Peter Holmes

Peter James Holmes (born 18 November 1980) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

He played in the Football League for Luton Town, Chesterfield, Lincoln City and Rotherham United.

He is the assistant manager at club Hayes & Yeading United.

Holmes started his career with Sheffield Wednesday and after failing to make any first-team appearances he joined Luton Town.

Holmes was the oldest central midfielder in the team after starting in the FA Cup match against Tranmere Rovers, due to other players being injured, during which he gave away the possession for Micky Mellon to score the winner for Tranmere in the 81st minute.

He started his career with Premier League club Sheffield Wednesday as a trainee in their youth system before signing a professional contract on 2 December 1997, and was promoted to the first team for the 1999–2000 season.

After failing to appear for the team, Holmes was signed by Luton Town on 1 August 2000 on a three-year contract for a nominal fee.

Luton manager Ricky Hill had been impressed by the player while working as a coach at Wednesday.

Holmes made his debut for Luton after being introduced as a 58th-minute substitute in a 1–0 defeat at home to Notts County in the Second Division on 12 August 2000.

He scored his first goal for Luton with their second goal in a 3–2 home victory over Peterborough United on 26 December 2000, and played his final match of 2000–01 at Oldham Athletic on 23 January 2001, where he was substituted for Liam George in the 55th minute.

He was transfer listed in April 2001 by manager Joe Kinnear and completed his first season at the club with 22 appearances and one goal, after which Luton were relegated to the Third Division.

Holmes suffered from soreness in his leg after collapsing in a match against Rushden & Diamonds in December 2001.

He returned to action to score from the edge of the penalty area in a 3–1 away victory against Swansea City on 30 March 2002; this goal secured Luton's promotion to the Second Division at the first attempt.

Holmes' 2001–02 season was ended with 10 appearances and one goal after suffering a knee ligament injury during Luton's 4–0 victory at Hull City on 6 April 2002.

He suffered a groin strain during the 2–1 home defeat to Cambridge United in the Football League Trophy on 10 December 2002.

He was released by the club due to financial reasons in the summer of 2003, but was eventually handed a new contract in November.

He made his return to Luton's first team in a 3–2 away defeat to Mansfield Town on 4 March 2003 after coming on as a 74th-minute substitute.

He then scored in the following match against Huddersfield Town, being assisted by an Ian Hillier cross in the 71st minute to help Luton to a 3–0 victory on 8 March 2003.

He finished 2002–03 with 23 appearances and two goals, but missed Luton's final match of the season after picking up a hamstring injury during a 1–1 draw with Stockport County on 26 April 2003.

Holmes was released by Luton in July 2003 after the offer of a new contract was withdrawn because of financial difficulties at the club, but he continued to train with the team and eventually signed a contract in November.

He finished 2003–04 with 20 appearances and scored three goals.

His first appearance of the season came after starting in Luton's 0–0 draw at Holmes' former club Sheffield Wednesday, before scoring his first goal on 10 January 2004 with a header in a 2–2 draw with Rushden & Diamonds.

Luton won promotion to the Championship in 2004–05 after winning the League One title, while Holmes made 20 appearances and scored three goals.

Following this achievement, he signed a new one-year contract with the club in June 2005.

The winning goal for Luton in a 2–1 victory over Cardiff City in October was scored by Holmes from close range, which brought an end to the opposition' eight match unbeaten run.

He suffered from a twisted knee during a match against Derby County on 26 December 2005, eventually returning to action from a hamstring injury in February 2006 by playing in a reserve match against Southend United.

His competitive return was in a 3–3 draw against Cardiff, where he came on as a substitute for Dean Morgan on 82 minutes.

He completed 2005–06 with 25 appearances and scored two goals, when Luton finished 10th in the Championship.

After being loaned out to Chesterfield and Lincoln City during the 2006–07 season, Holmes left Luton, having made over 100 appearances for the club.

Following the conclusion of the season, he signed a new one-year contract in June 2006.

He joined League One club Chesterfield on a one-month loan on 12 January 2007, making his debut the following day in a 1–0 away victory over Rotherham United, in which he forced goalkeeper Neil Cutler into making a good save.

Chesterfield were given the lead by Holmes in a match away to Huddersfield Town with a header from a Kyle Critchell cross, which eventually finished a 1–1 draw.

The loan was extended for a second month on 8 February 2007, and Holmes said he would consider signing for the club permanently when the loan expired.

He eventually finished his spell at Chesterfield with 10 appearances and scored one goal.

He joined Lincoln City of League Two on loan until the end of 2006–07 on 22 March 2007.

His debut came in a 3–2 home defeat to Swindon Town and he completed the loan spell with five appearances.

He was signed by Rotherham United, who loaned him out to Conference Premier club York City in 2008.

He was released by Rotherham in 2009 and was signed by Harrogate Town, before joining Ebbsfleet United.

Following Ebbsfleet's relegation, he signed for Hayes & Yeading United.

Born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, Holmes graduated through The Football Association's School of Excellence.