Clint Hill (footballer)

Clint Hill

Hill playing for Queens Park Rangers in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Clinton Scott Hill
Date of birth	19 October 1978
Place of birth	Huyton, England[1]
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current team	Queens Park Rangers
Number	6
Youth career
1994–1997	Tranmere Rovers
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
1997–2002	Tranmere Rovers	140	(16)
2002–2003	Oldham Athletic	18	(1)
2003–2008	Stoke City	80	(3)
2007–2008	→ Crystal Palace (loan)	13	(3)
2008–2010	Crystal Palace	101	(2)
2010–	Queens Park Rangers	172	(5)
2011	→ Nottingham Forest (loan)	5	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23:18, 8 March 2016 (UTC). † Appearances (goals)

Clinton Scott "Clint" Hill (born 19 October 1978) is an English footballer who is currently the captain of Queens Park Rangers. His preferred position is at centre-back, although he can also play at left-back.

Hill began his career with local side Tranmere Rovers in 1997. He broke into the first team and became a regular as Rovers reached the League Cup final in 2000. Hill was sent-off however as Tranmere lost 2–1. He remained at Prenton Park until 2002 when he joined Oldham Athletic and after impressing there he was signed by Championship side Stoke City. His first season with Stoke was cut down due to injuries which hampered his time at the club. He left for Crystal Palace after making 84 appearances for Stoke in five years.

At Palace he played well despite the club struggling financially and when manager Neil Warnock joined Queens Park Rangers Hill followed him in July 2010. In his first season at Loftus Road QPR won the Championship and gained promotion to the Premier League. They went on to ensure survival on the final day of the season, Hill winning the supporters player of the year award for his performances this despite playing 25 matches and also spending a short time on loan at Nottingham Forest.

Club career

Tranmere Rovers

Born in Huyton, Merseyside, Hill began his career as a trainee at Tranmere Rovers, where he made his debut during a 2–2 draw against Nottingham Forest in the 1997–98 season. By the 1998–99 season Hill had become a regular starter in the Tranmere side and was part of the team which played in the 2000 League Cup final at Wembley against Leicester City, however Hill was sent off during the game and Tranmere lost the match 2–1. Hill made 140 appearances during his five years in the Tranmere first team.

Oldham Athletic

A £250,000 move to Oldham Athletic in 2002^[2] saw him make just 17 league starts in one season before it was cut short when Hill broke his leg during a League Cup tie against Crystal Palace in December 2002, which kept him sidelined for the remainder of the 2002–03 season. Hill scored one league goal for the Latics, ironically against Tranmere.^[3] Hill was then given a £120,000 move to Stoke City during the summer of 2003.^[4]

Stoke City

Hill's first season at Stoke City was disrupted with injury and he was forced to sit out a lot of the 2003–04 season,^[5] making only nine first team starts and three substitute appearances. However Hill impressed during his second season at Stoke with his defensive ability and won the club's player of the year award for the 2004–05 season.

However Hill's career at Stoke since has been hindered by recurring knee injuries, he damaged his anterior cruciate ligament towards the end of the 2004–05 season which prevented him from playing again until late into the 2005–06 season,^[6] however he made an immediate impact on his return, forging a strong partnership with Michael Duberry in central defence.

He found himself unable to hold down a regular first place during the 2006–07 season, with Danny Higginbotham and Michael Duberry preferred to him as first choice central defenders and Andy Griffin occupying the left-back slot. He played the majority of his appearances during the 2006–07 season as a stand-in left-back. However Hill's season was brought to a premature end when he required a further operation on the same knee he injured in 2005.

He remained at Stoke for the first half of the following season, although he joined Crystal Palace on loan in October. Ironically, his last outing for Stoke was a late appearance as a substitute in a victory at Palace.

Crystal Palace

Hill playing for Crystal Palace in 2008

Hill's move to join Neil Warnock's Eagles was for an initial period of two months. After impressing hugely, he then made the move permanent for an undisclosed fee in January 2008.^[7] He established himself as first choice left back, and became a fan's favourite due to his professional and committed attitude. After an extremely successful first season at Palace, where they made the Play-off semi-finals, Hill continued his superb consistency in the 2008–09 season. Despite his performances, Palace finished in a disappointing 15th place in the Championship table.^[8] An equally disappointing season 2009–10 witnessed Palace in severe financial plight with a consequential ten points deduction and a final position in the division of 21st.^[9]

Queens Park Rangers

On 1 July 2010, Hill left Palace on a free transfer to join Queens Park Rangers^[10] and reunited with his former boss Neil Warnock. On 7 August 2010, Hill made his QPR debut in a 4–0 win over Barnsley where he got his first clean sheet. Hill scored his first goal for QPR against Portsmouth on 1 February 2011.^[11] Hill played over thirty games for the Hoops and made the left back position firmly his. He scored his second goal for QPR in a 2–0 home win against Ipswich Town, in a game where he also set up a goal for Heidar Helguson to seal the win.^[12]

After QPR sealed the Championship title, Hill was able to play in the Premier League for the first time in his career. However, he was sent off on the opening day of the season for a headbutt on Martin Petrov of Bolton Wanderers in a 4–0 defeat at Loftus Road.^[13] On 20 September 2011, Hill signed for Nottingham Forest on a 93-day emergency loan deal,^[14][15] given squad number three.^[16] Due to injuries to Matthew Connolly and Danny Gabbidon, Hill was recalled early from his loan spell at Forest.^[17][18] Hill played for Forest five times. After his return from the loan spell, and the appointment of Mark Hughes as manager, Hill became a regular in the Rangers starting 11, forming a strong central defensive partnership with Anton Ferdinand. On 10 March 2012, Hill was denied what would have been his first Premier League goal when his header away to relegation rivals Bolton clearly crossed the line, but the linesman failed to spot this and a goal was not awarded. QPR went on to lose the game 2–1. Hill was 'gutted' about having been denied a first Premier League goal.

"It would have been my first Premier League goal. You try all your career to get into this league and I thought I had opened my account – but unfortunately they didn't see it. I knew straight away it was a goal. You could even see by the reaction of their team that it was a goal. I'm gutted by that decision."

— Hill spoke out to have been denied a first Premier League goal.^[19]

At the end of the 2011–12 season QPR survived on the final day of the season despite a 3–2 defeat to Manchester City. Hill was awarded both the fans and players player of the season awards for his outstanding performances for Rangers in the 2011–12 season.^[20] Hill's contract was due to expire in the summer of 2012 however Hill was keen to stay at Loftus Road.^[21] In May 2012, Hill was offered a new contract by QPR.^[22] On 19 June 2012 Clint signed a new one-year contract extension at the club till 2013.^[23]

The 2012–13 season saw Hill in and out of the starting 11 under Mark Hughes, however he has been ever present in the team since Harry Redknapp took over as manager with Rangers in deep relegation trouble. He was handed the captaincy by Redknapp taking over from Park Ji-Sung.^[24] QPR failed to moved out of the relegation zone and were relegated to the Championship after a 0–0 draw at Reading on 28 April 2013.^[25]

Hill remained captain for the 2013–14 season. He started games at both centre-back and left-back, scoring his first goal in 2 and a half years in the 1–0 win away to Leeds at Elland Road. He scored the winning goal once again on 2 November in a 2–1 victory over Derby County. Hill captained the team at Wembley as Rangers won the Championship Playoff final 1–0 against Derby County. Hill again signed a 1-year deal to captain the club for their season back in the Premier League.

On April 7, 2015, Hill scored his first Premier League goal, rising above the Aston Villa defence to head Matt Phillips' corner past Brad Guzan in the 55th minute to make the game 2-2, the final score was 3-3.^[26]

Career statistics

As of match played 9 January 2016 ^[27]

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other^[A]		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Tranmere Rovers	1997–98[28]	First Division	14	0	3	1	0	0	—		17	1
	1998–99[29]		33	4	0	0	5	0	—		38	4
	1999–2000[30]		29	5	1	0	6	2	—		36	7
	2000–01[31]		34	5	3	0	6	1	—		43	6
	2001–02[32]	Second Division	30	2	5	0	1	0	0	0	36	2
	Total		140	16	12	1	18	3	0	0	170	20
Oldham Athletic	2002–03[33]	Second Division	18	1	2	0	4	0	2	0	26	1
	Total		18	1	2	0	4	0	2	0	26	1
Stoke City	2003–04[34]	First Division	12	0	0	0	0	0	—		12	0
	2004–05[35]	Championship	32	1	0	0	1	0	—		33	1
	2005–06[36]		13	0	1	0	0	0	—		14	0
	2006–07[37]		18	2	1	0	1	0	—		20	2
	2007–08[38]		5	0	0	0	0	0	—		5	0
	Total		80	3	2	0	2	0	0	0	84	3
Crystal Palace	2007–08[38]	Championship	28	3	0	1	0	0	2	0	31	4
	2008–09[39]		43	1	3	1	2	0	—		48	2
	2009–10[40]		43	1	3	0	2	0	—		48	1
	Total		114	5	6	2	2	0	2	0	124	7
Queens Park Rangers	2010–11[41]	Championship	44	2	1	0	0	0	—		45	2
	2011–12[42]	Premier League	22	0	3	0	0	0	—		25	0
	2012–13[43]		31	0	2	0	1	0	—		33	0
	2013–14[44]	Championship	40	1	1	0	2	0	3	0	46	1
	2014–15[45]	Premier League	19	1	0	0	1	0	—		20	1
	2015–16[46]	Championship	6	1	1	0	1	0	—		8	1
	Total		162	5	8	0	5	0	3	0	178	5
Nottingham Forest (loan)	2011–12[42]	Championship	5	0	0	0	0	0	—		5	0
Career total			519	30	30	3	31	3	7	0	587	36

A. ^ The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the Football League Trophy and Football League play-offs.

Honours

Club

Tranmere Rovers

• Football League Cup Runner-up: 1999–2000

Queens Park Rangers

• Football League Championship: 2010–11
• Football League Championship play-offs: 2013–14

Individual

• Stoke City Player of the Year: 2004–05
• Queens Park Rangers Players' Player of the Year: 2011–12
• Queens Park Rangers Supporters' Player of the Year: 2011–12, 2012–13

References

1. Hugman, Barry J. (ed) (2008). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2008–09. Mainstream. ISBN 978-1-84596-324-8.
2. "Hill seals Oldham move". BBC Sport. 15 July 2002. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
3. "Oldham 2–0 Tranmere". BBC Sport. 24 August 2002. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
4. "Hill joins Oldham exodus". BBC Sport. 15 July 2003. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
5. "Stoke suffer Hill heartache". BBC Sport. 4 December 2003. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
6. "Hill knee surgery shock for Stoke". BBC Sport. 19 May 2005. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
7. "Hill makes Palace move permanent". BBC Sport. 16 January 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2008.
8. "Championship 2008/09". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
9. "Championship 2009/10". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
10. "Defender Clint Hill completes QPR move". BBC Sport. 1 July 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
11. Speck, Ivan (2 February 2011). "QPR 2 Portsmouth 0: Taarabt turns roaming Ranger". Daily Mail. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
12. Rej, Arindam (22 February 2011). "Clint Hill proves a gem for QPR after prising open Ipswich strongbox". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). Retrieved 5 November 2011.
13. Dawkes, Phil (13 August 2011). "QPR 0–4 Bolton". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
14. "Reds Swoop For Hill". nottinghamforest.co.uk (Nottingham Forest F.C.). 20 September 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
15. "Nottingham Forest agree loan deal for QPR's Clint Hill". BBC Sport. 21 September 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
16. "Breaking The Sound Barrier". nottinghamforest.co.uk (Nottingham Forest F.C.). 23 September 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
17. "QPR Recall Hill". nottinghamforest.co.uk (Nottingham Forest F.C.). 22 October 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
18. "Hill Returns To W12". qpr.co.uk (Queens Park Rangers F.C.). 22 October 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
19. "Hill laments 'ghost goal'". Sky Sports. 12 March 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
20. "Clint Clinches Awards Double". qpr.co.uk (Queens Park Rangers F.C.). 15 May 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
21. "Clint Hill keen to extend Queens Park Rangers stay". BBC Sport. 16 May 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2012.
22. "Kieron Dyer signs new one-year contract with QPR". BBC Sport. 21 May 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2012.
23. "QPR defender Clint Hill signs new one-year contract". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
24. "QPR hand Clint Hill captain's role". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 20 May 2013.
25. "Reading 0–0 QPR". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 May 2013.
26. "Aston Villa 3-3 QPR". BBC Sport. 7 April 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
27. "Clint Hill". Soccerbase. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
28. "Games played by Clint Hill in 1997/1998". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
29. "Games played by Clint Hill in 1998/1999". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
30. "Games played by Clint Hill in 1999/2000". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
31. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2000/2001". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
32. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2001/2002". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
33. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
34. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
35. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
36. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
37. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
38. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
39. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
40. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
41. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
42. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
43. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
44. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
45. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
46. "Games played by Clint Hill in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Retrieved 31 October 2015.

External links

• Clint Hill profile at the Queens Park Rangers website
• Clint Hill career statistics at Soccerbase