Hayden Ian Mullins (born 27 March 1979) is an English former professional footballer and current manager. He played primarily as a defensive midfielder, but he also played as a sweeper and at right-back. He was most recently the head coach at club Colchester United. Mullins began his career with First Division side Crystal Palace in 1996, and signed his first professional contract with the club in 1998. He quickly established himself in the first team, and made 257 senior appearances for Palace in five seasons. In October 2003, he switched to First Division side West Ham United, initially on a short-term loan, which quickly turned into a permanent transfer. He remained at the club for five-and-a-half years, making 213 appearances, before joining Premier League side Portsmouth in January 2009. He made 129 appearances for Portsmouth, but the club's financial difficulties meant that he joined Championship side Reading on loan in March 2012. At the end of the 2011–12 season, Mullins left Portsmouth, and joined Birmingham City on a free transfer. After two years, during which he also spent time on loan at Notts County, Birmingham confirmed he would be released when his contract expired at the end of the 2013–14 season. Mullins made three appearances for the England under-21 squad in 1999. After retiring, he became under-23 manager of Watford in 2016, and was twice their interim manager. Playing career Crystal Palace Mullins was born in Reading, Berkshire. He joined Crystal Palace as a trainee in August 1996, and made his first-team debut in July 1998, at the age of 19, in the 1998 UEFA Intertoto Cup matches against Turkish club Samsunspor. Head coach Terry Venables gave him his domestic debut in a 3–3 draw against Bolton Wanderers in August 1998, and he scored his first senior goal in a 3–1 away defeat to Birmingham City a week later. He immediately established himself in the first team, made 45 league and cup appearances in the 1998–99 season, was named Player of The Year, and was capped for the England under-18 team. Mullins later acknowledged his debt to Venables, saying, "I learnt a lot from him. He took a lot of time with us on the training pitch. He taught us a lot about shape and formation, he's very detailed in that respect. He's very good man on man, he made me feel totally comfortable he didn't pressure me into it