Neil Ruddock

Neil "Razor" Ruddock (born 9 May 1968) is an English former professional footballer and television personality who is a club director at Enfield.

As a player he was a central defender from 1986 to 2003, and was voted the 17th "hardest footballer of all time".

He made his debut at Millwall, having been associated with the club since the age of 13, and also represented Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton, Liverpool, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, Queens Park Rangers and Swindon Town during a professional career spanning 17 years.

Ruddock began his career at Millwall, before signing for Tottenham Hotspur in 1986.

He broke his leg on his Tottenham debut against Liverpool and made only 11 appearances for Spurs, his only goal coming in a 2–1 defeat to third tier Port Vale in the 1987–88 FA Cup.

In the summer of 1988 Ruddock rejoined Millwall.

Ruddock joined Southampton in February 1989, in a £200,000 transfer from Millwall.

A rugged, uncompromising defender, he soon became popular with the Southampton fans especially after confidently scoring a penalty against Newcastle United on 1 April in only his sixth game for the club, thus helping the "Saints" earn their first victory in 18 matches and start Southampton on a climb away from the relegation zone.

His goal celebration after the 89th-minute penalty became known as the "Ruddock stomp".

Ruddock missed his next two penalties, allowing Matt Le Tissier to take over for the following season.

Despite early disciplinary problems at The Dell, Ruddock's talents as a confident, left-footed defender earned him England Under-21 honours.

Powerful in the air, he could tackle strongly but was also able to bring the ball forward out of defence.

At Liverpool, Ruddock was also part of the squad of the 1990s under Roy Evans, known infamously as the "Spice Boys", that included the likes of David James, Robbie Fowler, Jamie Redknapp, Jason McAteer, Steve McManaman and Stan Collymore, but left in 1998 when new coach Gérard Houllier joined.

In the 1991–92 season, Ruddock was a member of the Southampton side that reached the final of the Zenith Data Systems Cup, where they were beaten in extra time 3–2 by Nottingham Forest.

After three years on the south coast, he was enticed back to Tottenham by Terry Venables in May 1992, with the tribunal setting the transfer fee at a "ridiculous" £750,000.

In July 1993, Ruddock was signed by Liverpool from Tottenham Hotspur on a £2.5 million transfer.

While at Liverpool, Ruddock was famously involved in an on-field scuffle with Manchester United star Eric Cantona.

Ruddock responded to Cantona's taunts about his weight by turning down the Frenchman's collar.

In 1993, he was absolved of fracturing Peter Beardsley's jaw with an elbow in a testimonial match.

Beardsley contemplated legal action on the grounds that Ruddock acted deliberately, but later decided to withdraw charges.

He was capped once by England, in 1994.

In 1996, Ruddock's tackle on Andrew Cole of Manchester United in a reserve game at Anfield left the player with two broken legs, and Ruddock claimed innocence, while Cole said he believed Ruddock did not intend harm.

Arguably his finest game for Liverpool came on 20 January 1996, when he scored twice for them in a 5–0 home league win over Leeds United.

In July 1998, Ruddock moved to West Ham United for a fee of £300,000 making his debut on 15 August 1998 in a 1–0 away win against Sheffield Wednesday.

In 56 games for West Ham, he scored three goals, was booked 14 times and sent-off once, in December 1998, in a 4–0 away defeat to Leeds United, for a dangerous tackle on Harry Kewell.

The Hammers finished fifth in the Premier League that season – their highest finish for 13 years – and qualified for the UEFA Cup to end a 19-year absence from European competitions.

In October 1999 whilst playing for West Ham, Ruddock was also involved in a bust-up with Arsenal's Patrick Vieira, with Vieira receiving a six-match ban and a £30,000 fine after spitting at Ruddock after some verbal sparring between the two.

In 2000, Ruddock moved to Crystal Palace on a free transfer, spending one season there before signing for Division Two side Swindon Town.

He took the club to an employment tribunal and in December 2002, received £57,000, representing money lost in wages and loyalty payments, with an agreement to terminate his contract as player/coach.

He was also accused by Crystal Palace chairman, Simon Jordan in November 2005, of "taking the team out and getting them wasted when we were fighting relegation".

He scored twice for Swindon, with goals against Colchester in the league and Hartlepool in the FA Cup.

Relations turned sour when Ruddock refused to quit after being advised to do so by a specialist; during a period of time where the club was in serious financial difficulties.

The club responded by appointing Steve Coppell as assistant manager and taking Ruddock's coaching duties away.

The board eventually stopped paying Ruddock's wages in an attempt to drive him out.

However, in a 2010 interview with Talksport, he jokingly refers to the incident as "not big, and not clever", adding "but it was great", and that "I didn't mean to break both of his legs if I'm honest, I only meant to break one".

Ruddock came out of retirement in 2015, aged 46, to play for United Counties League side Wellingborough Whitworth.

He has since appeared on a variety of television shows including I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and Celebrity MasterChef.

In January 2015, Ruddock came out of retirement at the age of 46 years, to sign for United Counties League side Wellingborough Whitworth.

In August 2018, Ruddock joined the coaching team of Essex Senior League side Enfield.

In June 2020 he became a club director.