Darius Charles

Wesley Darius Donald Charles (born 10 December 1987) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.

He played in the English Football League for Brentford, Stevenage, Burton Albion, AFC Wimbledon and Wycombe Wanderers.

[5][6][7] He made his first-team debut as a left midfielder in a 2–1 victory over Hull City on 7 May 2005; the final day of the 2004–05 season.

[8][9] He made his first appearance of 2005–06 in the Football League Trophy against Oxford United, which finished as a 1–1 draw after extra time and a 4–3 defeat in a penalty shoot-out, while Charles played as a left-back.

[13] He was subsequently sent out to Yeading on 16 March 2006 on a work experience deal,[14] and he made his debut in a 2–1 defeat to Eastbourne Borough, before finishing the loan spell with six appearances.

[13] After having made nine appearances for Brentford during 2006–07, he signed for Staines Town of the Isthmian League Premier Division on 16 October 2006 on a one-month loan.

[25] He joined Conference Premier club Ebbsfleet United on 21 March 2008 on loan until the end of the season,[26] having made 18 appearances for Brentford up to that point in 2007–08.

[33][34] Conference Premier rivals York City made a £10,000 bid for Charles in June, which was subsequently rejected, with MyFootballClub members voting against the offer with over a 98% majority.

[36] Ebbsfleet later agreed to sell Charles and striker Michael Gash for a combined fee of £80,000 to an unnamed club,[37] which was revealed to be York and he was reported to have signed on 29 June 2009.

[44][46] He scored his first goal for the club in Stevenage's 1–1 draw with Milton Keynes Dons in an FA Cup first round replay in November 2010.

[47] Charles received a straight red card for a professional foul on John Johnson in Stevenage's 1–0 home loss to Northampton Town on 11 December 2010, just ten minutes after coming on as a substitute.

[44][49] Charles scored his first league goal of 2010–11 with a shot from 12 yards in Stevenage's 2–1 home win against Bradford City on 2 April 2011.

[44][50] He provided the assist for Joel Byrom's goal after flicking a right-wing cross in Stevenage's 2–0 play-off victory over Accrington Stanley, a match in which he also hit the crossbar with a strike from 30 yards out.

[52] Charles' pass through to John Mousinho resulted in the only goal of the match, as a 1–0 victory over Torquay United meant Stevenage were promoted to League One.

[57][58] He made his first start in nearly two months in Stevenage's 1–0 away victory against Reading at the Madejski Stadium in the FA Cup on 7 January 2012, with Charles scoring the winning goal in the first-half with a finish from the edge of the area.

[63] He scored his first goal of the season in a 1–1 draw against Shrewsbury Town on 1 September 2012, after cutting in from the wing to strike into the top corner to restore parity in the match.

[66] He made a goalscoring start to 2013–14, scoring after pouncing on a loose ball in a 4–3 home defeat to Oldham Athletic on the opening day of the season.

[73] Charles signed for newly promoted League One club Wycombe Wanderers on 15 June 2018 on a one-year contract.

[78] He played in Wycombe's 2–1 win over Oxford in the 2020 League One play-off final at Wembley, as the club was promoted to the Championship for the first time.

Charles playing for Ebbsfleet United in 2009