Elrio van Heerden

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Elrio van Heerden
van Heerden in 2017
Personal information
Date of birth (1983-07-11) 11 July 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Height 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s) Midfielder, winger
Youth career
1995–1997 Glenville Celtic
1998–2001 NMMU
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002–2006 Copenhagen 25 (5)
2006–2009 Club Brugge 57 (1)
2009–2010 Blackburn Rovers 0 (0)
2010 Sivasspor 6 (0)
2010–2011 Westerlo 20 (0)
2011–2012 Golden Arrows 18 (0)
2017–2019 PE Stars 0 (0)
Total 126 (6)
International career
2004–2009 South Africa 37 (3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Elrio van Heerden (/ˈɛlrioʊ væn ˈhɪərdən/, Afrikaans: [ˈɛlrjuə fan ˈɦiərdən]; born 11 July 1983) is a South African retired professional footballer who played as a midfielder for the likes of Copenhagen, Club Brugge and Blackburn Rovers, among other clubs. He was previously also been an established member of the South Africa national team, representing the nation from 2004 to 2009.

Club career

Van Heerden started his career with Glenville Celtic[1] and moved 1998 in the Soccer School of Excellence which was part of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.

FC Copenhagen

Van Heerden came to Denmark joining FC Copenhagen in 2002, where he spent his first two years learning from the older players. He got his debut in 2004 against AaB at Parken Stadium, and the little South African immediately wrote history with his equalizer short before the final whistle. The goal meant, that Copenhagen could secure the championship in the next (and last) round against FC Nordsjælland at Farum Park, which they did with a 4–2 victory.

Club Brugge

A move to Club Brugge was made on 24 January 2006, where Van Heerden spent two years with the Belgian club scoring two goals from his 67 appearances.

Blackburn Rovers

It was announced on 2 June 2009 that Van Heerden had agreed a two-year deal with the Premier League club Blackburn Rovers,[2] arriving on a free transfer from Club Brugge. He only played two official matches for the club; in the League Cup against Gillingham in the second round, and Chelsea in the quarter-finals, both as a second-half substitute.

On 8 January 2010, it was reported that Elrio was close to signing for Turkish club Sivasspor. Goal.com revealed that Elrio was due to travel to Turkey for a medical ahead of signing on Monday 11 January 2010.[3]

Sivasspor

On 11 January 2010, Blackburn Rovers announced the transfer of Van Heerden to Sivasspor.[4]

Westerlo

On 27 July 2010, Belgian Pro League side Westerlo announced the signing of Van Heerden.[5]

In November 2012, after having been without a club since the end of the 2011–12 season, Van Heerden had an unsuccessful trial with MLS side Sporting Kansas City.[6]

PE Stars

van Heerden taking a corner for PE Stars

In 2017, after five years out of the game, van Heerden returned to sign for ABC Motsepe League side PE Stars.[7]

International career

Van Heerden won 37 full international caps for South Africa, scoring three goals.[8] He represented Bafana Bafana at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana and the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa.

Career statistics

[9]

South Africa national team
Year Apps Goals
2004 6 0
2005 10 1
2006 4 0
2007 3 0
2008 4 2
2009 10 0
Total 37 3
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 6 July 2005 Home Depot Center, United States  Mexico 2–0 2–1 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2 23 January 2008 Tamale, Ghana  Angola 1–1 1–1 2008 African Cup of Nations
3 31 January 2008 Kumasi, Ghana  Senegal 1–0 1–1 2008 African Cup of Nations

References

  1. ^ "About Glenville". Glenville Celtic. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  2. ^ "Rovers sign South African star". Blackburn Rovers. 2 June 2009. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011.
  3. ^ "Sivasspor Close To Signing South African Elrio Van Heerden". Goal.com. 9 January 2010.
  4. ^ "South African departs". Blackburn Rovers. 11 January 2010.
  5. ^ "Elrio Van Heerden: alleen nog medische testen" (in Dutch). Westerlo. 27 July 2010. Archived from the original on 4 August 2010. Retrieved 27 July 2010.
  6. ^ "No takers yet for Van Heerden". The Sowetan. 6 February 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  7. ^ Piliso, Mfundo (10 January 2018). "Ex Bafana player lauds the prospects of PE Stars". Daily Dispatch. South Africa. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  8. ^ "South Africa – International Appearances" Archived 5 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  9. ^ "Bafana Bafana". SAFA. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
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