Whitlow: Michael William (Mike)
1988-1992
(Player Details)
Left Back/Midfield
Born: Davenham: 13-01-1968
Debut: Shrewsbury Town (h): 09-11-1988
5’11” 12st 1lb (1989)
After joining them from Rudland Youth Club in 1985, Whitlow was rejected by Bolton
Wanderers without making a League appearance. He drifted into Non-League football. He was
working as a labourer during his time with HFS Loans Northern Premier League club Witton
Albion. Whitlow, and Albion Right Back Neil Parsley, caught the eye of Sheffield Wednesday
boss Howard Wilkinson in 1988-89. Both players looked set to join the Owls, when Wilkinson
succeeded Billy Bremner at Leeds. Wednesday did not follow up their interest but Wilkinson
was quick to pay £30,000 to bring both players to Elland Road in November 1988. Seventeen
days after his debut in the Simod Cup, Whitlow played his first game in the Football League,
in midfield after just half a reserve game in that position. He made good progress in
1989-90 and was tipped for England Under-Twenty-one honours. He did not quite maintain that
kind of progress, however, due mainly to the arrival of Tony Dorigo and was transferred to
Leicester City in March 1992 for £250,000 just a couple of weeks after Simon Grayson had
joined the Foxes. He arrived at Filbert Street in time to appear in the First Division
play-offs, when Leicester were edged out by Blackburn Rovers, suffering the same fate the
following year against Swindon Town, but was a Wembley winner against Derby County in 1994.
After a season of EPL football he made his fourth Play-off Final appearance in five years
against Crystal Palace in 1996. He scored eight goals in one hundred and forty-one League
starts and six more from the bench while scoring once in thirty-three games in the Cups and
Play-offs at Filbert Street. He left the Foxes to rejoin his first club, Bolton Wanderers,
in September 1997 at a cost of £500,000. He did give good value for money though, scoring
twice in one hundred and twenty-four League starts and another eight from the bench as well
as playing thirty-one games in Cup competitions, including six as a substitute. He left the
Reebok in July 2003 on a free transfer and joined Sheffield United, where he scored once in
thirteen starts and four from the bench in League matches and two starts and one game from
the bench in the Cup competitions. He joined Notts County again on a free in July 2004 and
continued to give good service even though he was by then in his late thirties. He became
player-coach and, while still registered, but did not play after March 2005 and to that
point had started twenty-two League games and had come off the bench twice as well as making
another six starts in the Cups at Meadow Lane. He coached Notts County from August 2005
until May 2007. After leaving Notts County he worked with Derby County in their Youth
Academy. He was appointed head of Youth Development with Mansfield Town in May 2009.