Steve Simonsen Bio Send To Friend  

After a high-profile move to Everton failed to work out Simonsen signed for the Potters in July 2004 on a free transfer and was voted the player's player of the season in 2004/05.

The former England Under-21 international really flourished at the Britannia Stadium and set a new club record for clean sheets, seven, during the 2006/07 season.

He was an ever present in 2007/08 as Stoke won promotion and the club's undisputed No1 was an integral part of that success.

Simonsen began his career with Tranmere Rovers but after playing in nine of Tranmere's first 11 games of the 1997/98 season, keeping seven clean sheets, the promising youngster moved to Everton in September 1998 for what was a record transfer fee for a goalkeeper in the UK.

However he had to wait over a year for his Everton debut

He lost out to Thomas Myhre, but during 1999/2000 after the Norwegian was sidelined with a broken leg, Paul Gerrard made the jersey his own.

Simonsen finally grabbed the number one jersey in November 2001 and didn't let it go, only an injury towards the end of the season breaking up his spell between the sticks.

But when boss David Moyes snapped up England goalkeeper Richard Wright in the summer of 2002, it became clear he would have to work very hard to keep his place.

England international Nigel Martyn followed Wright and after making only 35 starts during his five seasons at Everton Simonsen headed for Stoke.