Institute | 11 | (2) |
| 2005–2007 | Hibernian | 71 | (12) |
| 2007–2011 | Bristol City | 119 | (6) |
| 2010 | → Yeovil Town (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2011 | → Notts County (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 2011– | Hibernian | 0 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2005– | Northern Ireland | 11 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 May 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
Ivan Sproule (born 18 February 1981 in Castlederg, County Tyrone) is a Northern Irish professional association football player. Sproule, a winger who is known for his explosive pace,[2] only turned professional after he signed for Scottish Premier League side Hibernian in January 2005, just a month before his 24th birthday. His early career had been spent at Omagh Town and Institute, semi-professional clubs in the Irish Football League. He combined playing football with his full time career as an engineer.[3] Sproule moved to Football League Championship club Bristol City in 2007. After four years with the club, including loan spells at Yeovil Town and Notts County in his final season, Sproule agreed to return to Hibernian in May 2011.
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[edit] Club career
[edit] Hibernian
Scottish Premier League club Hibernian invited him for a trial in January 2005, in which he impressed manager Tony Mowbray and signed as a full-time professional until the end of the season, which meant that he had to give up his day job as a fabrication engineer.[3][4] Hibs paid Institute a transfer fee of £5,000.[5]
The gamble of signing a player from outside professional football paid off for both Sproule and Hibs. Although he had a slow start with Hibs and it was rumoured that he would return to Northern Ireland,[1] he scored one of the goals in a 3–1 win over Celtic at Celtic Park.[6] Sproule was offered an extended contract which he accepted.
Sproule hit the headlines in August 2005 by scoring a hat-trick in a 3–0 defeat of defending champions Rangers at Ibrox Stadium.[7] His performances caused Sproule to be linked with a £1M move to Ukrainian club FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, who had played against Hibs in the UEFA Cup.[3]
Sproule caused further damage to Rangers by helping Hibs eliminate them from the 2006 Scottish Cup. Sproule scored one goal and assisted with another, as Hibs again won 3–0 at Ibrox.[8] He was part of the team that won the 2007 Scottish League Cup Final. In total, Sproule made 94 appearances for Hibs, scoring 18 goals.
[edit] Bristol City
Sproule joined Bristol City on a three-year contract on 27 June 2007 for an undisclosed fee, believed to be about £500,000.[9] He made his debut for the West Country club on 29 August 2007 against Manchester City in the Carling Cup. He was made to sit out the first four games of the season due to a suspension which he received while playing for Hibernian. He scored his first goal for Bristol City on 24 October 2007 in their 2–1 victory over Southampton. Sproule was part of the Bristol City squad who were beaten in the Championship 2008 play-off final against Hull City.
Sproule fell out of favour at Bristol City in 2010, making his last start for the first team in August.[10] He was loaned to Yeovil Town in November.[10] He was then loaned to Notts County in March 2011.[11]
[edit] Hibernian (second spell)
In April 2011, Sproule held discussions with Colin Calderwood about a proposed return to Hibernian.[12] Sproule signed a pre-contract agreement with the club a month later.[13]
[edit] Career statistics
- As of 30 May 2011
[edit] Club
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| Hibernian | 2004–05 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| 2005-06 | 32 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 7 | |
| 2006–07 | 32 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 8 | |
| Bristol City | 2007–08 | 42 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 2 |
| 2008-09 | 38 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 3 | |
| 2009-10 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 1 | |
| 2010-11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | |
| Notts County (loan) | 2010-11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Yeovil Town (loan) | 2010-11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Hibernian | 2011–12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 199 | 18 | 15 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 227 | 23 |
[edit] International
| International appearances and goals | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Date | Venue | Opponent | Result | Goal | Competition |
| 1. | 28 March 2007 | Windsor Park, Belfast |  Sweden |
2–1 | 0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group F |
| 2. | 17 October 2007 | Råsunda Stadium, Solna | Sweden |
1–1 | 0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group F |
| 3. | 17 November 2007 | Windsor Park, Belfast |  Denmark |
2–1 | 0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group F |
| 4. | 21 November 2007 | Estadio Gran Canaria, Las Palmas |  Spain |
0-1 | 0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group F |
[edit] International career
Sproule was called into the Northern Ireland squad for the first time in September 2005, immediately after his hat-trick for Hibs against Rangers.[1] He came on as a substitute in the famous 1–0 win over England at Windsor Park to win his first cap.[14] Sproule scored on his first start for Northern Ireland against Estonia on 1 March 2006. His goal was the only goal of the game and was scored with his first touch, with only 2 minutes of the game played.[15] During this match, the Northern Ireland fans sang "And I can't – help – falling in love – with – Sproule", after his maiden international goal.
He was left out of the initial Northern Ireland squad for the matches in October 2006 with Denmark and Latvia, but was later added for the Latvia match due to call-offs by other players.
[edit] Personal life
Sproule has a wife, Janet, and one son, Sam.[16] A second child was stillborn in November 2009, causing him to miss Bristol City's match against Nottingham Forest.[16] City manager Gary Johnson dedicated their equalising goal in the match to Sproule, who had sent a message of support to his teammates.[16][17] Johnson commented:[17]
| “ | We respect him for thinking of us at a time when we're thinking about him. It was a major shock to all of us and we're all very close to Ivan. | ” |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d "Ivan Sproule". Irish Football Association website. http://www.irishfa.com/squad-profiles/377/senior/ivan-sproule-forward/.
- ^ Gordon, Phil (27 November 2005). "Sproule's Best efforts can harm McLeish". The Independent on Sunday. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/sproules-best-efforts-can-harm-mcleish-517144.html. Retrieved 15 February 2009.
- ^ a b c "Beuzelin admits high expectations". BBC Sport. 1 December 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/h/hibernian/4490670.stm.
- ^ "Sproule joins Scottish club Hibs". BBC Sport website. 28 January 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/irish/4217061.stm.
- ^ "Hibs' Ivan the Incredible". Scotland On Sunday. 28 August 2005. http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/sport/Hibs-Ivan-the-Incredible.2656498.jp.
- ^ "Celtic 1–3 Hibernian". BBC Sport website. 30 April 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/4495875.stm.
- ^ "Rangers 0–3 Hibernian". BBC Sport website. 27 August 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/4187314.stm.
- ^ "Rangers 0–3 Hibernian". BBC Sport website. 4 February 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_cups/4676068.stm.
- ^ "Bristol City sign Hibs' Sproule". BBC Sport website. 28 June 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/b/bristol_city/6769397.stm.
- ^ a b "Yeovil Town sign Bristol City winger Ivan Sproule". BBC Sport. 22 November 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/y/yeovil/9216490.stm. Retrieved 22 November 2010.
- ^ "Notts County sign Ivan Sproule and Njogu Demba-Nyren". BBC Sport. 4 March 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/notts_county/9415310.stm. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
- ^ "Winger Ivan Sproule in line for Hibernian return". BBC Sport. 27 April 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13216683.stm. Retrieved 27 April 2011.
- ^ "Winger Sproule signs pre-contract deal with Hibernian". BBC Sport. 18 May 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13216683.stm. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ^ "Northern Ireland 1–0 England". BBC Sport website. 7 September 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/4212920.stm.
- ^ "Sproule hungry for more NI goals". BBC Sport website. 1 March 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/4761878.stm.
- ^ a b c Bristol City boss dedicates late equaliser to Sproule and his family after tragedy, Bristol Evening Post, 9 November 2009.
- ^ a b Johnson dedicates goal to Sproule, BBC Sport, 9 November 2009.
[edit] External links
- Ivan Sproule profile at bcfc.co.uk
- Ivan Sproule at National-Football-Teams.com
- Ivan Sproule career stats at Soccerbase
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