, Former Portsmouth striker plays against Pompey aged 51 in pre-season match

Former Portsmouth striker plays against Pompey aged 51 in pre-season match

Former Millwall striker Steve Claridge came out of retirement at the age of 51 to play as part of Salisbury’s pre-season match against Portsmouth.

Having not played since scoring twice in the play-offs to send Gosport Borough into the Southern League Premier Division in May 2012, the 51-year-old (who has played more than 1000 senior games) came out of retirement in order to fill a player void. With ten players on holiday, Claridge was required in order to fill the player shortage in the striker department against the side he played for and once managed more than 16 years ago.

The former Leicester striker played 81 minutes before subbing himself off. Sadly for Claridge, though, it was Pompey who began their pre-season campaign with a win as three second half strikes separated the two sides.

Claridge, a BBC Sport Pundit, began his career as a striker at Bournemouth in 1984 before going on to play for Leicester City, Portsmouth and Millwall. But his appearance for Salisbury now counts the Wiltshire side as the 23rd side he has played for.

Ahead of the preseason fixture he said: “Normally we wouldn’t start our friendlies this early but the club offered us this date and we were not going to turn it down.

“So all three of our centre-forwards are away!  The players are not full-time and people have to understand they have jobs and a finite amount of time to go on holiday.

“Nobody thought we would be back this early when booking their holidays.

“I’m still trying to think of anybody else that can play up there but I’m not sure there will be.

“It might be a case of having a little stroll around because we literally haven’t got anybody else.

“Really it’s me – and I haven’t kicked a ball for five years. I keep myself fit but that’s not the same as playing!”

Whereas afterwards the former Millwall striker tweeted about the physical effect having not played for such a long time…

Claridge spoke of his delight following the match, saying his eighth-tier side played as best as they could against last term’s Sky Bet League Two champions.

“I did what I had to because there were no other options than this, but it wasn’t about me,” Claridge told BBC Radio Solent.

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