Right back Stephen Darby graduated from the Academy to Melwood in 2006. The homegrown player was then a vital part of the reserve team from then on, gaining praise from coaching staff and players with his nickname, Mr Consistent. He is the current Reserve team captain.
Darby made his competitive first team debut at Tottenham as a late substitue in the League Cup on 12th November 2008. Previously he had featured on the bench in 2006 in the match at Galatasary.
Darby played a big part in the pre-season of 2008 and he made a great impact showing his stability and maturity for such a young player. For the 2008/2009 seasons, Darby has been awarded the number 32 shirt. During that time, he commented:
“It has been an amazing experience to play alongside the first team through pre-season. It’s the kind of thing you dream about as a kid. Hopefully there is more of it to come during the season.”
For the one-to-watch feature on the official website, Steve Hunter named Darby as an exciting prospect to watch out for. He commented:
“Darby is one of the most consistent performers that Liverpool have ever had in their reserve team. The likeable Scouser never has a bad game and I firmly believe he wouldn’t let anyone down if he was given a chance at right-back. He is an astute reader of the game, can get forward to good effect as well as being solid in defence. He may not get the attention the likes of Damien Plessis and Krisztian Nemeth get, but if you were to ask any of his teammates, they would say you need the Stephen Darbys of this world in your team.”
Stephen is looking to feature in some first team games for Liverpool 2008/2009 season at only 19 years of age. A bright future is predicted for him.
‘DanDagger’, Aug. 2008