Lee Mc Evilly

Lee Mc Evilly

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12:09, 22 August 2009 (UTC)

Lee Richard McEvilly (born 15 April 1982) is an English footballer who plays for Warrington Town in the Northern Premier League Division One North. He has represented the Northern Ireland national team once, as well as playing for Northern Ireland at under-21 and under-23 levels. He is a striker.

McEvilly started his career with non-League side Burscough, rising through their youth ranks to the senior side, where he made 49 league appearances, scoring 28 goals. In December 2001, Third Division club Rochdale signed him for £15,000. Conference National club Accrington Stanley signed McEvilly on loan in January 2004, after Rochdale manager Steve Parkin criticised his fitness. He made a total of six appearances scoring twice, before returning to Rochdale. At the end of the 2003–04 season he was released by Rochdale, where he had made 83 appearances, scoring 25 goals in the Football League spanning across three seasons. He rejoined Accrington on a permanent basis in May, scoring 15 goals in 39 League Two appearances. In July 2005, Accrington accepted a bid from Wrexham. In his first season with Wrexham, McEvilly suffered a number of injury setbacks and making 23 League Two appearances scoring seven goals. Bradford City came close to signed McEvilly after he agreed a contract with the club, however Colin Todd had reservations about his fitness. Instead, he signed a new two-year contract with Wrexham.

In the 2006–07 season, he made 28 appearances scoring seven goals before leaving Wrexham at the end of the season cancelling his contract by mutual consent. McEvilly rejoined Accrington Stanley on a one-year contract making 10 appearances, but struggled to hold down a regular first team place. He was sent on loan to Rochdale in November, where he made seven appearances in League Two scoring three goals, returning to Accrington making one more appearance in January 2008. Cambridge United signed McEvilly on loan on 18 January, helping them to finish second in the 2007–08 Conference National, securing a place in the playoffs, scoring two goals in the semi-final first leg. The following season, he signed for Cambridge on a permanent basis, making 18 appearances scoring eight goals in the Conference National. He rejoined League Two club Rochdale on loan in November, signing permanently on an 18-month contract on 1 January 2009. McEvilly made a total of 15 appearances, scoring three goals for Rochdale before dropping back down to the Conference National joining Barrow, before making one more appearance for Rochdale after his loan ended.

At the start of the 2009–10 season, McEvilly signed for Conference National club Grays Athletic, but suffered a shin injury and left the club without making a competitive appearance. In recent seasons he has had brief spells at numerous non-league clubs in north-west England and Wales, appearing for Marine, Droylsden, Chorley, Colwyn Bay and AFC Fylde, as well as return spells with both Barrow and Burscough. He joined League of Ireland side Sligo Rovers in 2010, but this was also cut short due to injury.