Mich d'Avray

Jean-Michel (Mich) d'Avray (born 19 February 1962 in Johannesburg, South Africa) is a former professional association footballer who spent the majority of his playing career at Ipswich Town. He is currently a development coach with South African Premier Soccer League club Bloemfontein Celtic.[1]

Mich d'Avray
Personal information
Full name Jean-Michel d'Avray
Date of birth (1962-02-19) 19 February 1962
Place of birth Johannesburg, South Africa
Position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1979–1990 Ipswich Town 211 (38)
1988 → Leicester City (loan) 3 (0)
1991–1992 NEC Nijmegen 28 (2)
Total 242 (40)
National team
1984 England U21 2 (1)
Teams managed
1991–1992 Moroka Swallows
1992–1995 Cape Town Spurs
1993–1997 South Africa U-23
2001–2006 Perth Glory
2008–2009 Bloemfontein Celtic
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

D'Avray's professional football career began when he made his debut for Ipswich Town against Southampton at Portman Road in November 1979.[2] Over the next 11 seasons he made more than 200 appearances for the club, scoring nearly 40 goals. D'Avray contributed to Ipswich's victorious 1980-81 UEFA Cup campaign, making one appearance during the run.[3] However he wasn't part of the squad for the final itself. He also had a brief spell on loan to Leicester City where he made three appearances during the 1986–87 season. He went on to play for Dutch club NEC Nijmegen 28 times between 1990 and 1992.[4]

International career

While playing for Ipswich, d'Avray won two caps for England at Under-21 level.[5] He scored once, against Italy to help England into the final of the 1984 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.[6]

Managerial career

D'Avray started his managerial career in 1991 with the Moroka Swallows in Johannesburg where he remained for just one season before moving to the Cape Town Spurs. He was awarded the South African Coach of the Year award in 1993 before leading the Spurs to a league and cup double in the 1993–94 season.[1] From 1993 to 1997 he coached the South African Under-23 team, leading them out in 1994 for their inaugural game against Ghana.[7] He coached the squad for a total of 28 games, his final match coming in December 1997 against Uganda.[8]

In 1998, he moved to Australia to join A-League team Perth Glory as assistant manager before becoming manager in 2001. He led the team to the league title in 2003 and 2004.[9] and succeeded Lawrie McKinna as National Soccer League (NSL) Coach of the Year, winning the accolade in the 2003–04 season, the final time the award was made.[10]

D'Avray became Technical director of the Glory in 2005 but held the position for just one season. He joined Bloemfontein Celtic at the start of the 2008–09 season. In January 2009 he was replaced as Coach by Owen da Gama after a poor run of performances that left Celtic close to relegation. D'Avray remained on the staff as a development coach.[11]

He is married to his wife Angela and has 2 children. He holds a UEFA Pro Licence.[1]

Honours

Ipswich Town

References
  1. "Player profiles - Mich D'Avray". Bloemfontein Celtic. 31 July 2008. Archived from the original on 25 December 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  2. "Mich d'Avray". Pride of Anglia. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  3. "Games played by Mich d'Avrayin 1980-81". prideofanglia.com. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  4. "N.E.C. Spelerspas - Mich D'Avray" (in Dutch). NEC Nijmegen. Archived from the original on 1 October 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  5. "England Under-21 Caps". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 3 April 2005. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  6. "England Under-21 Goalscorers". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 6 April 2005. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  7. "Under-23 National Team". South Africa Football Association. Archived from the original on 22 December 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  8. "Full list of all SA under-23 matches" (PDF). South Africa Football Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  9. "History". Perth Glory. Archived from the original on 19 March 2007. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  10. "Coach of the Year". ozfootball.net. Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  11. "Da Gama looks to the future". Bloemfontein Celtic. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
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