TIVVY ARCHIVE

Mark Saunders

23/07/1971

Mark made his name in the Western League as a powerful goalscoring central midfielder, and his form for Tiverton over the course of four seasons earned him a crack at the professional game with Plymouth Argyle. Determined and with a good understanding of the game both on and off the pitch, he initially rejected Tiverton and decided to gain experience with Torrington, but finally arrived at Ladysmead and became a permanent fixture in one of the most devastating midfields the club has ever seen, playing alongside Steve Daly and Steve Hynds.

Over the next few years he was a regular amongst the goals, weighing in with a seasons-best of 35 in the 1993/94 campaign. Plymouth brought him to Home Park in the summer of 1995 and he spent the next five years in South Devon before moving on to Gillingham, helping them into the second tier of English football for the first time in their history. Sadly injury cut short Mark’s career in the Football League and upon his release from Gillingham he played for Folkestone Invicta and Maidstone United, also gaining his first experience of coaching at the latter.

Mark returned to Tiverton in 2008, initially as a player, and he was appointed Assistant Manager to Chris Vinnicombe two years later. He assumed the top job soon afterwards following Vinnicombe’s brief and unsuccessful tenure, but after a run of 18 games without a victory he stepped down in March 2013.