Stephen Bywater Bio Send To Friend  

Bywater originally joined Derby County on a loan agreement from West Ham United but made the move permanent in August 2006 when he signed a three year deal.

He made his debut against Hull City only five hours after putting pen to paper and went on the make 43 appearances for the Rams during their promotion season of 2006/07.

Manchester born Bywater began his career at Rochdale but made the £300,000 switch to West Ham, rising to £2million on appearances, in February 1998, after just one senior showing for the Lancashire club.

The goalkeeper helped the Hammer's youth team to a cup and league double in the 98/99 season, and is put himself into the first team reckoning.

He made his senior Hammers bow in February of the 1999/2000 season as a substitute for the injured Shaka Hislop and did not have the happiest of debuts, letting in four goals, but the Hammers scored five.

After starting the final three Premiership games of that season, Bywater struggled to get first team experience.

He had already had loan spells a Wycombe Wanderers and Hull City that same season. But future loan spells, with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Cardiff City, saw him as back-up.

The England Under-21 international was pushed further down the pecking order in the summer of 2002 as Glenn Roeder signed Manchester United goalkeeper Raimond van der Gouw.

Bywater travelled to the European Under-21 Championships with England in May 2002, but he had to be replaced before the start of the tournament when picking up a wrist injury.

He played only one game between May 2000 and January 2004, when he enjoyed a run as the Hammers' first choice goalkeeper in the Championship. He was part of the side which lost out to Crystal Palace in the play-off final at Cardiff.

The stopper then made 36 League starts in 2004/05 as West Ham were victorious at the Millennium Stadium to earn a return to the top flight.

Although considered a good stopper, there are doubts about his kicking ability.

But the summer signing of Roy Carroll, coincidentally from Manchester United again, meant the Hammers did not see Bywater as first choice for the Premiership.

And when the Hammers re-signed Shaka Hislop, Bywater became third choice - leading to a loan move to Coventry City for the first half of 2005/06.

He finally regular first-team football under Billy Davies at Derby County where he wears the number 43 shirt as a tribute to his mentor and former goalkeeping coach Les Sealey, who died at the age of 43 in 2001.

As a confident character he was a hit with the fans even before he kept a clean sheet in the 2006/07 Championship Play-Off Final to send Derby into the Premiership after a five year absence.