Warrington Town sign vastly experienced former Premier League and EFL defender Peter Clarke ahead of the upcoming 2023/24 season.
Clarke started his career with Everton and made nine league appearances along with loan spells with Blackpool, Port Vale and Coventry City.
He then signed for Blackpool on a permanent basis in 2004, where he also captained the club.
He has also captained Southend United who he joined in 2006, before linking up with Huddersfield Town in 2009, helping them win promotion out of League One via the playoffs in 2012.
He returned to Blackpool in July 2014, but was released after the club were relegated at the end of the season.
He joined Bury in May 2015, and then moved on to Oldham Athletic in July 2016.
He rejoined the Shakers on loan in January 2018 and signed with Fleetwood Town in August 2019 following his release from Oldham.
He moved on to Tranmere Rovers in January 2020 and played for the club in 2021 EFL Trophy final, then went to Walsall in June 2022 and was loaned out to Oldham Athletic five months later.
But he has decided to continue playing, age 41, signing with sixth tier club Warrington Town in July 2023.
He won the Player of the Season award at Blackpool, Southend, Huddersfield (twice), Bury and Oldham Athletic (twice) in the 2004–05, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2015–16, 2016–17 and 2018–19 seasons.
Clarke also gained eight caps for the England under-21 team between 2002 and 2003. At the age of 40, he was named in both the EFL League Two Team of the Season and PFA Team of the Year for the 2021–22 campaign.
Welcome, Peter Clarke! ✍️⚽
The vastly experienced Football League defender has joined the club ahead of the 2023/24 season.
Full story: https://t.co/4kQ4SHIaol pic.twitter.com/inz9JsVkqL
— Warrington Town FC (@theyellows) July 28, 2023
CLUB STATEMENT:
Warrington Town can confirm the signing of vastly experienced Football League defender Peter Clarke ahead of the new season.
Clarke has made more than 900 appearances as a professional, including nine in the Premier League with Everton.
Last season he played in League Two with Walsall, as well as having a spell on loan in the National League at Oldham.
In 2021/22, he was named in the EFL League Two Team of the Season at the age of 40.
Coming through the youth ranks at Everton, Clarke made eight appearances for England Under 21s and had loan spells at Blackpool, Port Vale and Coventry City.
His other former clubs include Huddersfield Town, Tranmere Rovers, Fleetwood Town and Bury.
Clarke said: “I’m looking forward to it – any new challenge is always good. I’ve played in games here and I’m aware of the recent history.
“The club and team have been close but have finally got over the line now which is fantastic. It’s new beginnings and a new era for everyone involved, so it’s going to be exciting times.
“As a new player coming in, it’s an exciting time to be coming on board.
“There’s a lot of new things going on with the club and as a group of players, we want to maintain what has gone before and improve upon it.”
Clarke becomes the third new signing of the summer, following the arrivals of attacking midfielder Matty Grivosti and goalkeeper Dan Atherton, who both returned to the club after a season away elsewhere.
There is now just a week to go until the start of the National League North season, with the Yellows travelling to Southport on August 5.
Yellows manager Mark Beesley added: “It’s testament to where the club is at to attract a signing of Peter’s calibre. We’ve built the club up steadily and us moving up a level has been the catalyst for us being able to bring Peter in.
“What he’ll give us in terms of his experience and leadership will be invaluable, but he’s just a quality player aside from that. I’ve known him a long time and it’s something we’ve been working on throughout the summer.
“He’s had that drive in him since he was a kid – you don’t play professionally for as long as he has if you don’t have that. Our kids are the same age, so we had some initial conversations while watching our kids play in tournaments.
“He’s fit and strong so he probably would still be playing professionally, but he got the opportunity of a job within the PFA (Professional Footballer’s Association) that he couldn’t turn down. We’ve been the beneficiaries of that – he’s listened to everything we’ve had to say and he’s looking forward to it.
“It’s important we have competition for places, and we had it all over the pitch with the possible exception of centre-back. It’s something we were looking at throughout last season – nothing materialised but we got lucky with Evan and Tom being fit pretty much all season.
“With us stepping up a league, we needed that extra bit of quality and now we have three excellent centre-halves. There may be games where we play with a three at the back – it’s something we spoke about last summer and it’s definitely in our minds now.”
Clarke’s signing has been confirmed ahead of the club’s official Season Launch event on Wednesday 2 August at the Village Hotel.
Buy your season ticket ahead of the 2023/24 National League North season!
This is what fans had to say as Warrington Town sign the vastly experienced former Premier League and EFL defender…
@Greeny_2608: All the best Clarkey 💙
@neil_pandb: There aren’t enough ❤️ on twitter for this! Love the growing @TranmereRovers contingent at @theyellows 👌
@1908JB: captain fantastic, good luck peter
@AaronDiskin1: Good luck Clarkey 💙💙💙
@GMan1878: Brilliant signing! #UpTheTown #UpTheToffees
@philipduong: What a signing! Good luck Clarkey 🧱
@ThatSilverTouch: You have an absolute gem #oafc Legend at Oldham.
@rwatership: Don’t get me wrong I love Schindler and Hogg, but this bloke will always be my favourite Town captain! Unstoppable even at 41, what a pro! #htafc
@neild180: What a career peter Clarke has had anybody remember him at Everton
@Jaisinghhhh: Will this man ever stop?
@wiregooner: Fantastic signing for the upcoming season 👏
@Gidsentinel: Clarkeyyyyyyyy
@Nick18T: Making moves 🟡🔵
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