Wolves 2003 play-off winners: Where are they now

On the 26th May 2003, Wolves were promoted back to the Premier League via the play-offs, almost 20 years after they were last in the top division.

Since their relegation from Division One in 1984, Wolves had been to Division Four and back, almost going bankrupt in the process.

Due to this, Wolves’ promotion to the Premier League back in 2003 meant the players that took to the field for Wanderers that day made their own place in the club’s illustrious history.

14 years on from that day, we look at where those players are now.

Matt Murray

Injury problems meant Murray had to retire early in 2010, aged just 29. The former goalkeeper was named man-of-the-match in the final, having saved a Michael Brown penalty. Since retiring from playing, Murray has embarked upon a number of different career paths. He is often seen featuring as a pundit on Soccer Saturday on Sky Sports News. As well as this, Murray has undertaken a coaching role at the Nike Academy, starting off as the goalkeeper coach there but has since moved onto a more general coaching role.

Denis Irwin

Irwin signed for the club from Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United and played a vital role during the 2002/03 season. His experience was important as Wolves made their march to the Cardiff final. He retired in 2004 and returned back to Man United in various roles. He appeared on MUTV as a pundit and a presenter, later becoming a trustee for the Manchester United foundation. The former Republic of Ireland international has since became an ambassador for the club and travels the world in this role.

Paul Butler

Centre-back Butler made a total of 199 appearances for the club before moving on in 2004. He continued playing until 2009, when he retired after a stint at Chester City. Butler was arrested and sentenced for assault back in 2010. He has worked as a scout for a number of football clubs, including Oldham and Manchester City and is now working as a scout for the Nike Academy.

Joleon Lescott

Lescott left Wolves in 2006 and has played in the Premier League for the majority of his career. Has won the Premier League during his time at Manchester City, amongst other honours. Lescott also has a number of England caps to his name. Everton, Aston Villa and West Brom have all required the services of Lescott, as well as Greek side AEK Athens. He is currently at Sunderland, who have just been relegated from the Premier League.

Lee Naylor

Naylor was a graduate of the Wolves academy and turned out 293 times for the club before leaving in 2006. Went on to feature in the Champions League for Celtic before moving back to English football with a transfer to Cardiff City. Was on the verge of an England call-up back when Steve McClaren was manager, but injuries caused him to miss out. He has been unattached since his release from Derby County in 2015, but is yet to announce his retirement.

Shaun Newton

Newton made 130 appearances for the club in a four-year stint, before moving on to West Ham. His playing career finished in 2008 when he was unable to earn a contract from a trial at Yeovil Town. Since the end of his football career, Newton has been in regular trouble with the law and was featured on the police’s ‘most wanted’ list after failing to appear in court following being charged with burglary.

Colin Cameron

Scotland international Cameron was a fans’ favourite at Wolves due to his commitment and work ethic, but also had a touch of class. He played for Wolves for five years, leaving in 2006 when he fell out of favour with then manager Glenn Hoddle. He became the assistant manager at Cowdenbeath in 2010, where he was also a player at the same time. Cameron later went on to be the club’s player-manager, staying there for two years. Two months after leaving Cowdenbeath, Cameron became Berwick Rangers player-manager. The 44-year-old is still continuing his player-manager/coach career in the lower divisions of Scottish football.

Paul Ince

London born Ince, left Wolves at the end of his contract in 2006, going on to become a player-coach at Swindon town. Ince captained Wolves in that play-off final and has always stated his desire to come back as manager one day. The former England international moved onto Macclesfield and became their player manager before retiring in 2007. He has since managed MK Dons, Blackburn, Notts County, and Blackpool. Ince has also appeared as a pundit on a range of different football shows.

Mark Kennedy

The scorer of the first goal in the play-off final, Kennedy spent the largest part of his career at Wolves. He retired at the end of his Ipswich Town contract in 2012, becoming a member of their coaching staff in the process. Since his retirement, Kennedy has become a coach at Man City academy.

Kenny Miller

At the age of 37, Miller is still playing and scoring goals for Rangers in the SPL. He left Wolves on a free transfer to join Celtic in 2006 and has since played for no fewer than six other clubs, ranging from the USA to Turkey. Scored the third goal in the final, right on the stroke of half-time, adding to the 23 goals he had already scored that season.

Nathan Blake

Blake scored the second of the three goals in the game, in the home stadium of his national team. The Cardiff-born striker, retired in 2006 when his short-term deal with Newport County expired. After retiring, Blake set up his own property management company in Wales, which he still runs himself. He has also appeared in a short film and won an award for the ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for his role as a football coach.

Adam Proudlock

Proudlock began his career at Wolves, and came on as a sub for the final few minutes during the final. He left Wolves in 2003 and spent time at 13 other clubs during his career, before retiring in 2013. Proudlock is another one to have moved into coaching, in 2014 he signed a deal to become Newport County’s youth team coach. He currently coaches youth players for both Newport County and ‘Doubletouch coaching’.

Dean Sturridge

Sturridge is the uncle of current Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge. He joined Wolves from Leicester City in 2001 before leaving for Queens Park Rangers in 2005. Sturridge retired from playing in 2007 after a short stint with Kidderminster Harriers. He has since became a pundit for beIN Sports, having previously worked as commentator for BBC Radio Derby.