Michael McIndoe (born 2 December 1979) is a Scottish football coach and former player, who is currently the manager of Edinburgh City.
McIndoe began his career at Luton Town, where he made his home league professional debut at 18 years old against Burnley on 5 September 1998. He later played for Derby County, Wolves, Coventry City, Bristol City, Yeovil Town, Hereford United, Doncaster Rovers, MK Dons, Barnsley, Clydebank and Stirling Albion.
Known for his crossing, technical ability and speed, he was a proven goalscorer at every level including League Cup goals against Premier League clubs Manchester City, Arsenal and Aston Villa. While playing for Doncaster Rovers he set a record scoring ten penalties which was more than any player in the English Football League in the 2005/06 season. He was voted in the top five footballers of the year in The Times Football Yearbook 2004/05, alongside Thierry Henry, Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard.
McIndoe played twice for the Scotland B team, making his first appearance on 10 December 2003.
Club career
Luton Town
McIndoe joined Luton Town as a youth in 1996 and was an integral part of an FA Youth Cup run, losing to eventual winners Leeds United in the semi-finals. Managed by coach John Moore, the team also won the youth league as well as the South East Counties League Cup final beating West Ham on 8 May 1998.
He made his professional home debut aged 18 against Burnley in 1998 winning 1–0. Over the course of the next two seasons McIndoe made 47 appearances. His talent was never in question but his off-field problems with alcohol addiction meant in December 1999, he was entered into the Priory. After discussions with manager Lennie Lawrence it was decided a new club would be the best for his career. Arsenal legend Paul Merson became McIndoe's sponsor helping him on his road to recovery. Former teammate Matthew Upson also played a huge part in advising McIndoe who would now focus on being the best athlete he could be and has been teetotal ever since.
Hereford United
In July 2000 Hereford United manager Graham Turner signed McIndoe on a two-year contract. He made 30 appearances for the Bulls scoring 2 goals. His performances quickly put him on the radar of other Conference teams where a bidding war began between Boston United and Yeovil Town for McIndoe's signature. Hereford United eventually sold him to Yeovil Town for £25,000 retaining a 25% sell-on clause.
Yeovil Town
Yeovil Town manager Colin Addison signed McIndoe on a three-year contract. He made a scoring debut for the Glovers on 17 February 2001, in a 2–1 win against Boston United. At the end of the 2000–01 season, the team just missed out on automatic promotion as they finished second.
Yeovil appointed Gary Johnson as the new manager for the 2001–02 season. They went on to have a successful campaign, winning the FA Trophy at Villa Park against Stevenage and finishing third in the Conference. At the age of 22, McIndoe captained the team on numerous occasions and picked up the club Player's Player of the Year award.
In the following 2002–03 season McIndoe made more appearances than any other player and was a key component in making club history, when Yeovil were crowned champions of the Nationwide Conference for the first time in 107 years. Yeovil remained unbeaten at home in the league all season. McIndoe was named in the Nationwide Conference Team of the Year and won the club's "Internet Player of the Season". He also became the first player in history to have all 24 Conference managers vote unanimously for the same player as Nationwide Conference Player of the Year. In two and a half years with Yeovil, McIndoe made 110 appearances and scored 25 goals.
Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers signed McIndoe for £50,000 during the summer of 2003. He made his Rovers debut on 9 August 2003, in a 3–1 win against Leyton Orient. McIndoe scored his first hat-trick in a Football League match, scoring three times against Bristol Rovers in a 5–1 win on 4 October 2003. He also won the October Umbro Isotonic Player of the Month award. His performances earned him selection for the Scotland B team in December 2003. McIndoe's first season at Doncaster was very successful with the Rovers winning the Third Division (fourth tier) title. He was named Doncaster Rovers Player of the Year and was the only player in the championship winning side to be named in the PFA Team of the Year. To top off his season McIndoe was voted the PFA Player of the Year for the division.