To gain playing time, First Division Wolves took him on loan in late 2000, a move made permanent by incoming manager Dave Jones for £1 million in January 2001.
[2] He was made club captain for the following season which saw the team mount an automatic promotion challenge, only to fall away in the final weeks into the play-offs, where they lost to Norwich.
He remained with the club for their solitary season in the Premier League but could not agree terms of a new contract afterward and instead joined fellow-relegated side Leeds United in July 2004.
He joined Chester City four months later and quickly struck up a strong central defensive partnership with Paul Linwood, later combining playing duties with a role on the coaching staff.
Butler's international career is generally referred to in derisive terms by Irish supporters and he is often nominated in fans "worst ever Ireland XI's".