Derry: Shaun Peter (Shaun)

2005-2008 (Leeds Player Details)(Player Details)

Midfield

Born: Nottingham: 06-12-1977

Debut v Wigan Athletic (a): 19-02-2005

5’10” 10st 13lb (2005)

Nottingham born Derry began his career as a full-back and a trainee at Notts County on 1st August 1995. After scoring four goals in seventy-nine League games, of which three were off the bench, and scoring once in the F.A. Cup from six starts and one game as a substitute,playing ninety-four games, including five as a substitute, and making four starts and one substitute appearance in the League Cup and starting in three other games without scoring, he moved to Sheffield United on 26th January 1998 for £700,000. There Kevin Blackwell was Assistant to Neil Warnock, and both were to have a profound effect on his career. He featured for the Nationwide Under-Twenty-One side against their Italian counterparts while at Bramall Lane. For the Blades he started sixty-two League games and came off the bench ten times, while he scored his only goal in the F.A. Cup, in which he made seven starts and also started four games in the League Cup, before he was snapped up by Portsmouth on 16th March 2000 for £300,000. He scored once in forty-eight starts and one substitute appearance in the League together with one start and one game as a substitute in the F.A. Cup and four starts in the League Cup for Pompey, and was made skipper by Graham Rix. He was put on the transfer list after becoming unsettled after Rix's departure. There was a £400,000 switch to Selhurst Park on 1st August 2002. Derry made forty-four appearances in his last season for Crystal Palace, 2003-04, including in the play-off final at the Millennium Stadium, which Palace won to seal their promotion to the Premiership. Despite being a major part of Palace's remarkable run which ended in that play-off victory, he was to find his first team chances in the Premiership limited and he ultimately scored three League goals in eighty six League games of which twenty-three were as a substitute and he started four times in the F.A. Cup and nine in the League Cup for Palace. However 2004-05 had seen him infrequently used and he was loaned to Nottingham Forest from 24th December 2004 to 17th February 2005, in which time he managed seven starts in the League and one in the F.A. Cup, without scoring. His limited first team exposure alerted Kevin Blackwell to him. Although it had been thought he had been captured before Christmas 2004, that deal fell through due to lack of funds by Leeds and it wasn't until 18th February 2005 thatDerry eventually turned out in a white shirt for Leeds, after the loan spell with Nottingham Forest. All-action midfielder Derry was a throwback to the 1970's, with his headband and long hair making him a standout character in his first season under Kevin Blackwell’s reign. He made a dream home debut, scoring the winner against West Ham United in an enthralling 2-1 victory for Leeds at Elland Road. He missed the final three games of the 2004/05 season after being sent off against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road. He had a combative and strong-running approach. The only drawback being that he was prone to regular bouts of indiscipline with ill-judged tackles and was a short-priced favourite to be at the top of the League's yellow-card tally. Derry was a regular in the Leeds starting eleven in season 2005-06, becoming a vital part of the squad as they pushed for promotion back into the Premiership. His ball-winning tackles and driving runs did much towards United making it to the Play-off Final in 2006. In August 2006 he pledged his future to the club, signing a contract extension until July 2009. On 26th October 2006, new Leeds Manager, Dennis Wise, revealed Derry was the new vice-captain of the club, with Kevin Nicholls made captain. Derry was once again a regular in the Leeds team in the 2006-07 season, however many Leeds fans believed that his performances were not as good as those in the previous season. A hernia and Achilles injury in January 2007 saw Derry being ruled out for the rest of the season. Derry admitted he was distraught at not being able to help Leeds with their fight to avoid relegation. However, Leeds were relegated and speculation suggested that he would be one of the many players to leave Leeds during the summer transfer window. However, an interview given by him had suggested that he would like to stay at Elland Road and was ready for pre-season training with the Yorkshire outfit. Wise had also expressed his desire to keep Derry at the club. Derry returned to former club Palace on loan until January, and further doubts about the midfielder's future at the Elland Road club arose when it was reported that Derry had declined Wise's offer to return and feature in the home game against Oldham Athletic following Leeds' midfield being decimated by injuries. That same day, Derry was named "Man of the Match" for the third successive game at Selhurst Park. On 22nd January 2008, Derry made his move back to Crystal Palace a permanent one, signing for the club on a three year deal for £150,000. At the start of the 2008-09 season he was appointed Captain at Selhurst Park. In March 2009 he was told he had to have a shoulder operation which would sideline him for the rest of the season. Including the twelve games he played while on loan from Leeds, Derry started one hundred and eleven League games and also played four more as a substitute and nine in the F.A. Cup, three in the League Cup and two in the play-offs, without scoring. On 14th June 2010, Derry followed his Manager Neil Warnock on a free transfer to Queens Park Rangers on a two year contract. Once more he became a permanent feature in the first team of his new club and missed just one game as they won the Championship title and with it promotion to the EPL. On 30th August 2011 he had his contract extended to 2013.