Darren Hughes

Darren John Hughes (born 6 October 1965) is an English former footballer. A left-back noted for his pace, he made 386 league and cup appearances for six clubs over a 14-year career in the English Football League.

Starting his senior career at Everton in 1983, he was unable to make the grade at the First Division champions despite helping the youth team to lift the FA Youth Cup, and so was allowed to leave for Shrewsbury Town in June 1985. After one season with the "Shrews", he signed with Brighton & Hove Albion for a £35,000 fee in September 1986. In September 1987, he signed with Port Vale, where he spent seven years and made 184 league appearances. He helped the "Valiants" to win promotion out of the Third Division in 1989. He then spent January to November 1995 at Northampton Town, before transferring to Exeter City. After two seasons at Exeter, he moved into non-League football with Morecambe and Newcastle Town.

Career Everton Hughes started his career at Everton, having first been scouted at the age of 11 and signed on schoolboy terms at age 14. He signed his first professional contract in October 1983. As John Bailey's understudy, he made his first-team debut on 27 December 1983, in a 3–0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux. Hughes later developed a hernia and did not play again for six months.

Shrewsbury Town He helped Chic Bates's "Shrews" to post a 17th-place finish in the Second Division in the 1985–86 season. Bates played him as a forward on the last day of the campaign, and Hughes scored from a free kick in a victory that relegated Middlesbrough. He said he had been happy at Shrewsbury. Still, he felt that Brighton were a bigger club. He claimed a goal against former employers Brighton in a 2–0 win at Vale Park on 28 September, and went on to make 53 appearances for the "Valiants" in the 1987–88 campaign. He played 56 games in the 1988–89 season, including both legs of the Third Division play-off final victory over Bristol Rovers. However, he could only play 18 games in the 1990–91 season, as he suffered a hernia injury and underwent two operations to fix it; during his absence Nigerian loanee Reuben Agboola took his place. Still injured at the start of the 1993–94 season, he found, to his dismay, that the club released him in February 1994. He spent his early career as a midfielder.

Later life After retiring as a player, Hughes worked as a financial advisor, as a roofer, started a painting company, and spent time living in Australia before finally returning to the UK to run a construction business.

Career statistics

Honours Everton FA Youth Cup: 1984; runner-up: 1983