Chris Baird

Christopher Patrick "Chris" Baird (born 25 February 1982 in Rasharkin, County Antrim) is a Northern Irish footballer who plays for Fulham and the Northern Ireland national football team.

Club career

Southampton

Baird started his career at Northern Irish club, Ballymena United, before moving to Southampton in 1998.

Baird made his debut for Southampton on 22 March 2003 as a late substitute for David Prutton in a 2–2 draw at home with Aston Villa. His second appearance came in a 6–1 defeat at Arsenal, when he came on after 26 minutes, with Arsenal already 5–0 up.

Baird's first start came on the final day of the 2002–03 League season, in a 1–0 win at Manchester City. A week later, he started for Southampton in the 2003 FA Cup Final, also against Arsenal. Southampton lost the match 1–0, but Baird was voted as the Saints man of the match.

He subsequently made two successful loan spells away from Southampton – two months at Walsall, where he played regularly in the first-team, and a month at Watford.

In the 2003–04 season, Baird made only four league appearances for Southampton, and none at all in the following season. Following Southampton's relegation from the Premiership, Baird re-established himself in the Southampton squad and was singled out for praise by Southampton manager George Burley. He started 16 league games in the 2005–06 season.<ref...
Read More