20. Chris Beardsley
born derby | 28/02/1984
previous clubs mansfield town, doncaster rovers, kidderminster harriers, rushden, york city, kettering town
joined june 2009
contract details 27/5/2009 – 30/06/2012
debut ebbsfleet | h | 18/08/2009 | won 3-0 (scored on debut)
Chris Beardsley is a striker who started his career at Mansfield Town, at a time when the Nottinghamshire side were in the football league. Beardsley made 22 appearances in his first spell at Field Mill, scoring just the one goal. He was allowed to leave the club on a free transfer to Doncaster Rovers. He didn’t last long at Belle Vue though and after just 3 months he joined Kidderminster Harriers.
After finishing the 2004/2005 season at Aggborough impressively, Beardsley was surprisingly not kept on at Kiddy and instead the Derby born forward moved back to Mansfield, signing a 2 year deal with his first club. Injuries and a lack of form stopped Beardsley ever making an impact in his second spell at Field Mill and he was allowed to join Rushden in January 2007 on loan.
Beardsley impressed whlist on loan at Nene Park and the move was made permanent with the striker signing an 18 month contract. However, the Rushden boss at the time, Graham Westley was sacked and replaced by Garry Hill and Beardsley was released just 6 months into the deal. York City then picked him up, but once again injuries played their part and he made just 8 appearances at Bootham Crescent before he was shipped off again, this time on loan to Kettering. He made an immediate impact at Rockingham Road, scoring 2 goals on his debut and he signed permantly in January 2008. He was an integral part of Mark Cooper’s promotion winning team, but found his first team opportunities limited when Kettering signed Gareth Seddon.
Kettering released Beardsley who then went on to sign for Stevenage who were now managed by Westley. It was seen as a bit of a gamble by the Boro boss, but Beardsley’s performances over the 2009/2010 season were superb. His work rate and determination have been second to none and he has excelled in Boro’s 4-3-3 system. Goals are not really his game, although he did chip in with 10 of his own. His all round play creates space for others and he is now a big asset to the Stevenage squad.
