Danny Butterfield’s name is linked to one of the most intriguing and amusing stories in the oldest club competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup. In this tale, coaching decisions weren’t guided by sports tactics but rather by… feminine influences.
Let’s travel back to the not-so-distant year 2010 when Crystal Palace faced Wolverhampton in a replay of the fourth round of the FA Cup, following a 2-2 draw in the initial match in the West Midlands.
The rematch occurred on February 2, 2010, at Selhurst Park, and the hosts from South London emerged victorious with a 3-1 score, but that’s not the most captivating part. At the time, Crystal Palace’s senior coach was Neil Warnock. However, the experienced coach made an unusual decision – to field his right-back, Danny Butterfield, who lacked offensive qualities, as a striker. Yes, you heard it right; the protagonist of our story seemed to have been waiting for this moment in his otherwise unremarkable career.
But let’s return to that chilly February day in 2010 in South London. Crystal Palace hosted Wolverhampton at Selhurst Park, and Neil Warnock surprised everyone by starting the right-back Butterfield as a central striker.
The first half passed with both teams heading into the break at a goalless draw. However, the seasoned manager of Palace did not give up on the idea of using the full-back as a forward and continued with the same tactical setup in the second half.
In the 61st minute of the match, Darren Ambrose delivered a corner kick to the far post, where a Crystal Palace player headed the ball, but Wayne Hennessey made the save. However, Butterfield was there to head the rebound into Wolverhampton’s net.
Just four minutes later, Darren Ambrose set up Danny Butterfield in the corridor, and, falling down, he sent the ball under Wayne Hennessey with his right foot – 2-0.
Three minutes after his second goal, the hero of our story completed his 7-minute hat-trick. Palace’s goalkeeper, Charlie Mann, kicked the ball forward, and Alan Lee continued it to Danny Butterfield, who scored with his left foot. Thus, the right-back turned striker scored a hat-trick in 6 minutes and 48 seconds, with goals coming from his left foot, right foot, and head. Despite a late goal from Karl Henry for Wolverhampton, it was inconsequential, as Crystal Palace continued forward with a 3-1 victory in front of their faithful fans at Selhurst Park.
This remains Danny Butterfield’s first and last match as a central striker. Interestingly, the Englishman, who played 266 matches for Crystal Palace, only scored 12 goals in his career, spanning 554 professional matches.
After this match, even the journalists were shocked by Neil Warnock’s otherwise experienced decision, and they asked him what prompted him to play Danny Butterfield as a central striker. He replied, “I played my right-back as a forward because my wife had a dream – for him to score a goal in this match. Danny Butterfield will no longer be used as a right-back.”