top of page

10

Youth
Appearances

2

Youth
Goals

39

Reserve Appearances

6

Reserve
Goals

80

Senior
Appearances

6

Senior
Goals

Youth Appearances

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 2 Dec 2003 Chelsea 0-2 Villa

FA Youth Cup 3rd Round

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 22 Jan 2004 Villa 4-0 Wimbledon

FA Youth Cup 4th Round

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 18 Feb 2004 Rotherham 0-5 Villa

FA Youth Cup 5th Round

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 3 Mar 2004 West Ham 0-2 Villa

FA Youth Cup Quarter Final

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 17 Mar 2004 Villa 2-0 Blackburn

FA Youth Cup Semi-Final 1st Leg

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 3 Apr 2004 Blackburn 2-2 Villa

FA Youth Cup Semi-Final 2nd Leg

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 15 Apr 2004 Villa 0-3 Boro

FA Youth Cup Final 1st Leg

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 19 Apr 2004 Boro 1-0 Villa

FA Youth Cup Final 2nd Leg

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 8 Dec 2004 Villa 1-0 Wycombe

FA Youth Cup 3rd Round

Youth

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 20 Jan 2005 Villa 1-0 Port Vale

FA Youth Cup 4th Round

Youth

Reserve Appearances

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 5 Feb 2004 United 3-0 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 23 Mar 2004 Villa 1-2 Leeds

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 17 Aug 2004 Villa 2-1 Leeds

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 31 Aug 2004 Villa 4-1 Birmingham

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 9 Sep 2004 United 0-0 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 28 Sep 2004 Villa 0-0 Blackburn

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 4 Oct 2004 Bolton 1-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 12 Oct 2004 Villa 3-0 Newcastle

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 19 Oct 2004 Everton 3-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 9 Nov 2004 Villa 3-2 Manchester City

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 15 Nov 2004 Albion 0-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 23 Nov 2004 Villa 1-0 Sunderland

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 30 Nov 2004 Leeds 3-2 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 25 Jan 2005 Villa 3-3 Forest

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 29 Jan 2005 Villa 4-0 Liverpool

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 26 Apr 2005 Villa 4-1 Boro

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 3 May 2005 Newcastle 2-5 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 19 Oct 2005 Leeds 0-3 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 1 Nov 2005 Everton 0-2 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 14 Nov 2005 Newcastle 5-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 12 Dec 2005 Albion 0-4 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 22 Dec 2005 Villa 1-2 Boro

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 11 Jan 2006 Wigan 0-3 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 18 Jan 2006 Villa 3-1 Birmingham

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 24 Jan 2006 Villa 5-2 Manchester City

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 28 Mar 2006 Villa 3-0 Newcastle

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 27 Apr 2006 Villa 2-1 Leeds

FA Premier Reserve League (North)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฅ 29 Aug 2006 Reading 2-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 12 Sep 2006 Portsmouth 1-2 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 17 Oct 2006 West Ham 2-3 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 14 Nov 2006 Watford 1-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 13 Feb 2007 Fulham 1-1 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 19 Feb 2007 Villa 3-1 Charlton

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 27 Feb 2007 Arsenal 1-2 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 6 Mar 2007 Villa 2-0 West Ham

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 19 Mar 2007 Villa 3-0 Arsenal

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 3 Apr 2007 Villa 3-0 Reading

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸจ 7 Oct 2009 Villa 1-1 Wolves

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

Aston Villa.jpg

๐ŸŸฉ 25 Nov 2009 Arsenal 1-2 Villa

FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Reserves

๐ŸŸฅ 1 Nov 2025, Villa 0-2 Liverpool, Anfield IG2.jpg

Personal Profile

Craig Gardner

Full Name:

Role:

Position:

Born:

Birthplace:

Country:

Citizenship:

Height:

Foot:

Midfielder

Midfield

25 November 1986

Solihull ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

England ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

England ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

(5ย ft 9ย in) 1.76 m

Right

Craig Gardner

Career Progression

Craig Gardner

2002-03 Aston Villa u17s
2003-04 Aston Villa u19s
2003-09 Aston Villa Reserves
2004-06 Aston Villa u18s
2005-09 Aston Villa First Team

Peak Villa

First Team

Youth Career

10

Youth
Appearances

Craig Gardner

2

Youth
Goals

2004-05 FAYC ๐Ÿ•’ 2 | โœ… 2 | ๐Ÿ” 0 | โšฝ 0 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 0 |
2003-04 FAYC ๐Ÿ•’ 8 | โœ… 7 | ๐Ÿ” 1 | โšฝ 2 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 0 |

2005-06 u18PAL ๐Ÿ•’ 11 | โœ… 9 | ๐Ÿ” 2 | โšฝ 8 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |
2004-05 u18PAL ๐Ÿ•’ 19 | โœ… 17 | ๐Ÿ” 2 | โšฝ 6 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |

2003-04 u19PAL ๐Ÿ•’ 2 | โœ… 2 | ๐Ÿ” 0 | โšฝ 1 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |

2003-04 u17PAL ๐Ÿ•’ 28 | โœ… 27 | ๐Ÿ” 1 | โšฝ 16 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |
2002-03 u17PAL ๐Ÿ•’ 10 | โœ… 2 | ๐Ÿ” 8 | โšฝ 3 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |

Reserve Career

39

Reserve Appearances

Craig Gardner

6

Reserve
Goals

2009-10 PRL ๐Ÿ•’ 2 | โœ… 2 | ๐Ÿ” 0 | โšฝ 2 | ๐Ÿ‡บ0 |
2006-07 PRL ๐Ÿ•’ 10 | โœ… 10 | ๐Ÿ” 0 | โšฝ 2 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 0 |
2005-06 PRL ๐Ÿ•’ 10 | โœ… 9 | ๐Ÿ” 0 | โšฝ 1 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 1 |
2004-05 PRL ๐Ÿ•’ 15 | โœ… 7 | ๐Ÿ” 8 | โšฝ 1 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 2 |
2003-04 PRL ๐Ÿ•’ 2 | โœ… 0 | ๐Ÿ” 2 | โšฝ 0 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 3 |

First Team Career

Craig Gardner

80

Senior
Appearances

6

Senior
Goals

M Craig Gardner | ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ |
Aston Villa 2005-09 | Youth |
๐Ÿ•’ 80 | 49 (31) | โšฝ 6 | ๐Ÿ”ฅ 2 | ๐Ÿ‡บ 56 | #789 |
๐ŸŸฉ 35 | ๐ŸŸจ 19 | ๐ŸŸฅ 26 |
Cards ๐ŸŸจ 13 | ๐ŸŸฅ 0 |

Squad Honours

Craig Gardner

๐Ÿ† 2003-04 FA Premier Reserve League Champion
๐Ÿฅˆ2004-05 FA Premier Reserve League Runner-Up
๐Ÿฅˆ 2009-10 League Cup Finalist
๐Ÿ† 2009-10 FA Premier Reserve League Champion

Previous Clubs

Craig Gardner

-2005 Aston Villa Youth ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
Premier League

2005-06 Aston Villa Reserves ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
Premier League

Transfer In

Craig Gardner

Aston Villa.jpg

Season:

From:

Fee:

Date:

Age:

Under:

2004-05

Aston Villa Youth ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

Youth

31 January 2005

19

David O'Leary ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช

Loans Out

Craig Gardner

None

Subsequent Clubs

Craig Gardner

2010-11 Birmingham City ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ยฃ3.15m
Premier League, ๐Ÿ•’ 106 | 40 (12) | โšฝ 11 |

2011-14 Sunderland ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ยฃ5.94m
Premier League, ๐Ÿ•’ 100 | 77 (23) | โšฝ 14 |

2014-17 West Bromwich Albion ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Free
Premier League, ๐Ÿ•’ 85 | 59 (26) | โšฝ 6 |

2017 Birmingham City ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ (L)
Championship, ๐Ÿ•’ 20 | 19 (1) | โšฝ 2 |

2017-18 Birmingham City ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ (L)
Championship, ๐Ÿ•’ 30 | 22 (8) | โšฝ 2 |

2018-20 Birmingham City ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ยฃ1.58m
Championship, ๐Ÿ•’ 23 | 6 (17) | โšฝ 1 |

2020 Retired aged 33

Transfer Out

Craig Gardner

Aston Villa.jpg

Season:

From:

Fee:

Date:

Age:

Under:

2009-10

Birmingham ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

ยฃ3.15m

26 January 2010

23

Martin O'Neill ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง

Career Notes

Craig Gardner

​

PL2: Premier League 2
FAPL: FA Premier Reserve League
PLP: Pontins League Premier Division
PLD1: Pontins League Division 1
PLD2: Pontins League Division 2
EFLT: EFL Trophy
UYL: UEFA Youth League
BSC: Birmingham Senior Cup
PLC: Premier League Cup
PLIC: Premier League International Cup

u18PL: u18 Premier League
MYL: Midland Youth League
FAYC: FA Youth Cup
u18PLC: u18 Premier League Cup
MYC: Midland Youth Cup
MYLC: Midland Youth League Cup
SJFC: Southern Junior Floodlit Cup

  • X
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
HNH.png
Peace, Love & Up The Villa โ˜ฎ๏ธ โœŒ๏ธ๐Ÿ’œ๐Ÿ’™

The Trophy Cabinet

Domestic:โ€จ
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† 
League Champions: 1893-94, 1895-96, 1896-97, 1898-99, 1899-00, 1909-10, 1980-81โ€จ
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† 
FA Cup Winners: 1886-87, 1894-95, 1896-97, 1904-05, 1912-13, 1919-20, 1956-57
โ€จ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
League Cup Winners: 1960-61, 1974-75, 1976-77, 1993-94, 1995-96โ€จ

Europe:
๐Ÿ†
European Cup Winners: 1981-82
๐Ÿ†
European Super Cup Winners: 1982-83โ€จ

Other Domestic:โ€จ
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Second Division Champions: 1937-38, 1959-60
โ€จ๐Ÿ†
Third Division Champions: 1971-72โ€จ

โ€‹

Other Europe:

๐Ÿ†
Intertoto Cup Winners: 2001-02โ€จ
๐Ÿ†
Peace Cup Winners: 2009

Reserve Leagueโ€จ:
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Premier Reserve League Champions: 2003-04, 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2011-12โ€จ
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Central League Champions: 1929-30, 1963-64, 1992-93

Reserve Cup
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Birmingham Senior Cup Winners: 1879-80, 1881-82, 1882-83, 1883-84, 1884-85, 1887-88, 1888-90, 1889-90, 1890-91, 1895-96, 1898-99, 1902-03, 1903-04, 1905-06, 1907-08, 1908-09, 1909-10, 1911-12, 1984-85, 2023-24 โ€จ
๐Ÿ†
NextGen Series Winners: 2012-13โ€จ
๐Ÿ†
Premier League Cup Winners: 2017-18

Youth League:
๐Ÿ†
u18s Premier League Champions: 2024-25
๐Ÿ†
u18s Premier League National Champions: 2024-25
๐Ÿ†
u18 Premier League Tier Two Champions 2016-17
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
u18 Premier Academy League Academy Group B Champions: 2005-06, 2007-08, 2010-11
๐Ÿ†
u18 Premier Academy League National Champions 2007-08
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† 
u17 FA Premier Academy League Champions: 1999-00, 2003-04
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†๐Ÿ†
Midland Youth League Champions: 1989-90, 1994-95, 1995-96

Youth Cup:
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
FA Youth Cup Winners: 1971-72, 1979-80, 2001-02, 2020-21, 2024-25
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Midland Youth League Cup Winners: 1991-92, 1994-95
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Midland Youth Cup Winners: 1991-92, 1995-96, 1997-98
๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ† ๐Ÿ†
Southern Junior Floodlit Cup: 1972-73, 1974-75, 1975-76, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1980-81, 1993-94

Contributions

 

We're always keen to receive contributions... whether it's an amendment, a personal recollection or even a physical reminder of Villa's past such as a matchday programme then please do get in touch.

Privacy Policy

โ€‹Terms of Use

Copywrite Notice

You may reproduce material published on this site, provided you acknowledge AVFC History as the source and provide a link to this site.

We reserve the right to refuse permission for applications we consider unsuitable.

Please include the following statement wherever content from this site is used:

Source: AVFC History. Reproduced by kind permission.

Image Credits

© AVFC History 2026

bottom of page