Stephen Purches

Stephen Robert Purches (born 14 January 1980 in Ilford, England) is an English retired footballer who played mostly for Bournemouth over two spells. He also made over 100 appearances for Leyton Orient. When he retired from football he became the development coach then progressing to first team coach in 2017 at Bournemouth.

Stephen Purches
Personal information
Full name Stephen Robert Purches
Date of birth (1980-01-14) 14 January 1980
Place of birth Ilford, London, England
Position(s) Defender
Club information
Current team
 AFC Bournemouth (Assistant manager)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2000 West Ham United 0 (0)
2000–2007 AFC Bournemouth 238 (10)
2007–2010 Leyton Orient 110 (5)
2010–2014 AFC Bournemouth 33 (5)
Total 381 (20)
Teams managed
2013–2020 A.F.C. Bournemouth Under-21s
2020– A.F.C. Bournemouth (assistant)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Purches was a defender who could play at centre back, midfield or full back on either side. He was previously a trainee at West Ham United but left in 2000 after failing to make a single appearance for the first team. He joined Bournemouth where he spent seven years and missed only three league games in his time at the club.

In summer 2007, he rejected a new contract at Bournemouth and left on a free transfer to join Leyton Orient. Purches watched his first football matches at Orient and described his move as being "like coming home". He was also handed the team captaincy when he arrived. After 132 games in all competitions, he was released by manager Russell Slade on 9 May 2010.[1] On 7 June 2010, Purches re-signed for Bournemouth.[2] On 18 February 2012, Purches broke his leg playing in a match against Rochdale.

Coaching career

On 19 May 2014, Purches formally retired from playing football due to injury and moved into coaching, taking control of Bournemouth's under-21s.[3] In 2017, Purches was promoted to serve as a first-team coach under Eddie Howe, before again being promoted to assistant manager in 2020, after Howe left and his assistant Jason Tindall was named manager.[4]

References
  1. "O's release seven". LeytonOrient.com. 9 May 2010. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012.
  2. AFC Bournemouth go on signing spree
  3. "Stephen Purches says retirement is tough". BBC Football. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  4. "Purches Named Assistant, Jones Joins". AFCB. Retrieved 22 August 2020.


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