before being substituted after 17 minutes in Accrington's 2–1 win against Shrewsbury Town on 21 October 2008. Despite needing eight stitches in his knee, Edwards played in Accrington's following league match four days later, a 1–0 home defeat to Wycombe Wanderers. Edwards played in all of Accrington's 50 games during the 2008–09 season, with the club finishing in 16th position in the league table. He signed a new two-year contract at Accrington. He scored his first goal of the 2009–10 season on 22 August 2009, "bundling" the ball into the goal from John Miles' corner kick in a 3–1 loss at Aldershot Town. Edwards scored nine times from central defence during the 2009–10 season, playing all 57 of the club's matches as Accrington finished in 15th place in League Two. He scored his first and second goals of the 2010–11 season on 2 October 2010, when he scored twice from the penalty spot in Accrington's 7–4 home win against Gillingham. Accrington cemented a place in the League Two play-offs after finishing in fifth place in League Two, Edwards played in both of the semi-final matches against Stevenage, which Accrington lost by a 3–0 aggregate scoreline. Edwards scored 13 goals from defence in 51 appearances during Accrington's 2010–11 campaign, finishing as Accrington's joint top goalscorer for the season alongside Terry Gornell and Sean McConville. He was offered a two-year contract extension at the end of the season. Accrington assistant manager Jimmy Bell stated "Phil has been offered a good deal and we're quietly confident, although there have been a few rumours about one or two clubs being interested. But Phil has been here since he was young, he can't drive, he gets looked after by the club and he gets lifts in to training, so he feels quite settled here". Edwards played 257 games for Accrington, scoring 24 goals. Stevenage Edwards signed for League One club Stevenage on 27 June 2011. He joined the club on a free transfer, rejecting a contract extension at Accrington. He signed a one-year deal with Stevenage, with the option of a second year. On joining the club he said "I wasn't particularly looking for another club and I didn't have any interest in any other clubs at the time, so I thought I'd still be at Accrington next season. However, the manager got in touch with my agent and discussed the offer and when I