Many men have come and gone under the lights of Molineux. There have been those who sparkled, yet disappeared in a flash. There were also those who disappointed and left under a dark cloud. Dave Edwards was neither of these.
He is an unsung hero amongst the fans of Wolverhampton Wanderers. Those who remember his time at Molineux will recall the many screams of joy that Dangerous Dave gave them, during a time that was not always easy to support the team in old gold.
Edwards reached the remarkable milestone of 600 career appearances on Tuesday evening in the FA Cup with Shrewsbury Town. VAVEL takes a look back at some of the fond memories the Welshman made throughout his 307 appearances for Wolves.
-
A goal-scoring debut and promotion to the Premier League
Edwards signed for Wolves from Luton Town on 14 January 2008. Mick McCarthy was the man in charge at the time and saw Edwards as a fine acquisition.
He made his debut five days later against Scunthorpe United and the boy did not disappoint. It took Edwards only eight minutes to get on the score sheet with a lovely low finish, to help the Wanderers come away with a 2-0 victory.
Sadly injuries hit Edwards that season, forcing the midfielder to spend time recovering on the sidelines. Nonetheless, he played a big role in getting the team promoted to the Premier League the following season.
He made 44 appearances in the Championship that season, chipping in with three goals. His opener against Ipswich in a 2-0 win away from home, would set the team on the road to the Premier League.
-
Securing the first Premier League win and scoring past a fellow Salopian
With Wolves back in the big-time, Edwards was a key figure in the side. He helped the side get their first Premier League victory with a 2-1 win against Fulham, with an emphatic strike into the roof of the net.
Injuries plagued the Welshman again, as he had to drop out of the matchday lineups too often. He still managed to help the team survive their first season in the top flight, making 20 league appearances and bagging one goal.
His bad luck of injuries continued into the next season, forcing him to miss a lot more games. He was fit though to play in the side that faced Manchester City, putting Edwards against his old room-mate and fellow Salopian, Joe Hart.
With the scores level at 1-1, the ball fell to Edwards in the box and he slotted the ball home past a helpless Hart, causing the chaotic screams of a packed Molineux to bellow around the ground. The Welsh international was only able to make it out for 15 league appearances that season.
-
There and back again
The following two seasons saw Edwards again suffer from injuries, but he still was able to pitch in with the odd goal here and there, which was remarkable considering the misfortune he was having in the physio room.
In what would be his last season in the top division, Edwards grabbed three goals in 26 league appearances. Sadly, Wolves' time in the top flight was up, as the side suffered relegation.
The side went on to suffer another relegation, with many players leaving or wanting to see out their big-money contracts. The squad was struggling to find an equilibrium point. Edwards still managed 24 appearances and two goals, but was unable to prevent the downwards trajectory to the third flight of English football.
It was Kenny Jackett who was tasked with repairing the damage and the fellow Welshman went on to do an outstanding job. He got fans believing again and managed to sort out a squad that was in complete disarray.
Jackett challenged Edwards to earn a new contract by showing him that he can keep fit and contribute to the team. The midfielder rewarded his manager with nine goals in the League One campaign in 30 appearances, which was to be his most prolific season for the club.
The side emerged as clear champions at the first time of asking, with Edwards scoring Wolves' second against Crewe Alexandra in a 2-0 win that secured promotion for the side. The Welshman scored with a fantastic strike on the turn to end Wolves' time in League One.
-
Dangerous back in the Championship
Edwards would go on to make 41 appearances in the Championship the following season, with the club so close to making the playoffs, with the Salopian bagging six goals along the way.
He scored the winning goal in a 1-0 win over Norwich Ciyu with an unstoppable thumping header, making the home fans go wild. The man to pick the ball out of the net that day was none other than current Wolves goalkeeper John Ruddy.
His most memorable goal though that season would have been his late winner in the 4-3 win over Leeds United. A lovely cross by Kevin McDonald found the head of Dangerous to thump in another fantastic header.
The 2015-16 season saw Edwards notch up five more goals in 30 appearances, with one of them coming against local rivals Birmingham City.
The midfielder bagged the opening goal in a 2-0 victory against the Blues, after a shot was smothered into his path by Tomasz Kuszczak, with Edwards on hand to slot home. He even had to face his old captain in Karl Henry that season, who then represented Queens Park Rangers.
A decade of goals
In the 2016-17 season, Edwards made 44 appearances in the league and scored his highest amount of league goals in one campaign in his career with ten. What was more impressive here is that Dangerous had managed to score in ten consecutive seasons for the Wanderers.
The side of today was beginning to form with Conor Coady and Romain Saiss becoming more prominent in the team. Walter Zenga started the season in the dugout, only to be replaced by Paul Lambert.
The Wanderers managed to get to the fifth round of the FA Cup, but could not overcome a strong Chelsea side, but Edwards was strong in midfield and made the Premier League side work hard for their win.
In what turned out to be a topsy-turvy season, Edwards scored some really crucial goals, with two of them coming against Barnsley in a 3-1 win away from home. The midfielder nodded in a header from a free-kick, then smashed in his second as the men from Molineux came away with a victory.
The following season saw the beginning of the Wolves revolution under Nuno Espirito Santo, with Edwards only making one appearance before deciding to move on to Reading in the summer transfer window.
With competition from a young midfield wonderkid from Porto named Ruben Neves appearing in the squad, the Welshman knew that his time at Molineux was at an end.
In 307 appearances for the club, Edwards scored 44 goals. For a midfielder, this was an absolutely incredible achievement. He went through a wide range of situations with Wolves, but kept on producing the goods time and time again.
He will always be fondly remembered, not just for having a great nickname in Dangerous, but for being a proper gentleman and giving the best years of his career to the team in old gold.