If you mention the name Andy Campbell to any Cardiff City fan, they would look at you, smile and say the words; ‘What a hero. He was the guy that scored the winning goal in the Play-Off final against QPR to get us promotion.’ And that’s it. That was all that Andy Campbell was remembered for at Cardiff.
But it all could’ve been so, so different, and your all about to find out why?
A topsy-turvey career, which is still ongoing, began on the streets of Stockton-on-Tees, Teeside. Andy was never any good at school so was always looking to get out and make a career in football. Whenever he had a second spare he would be outside on the streets just kicking the ball around, hoping to emulate his childhood hero that was Middlesbrough striker, Bernie Slaven and put on the red of the famous Boro.
Middlesbrough was in Campbell’s blood. He was passionate about the club and would travel to see them whenever he had the opportunity. It was his dad who had steered him towards football after Campbell had doubts whether he was good enough to make it as a professional footballer. But those doubts edged further out of Campbell’s mind when things started to go his way and the future as a professional footballer started to look extremely bright.
“I always supported Middlesbrough as a young boy after following my dad’s footsteps. He was a passionate football fan. He loved the game and that’s why I got into football.
“I idolised all the players at the club but my ultimate hero was Bernie Slaven. I loved the way he played the game. He was an accurate finisher with good positional sense and good close control. He was a model of consistency in my eyes and I dreamt that one day I would play for my team and emulate the success he had.
“The first time I started playing football was at school. It was just the normal friends in the playground and jumpers for goalposts scenario. Then I eventually signed up for my first local team when I was eight years old which were called Marton juniors. I continued to play for them until I was 15 before signing forms that would allow me to play for my district. That was a proud moment for me and my family; it gave us all the belief that I could make it as a professional football. That belief turned into reality when I signed schoolboy form forms for Middlesbrough at the age of 15 and once I left school I did my YTS there before becoming professional when I was 17.”
Once at Middlesbrough it was all about working and training hard for Campbell. He had finally become what he had always dreamed of and now it was all about taking his opportunity and making the most of his career. His first opportunity came when he was just 16. Due to a number of injuries within the squad Campbell received a call up to the first team against Sheffield Wednesday. This was Campbell’s chance to shine with an opportunity he could never have imagined coming so prematurely.
“I never got nervous about the whole situation because I had no time to think about the whole situation. The club had a few fitness tests to run on a number of players before kick-off and then at seven o’clock I got the news that I would be in the squad for the game.
“Although it was a massive shock it didn’t give me much chance to get nervous. I had never expected to be part of the squad in my wildest dreams never mind playing as well. It was a tremendous feeling to come off the bench and play but before I came on I just said to myself, ‘try to enjoy it as much as you can because this may never happen again.’ Fortunately for me it did happen again but that was a massive learning curve.”
Unfortunately though for the lifelong Boro fan his time at the club never really got going. He was limited to substitute appearances which were becoming increasingly difficult to come to terms with. Campbell’s future at Middlesbrough was looking all but over after seven years at the club of his dreams. During those seven years, Campbell went on loan to Sheffield United, Bolton and Cardiff City and became very frustrated that he was unable to settle down at one club and he knew that he needed to move somewhere permanently to get his career back on track.
“During my time at the club they had world class players like Ravanelli and Juninho, so as a young boy it was great to be involved every day with these players, but I wanted more than that. I didn’t want to just walk past them in the corridor; I wanted to be out there on the pitch and winning games with these players. It was becoming more and more evident as the months passed by that this wasn’t going to happen and I knew that I would have to move on to enhance my career.”
Although it didn’t turn out as he would’ve wanted at Middlesbrough, Campbell still had many happy memories at his childhood club including his famous F.A Cup double against Manchester United which saw United crash out of the most prestigious competition in the world.
“My debut against Sheffield Wednesday is always a fond memory of mine. It’s every player’s dream to play for their local team and I was very fortunate to do so. My first goal against Sunderland was also a highlight. It’s always nice to get your first goal under your belt because it gives you the confidence in your own ability to score more goals but the one that is most special to me were my two goals against Manchester United. That was one of the best days of my life.”
A fresh start for Campbell was just over the horizon when Cardiff City and former Middlesbrough manager Lennie Lawrence showed an interest in signing him. It was a tough decision for Campbell due to the vast amount of interest that was being shown in him. But in the end Campbell decided that a move to South Wales was an ideal opportunity to get his career back on track and the Bluebirds got their man in a one million pound swoop.
“Before my move to Cardiff, I was aware that there were a few clubs who wanted to sign me, so being the man I was I gave each club the opportunity to sell their club to me. I had talks with Crystal Palace, but once I spoke to Lennie Lawrence who I knew from my Middlesbrough days, my mind was made up. I needed a fresh challenge and Cardiff provided me with that. It was a new challenge and one I was much looking forward to.
“Many people questioned whether I was worth the amount that Cardiff paid for me but that never bothered me because the value had nothing to do with me. I didn’t feel any added pressure.”
Campbell’s first season at Ninian Park was very productive. He was getting a lot of first team action and scoring goals for the fun of it. But then Peter Thorne signed from Stoke City at the start of his second season and Campbell’s place in the team was looking unsafe which brought back all the memories of his miserable time at Middlesbrough. Cardiff had a fantastic season that year, reaching the Play-Off Final against QPR. This was the game that no Cardiff fan and Campbell himself will never forget.
On May 25; the Millennium Stadium, in Cardiff hosted one of the most unforgettable playoff finals in history. Both Cardiff City and Queens Park Rangers had been set up with defence minded formations. The game was comparatively scrappy with only occasional glimpses of class shown by both sides. However after a nerve-wracking final, substitute Campbell came off the bench to guide Cardiff past Queens Park Rangers with a spectacular lob after 114 minutes of play.
Campbell who had replaced Robert Earnshaw in the second half, shrugged off Danny Shittu and then calmly lobbed Chris Day, the Queens Park Rangers Goalkeeper to ensure Cardiff returned to Division One after an 18-year absence.
But what Cardiff City fans don’t know is it could’ve been a whole different story for them as Campbell himself explains.
“Building up to the final was frustrating; In the days before the final I had been having problems with my hernia so in order to play some part in the final I decided to have an operation which I hoped would help me be fit in time. It was still touch and go up until kick off but thank god I was ok to play. Just to be involved in a game as big as that was amazing. Ernie deserved his starting berth due to him great scoring form, and was just glad to play my part and do my job. After it went in I went straight over to my family and celebrated it with them, as they are the ones who struck by me through difficult times.”
Nine years on from that memorable event and Cardiff City have a wonderful opportunity to do it all again after securing their play-off position. It promises to be another tense end to the season for Cardiff fans and players and Campbell knows all about that.
“The Cardiff fans expect Premier League football and I can’t see any reason why they can’t get that this season. They have the players to do it, they have they manager to do it and they definitely have the fans to do it. I will be rooting for them, there’s no doubt about that.”
Campbell left Cardiff in 2006 and moved up to Scotland to join Dunfermline. Many football pundits believed Campbell had joined Dunfermline solely to end his career as it was starting to go downhill. But Campbell believes it was a great move for him.
“That was not the case at all. How many people get the chance to play against Rangers and Celtic and play in a cup final at Hampdon Park like I did, so think I was very lucky to do so.”
His time at Dunfermline lasted just one season before he made the move to Non-League football with Halifax, Farsley Celtic, Bradford Park Avenue and now with Whitby Town. It has been a long hard struggle in Non-League football for Campbell but now he’s more than happy to be playing again. But after a series of career threatening injuries the 31 year old admits he’s starting to look at life after football.
“I suffered a serious knee injury with Halifax and it took me nine months to get back playing and there were days where I thought that I would never play again, but thank god I did. Then I ruptured my Achilles tendon and went through it all again so mentally I was a mess but was determined to get back to enjoying my football.
“I love every game I play in. I love scoring goals and I still get the same buzz now than I did when I scored my first goal for Middlesbrough. I want to keep playing and I will continue to do so for as long as my legs allow me.
“At the moment I am studying at Teesside University where I am doing a degree in fitness instruction and sports massage. My career has been an enjoyable one, a great buzz and I have no regrets. I’m looking forward to my new career within the sports industry and a new life within sport.”
Written By Jonathan Moulds
