Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Richard Ian Barker | ||
Date of birth | 30 May 1975 | ||
Place of birth | Sheffield, England | ||
Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||
Playing position | Striker | ||
Club information | |||
Current team
|
Rotherham United (assistant manager) | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1984–1997 | Sheffield Wednesday | 0 | (0) |
1995 | → Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 1 | (62) |
1996 | → Ards (loan) | 7 | (3) |
1997–1998 | Linfield | ? | (?) |
1997 | → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) | 53 | (11) |
1998–1999 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 43 | (10) |
1999–2001 | Macclesfield Town | 58 | (23) |
2001–2004 | Rotherham United | 140 | (12) |
2004–2007 | Mansfield Town | 95 | (40) |
2007–2009 | Hartlepool United | 62 | (23) |
2008 | → Rotherham United (loan) | 12 | (1) |
2009 | Rotherham United | 1 | (0) |
Total | 477 | (123) | |
Teams managed | |||
2011–2012 | Bury | ||
2012–2013 | Crawley Town | ||
2013–2014 | Portsmouth | ||
2014–2016 | Milton Keynes Dons (assistant) | ||
2016–2017 | Charlton Athletic (first-team coach) | ||
2017– | Rotherham United (assistant) | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
Richard "Richie" Ian Barker (born 30 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer. He is currently assistant manager of English EFL League One side Rotherham United.
He has previously managed Portsmouth,Bury and Crawley Town.
Born in Sheffield, Barker began his career at Sheffield Wednesday, but only played in the Intertoto Cup for the first team. He was sold by the Owls in 1997 to Northern Irish side Linfield after loan spells at Doncaster and Ards, before returning home to play for Brighton & Hove Albion. He played two seasons at Brighton, scoring 12 goals, before moving to Macclesfield on a free transfer in 1999.
At Macclesfield, Barker scored 23 goals in 58 league games. He was signed by Rotherham United in January 2001, and helped the Millers gain promotion to the Championship. He was mostly used as a substitute by Rotherham, and was allowed to move to Mansfield Town on a free transfer in November 2004.
Barker soon became a fan favourite at Field Mill, scoring 10 goals in his first season at the club. In the summer of 2005, he was named team captain, and he led by example with his professionalism and work-rate. Barker was the Stags' top scorer in 2005–06 with a career-best 23 goals, including two goals against his old club Rotherham in the FA Cup first round.
In the summer of 2006, Barker signed a contract extension with Mansfield which tied him with the club until the end of the 2008–09 season. However, in January 2007 he was reluctantly forced to transfer to Hartlepool United during the January transfer window, much to the anger of the Stags fans.