In the past two decades, various England managers preferred to place trust in the same batch of trusted English players, but every now and then, an uncapped Englishman would be picked and called up to the national squad.
Some of these players would show promise and consistency and go on to collect more international caps, but others would be considered a big mistake and joined an unwanted club called the one cap wonders. Below is sgParlay's collection of the Top 10 England's One Cap Wonders.
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There were a number of England goalkeepers with only one cap before the new millennium, including Jimmy Rimmer (capped in 1976), Nigel Spink (capped in 1983) and Alex Stepney (capped in 1968).
England has long been bothered by the lack of outstanding local goalkeepers ever since the retirement of David Seaman. With Paul Robinson losing his form and David James approaching the twilight of his career, England has been experimenting with several young promising goalkeepers.

Ben Foster, Scott Carson and Chris Kirkland all started as talented goalkeepers but currently they only shared 6 caps among themselves.
Scott Carson, playing for relegated WBA, has 3 caps and unlikely to be noticed by the England manager unless he moves to a bigger club. Ben Foster, although playing for Manchester United, is still a backup for Edwin van der Sar. At 26 years old and has only 2 caps so far, he should have more chances in the future.
Chris Kirkland, playing for Wigan at the moment, has the unwanted tag of being the single-capped goalkeeper for England. Unlikely to play for England again, the 28-year-old at least has some consolation after his father won the 10,000 pounds bet against the bookmakers that his son would represent the national team before the age of 30.
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Mel Sterland, an English right back called up by Sir Bobby Robson to play for England for only one time in 1988, was long forgotten by football fans.
Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Glen Johnson and Micah Richards have been playing as right backs for England. In the last 15 years or so, there are no English one cap wonders in the right back spot, so a center back has to cover this position in our Top 10 England's One Cap Wonder, and the vote goes to Anthony Gardner.

Gardner began at Port Vale but he spent a big bulk of his career at Tottenham. He was regarded as a good squad player by both his club and national manager but a series of injuries limited his development and progress. In 2008, Gardner left for Hull City and although still only 28, his cap against Sweden in 2004 surely will be his last and only one.
Other notable English right backs Warren Barton and John Scales have won only 3 caps each for England.
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There are a couple of England left backs with very few caps. Chris Powell has five caps, Paul Konchesky and Nicky Shorey have two while Michael Ball and Stephen Warnock fall into the one cap wonder club.
Michael Ball gets the vote because he represented England in 2001 and did not get a recall since, whereas Stephen Warnock has just joined Aston Villa and may be donning the England shirt again if he continues to impress.

Ball caught the eye of then-England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson when he was still playing for Everton. However, he was not called up again as he was bothered by injuries and contractual issues after his move to Scottish giant Rangers. With the rise of Ashley Cole and Wayne Bridge, Ball's chances virtually diminished.
Michael Ball's cap for England came against Spain in a friendly, where he played the whole of the second half, replacing Chris Powell.
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Notoriously famous for his bust-ups with Manchester United's Eric Cantona and Arsenal's Patrick Vieira, Neil Ruddock was no stranger to controversy. The often obese but tough tackling defender played with his heart for all the clubs he joined.

Started at Milwall, Ruddock's career reached the peak when Liverpool signed him in 1993. One year later, England's then manager Terry Venables gave him a full cap in a friendly against Nigeria.
However, his indiscipline and lack of control over his weight led to his exit of Liverpool in 1998. Since then, Ruddock played for West Ham and subsequently several small clubs before retiring in 2003.
Another English center back Zat Knight comes close to being a one cap wonder. While playing for Fulham, he made his debut for England in 2005 against the United States. He managed to play again three days later in a friendly against Colombia, but was never recalled back to the national squad again.
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David Unsworth played admirably and consistently for Everton in two spells from 1991 to 2004 apart 1998, involving in almost 300 games. His versatility in the center back and left back positions also made him valuable, and he was rewarded in 1995 with an England call up against Japan, alongside with another debutant in Gary Nevile.

While Gary Neville went on to claim 85 caps, Unsworth was not called up ever again, even though he did still continue to play reasonably well for Everton.
In 2004, Unsworth finally left his beloved Everton and started clubs-hopping, joining six clubs before retiring in 2009.
Unsworth should have no regrets, as he played a full 90 minutes in the 2-1 victory over Japan at the Wembley stadium.
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Lee Bowyer was part of the famous Leeds setup that participated in the Champions League in the early 2000s yet imploded a few years later. During his seven-season at Leeds from 1996 to 2003, Bowyer was at his best as he built up a reputation of a hardworking midfielder that often nicked in a few goals. He was rewarded with a call up in 2002 against Portugal.

But it proved to be Bowyer's one and only cap as Leeds started to struggled with debts and forced to sell many of their best players. Bowyer left in 2003 to West Ham and then Newcastle.
Bowyer was also famous for his off-field incidents. He should win more caps if not for his assault on an Asian student which prompted the FA to ban him until his case was over. At Newcastle, Bowyer was involved in a disgraceful scuffle with teammate Kieron Dyer on live TV watched by millions.
Currently at Birmingham and aged 32, Bowyer can only look back and regret for all the lost chances.
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At his best when playing for Leicester City in the period of 1997 to 2001, Steve Guppy was dubbed as the David Beckham on the left wing. His crosses were also rated as second to Beckham.
In the left wing spot which had troubled England managers in the last 20 years, Guppy was like a gift from heaven as his natural left foot, dribbling and crossing made him the ideal choice for England's left side.

Guppy received his call up to the England national squad in 1999 against Belgium. But his fall was just as fast as his rise to stardom, as he faded away badly soon after that.
A loss of form and confidence saw him lost favour in Leicester, and Guppy left for Celtic in 2001. He was back at Leicester in 2004 but by then the club was relegated after deeply in debt. Now plying his trade in the United States as a coach, Guppy must be wondering why he did not play for England more often.
Another notable one cap wonder on the left wing is Alan Thompson. Stuart Ripley and Jason Wilcox escaped the unwanted tag with 2 and 3 caps respectively.
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Midfielder David Dunn shone in his early days at Blackburn, where he started his career. His impressive flair and dribbling ability have critics dubbed him as the new Gazza. Playing best in the attacking spot behind the two strikers, Dunn net in 30 goals in 135 games. His impressive form made ex-England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson called him up for a match against Portugal in 2002.

After 2003, however, Dunn suffered a loss of form and a fallout with Blackburn manager Graeme Souness prompted his departure to Birmingham. At the new club, Dunn was bothered by a series of injuries.
The England's central midfield, by then, was dominated by the likes of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry. The spoil for choices in the midfield means Dunn's international future is extremely bleak. Still only 29, it will take a miracle for Dunn to receive his second cap for England.
Another talented midfielder Scott Parker managed to gain 3 caps to avoid joining this unwanted club.
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As an one cap wonder for England, it is another wonder why a footballer's career can decline in such a rapid manner. This footballer was Seth Johnson.
Starting at Crewe, Johnson's hardworking ethics and tough-tackling style made him a promising young player who got the attention of several Premier League clubs. Derby signed him in 1999, but it was his 7m pounds' move to Leeds United in 2001 that caught the headlines.

The move proved to be a big mistake as he suffered many injuries which saw him play only 50-plus games in five seasons for Leeds. By then, Leeds was hit by a financial crisis and was forced to sell many of their stars.
Johnson was released on a free and he joined Derby once more. He did help Derby to gain promotion to the Premier League but his constant injuries made the club release him in 2007. A 30-year-old Seth Johnson was without a club since then.
At the peak of his career, Johnson played for England against Italy in 2000. That was his only glory at the international level.
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When Francis Jeffers scored an respectable 20 goals in 60 games for Everton when he was just 20, Arsene Wenger of Arsenal confirmed he was the type of player he wanted. Regarded as a fox in the box, Arsenal paid 8 million pounds for Jeffers in 2001.

Jeffers had represented the England Under 21 in 16 matches, scoring 13 goals in the process. Considered a firm England international, the move to Arsenal could only enhance his prospect, although he did not perform too well in his first two seasons at the Gunners.
Jeffers did, however, make his debut for England in a friendly against Australia in 2003. He scored a consolation goal for England, but that marked the end of his England career as he could not regain his Everton form again. Arsenal sold him in 2004 to Charlton, and he later moved to Blackburn and Sheffield Wednesday, but Jeffers never hit the back of the net more than 10 times per season.
The only honourable thing Jeffers could mention is that he boasted a 100% goal-to-cap ratio for England.
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There are also a couple of English strikers with only a single cap, including Michael Ricketts and Dean Ashton, but the last spot of sgParlay's Top 10 England's One Cap Wonder goes to David Nugent.
Like Jeffers, Nugent also boasts a 100% goal-to-cap ratio for England, as he scored on his England debut against Andorra in 2007. When he received his callup, Nugent was actually playing for Preston North, a non-Premier League team.

In the summer of 2007, Portsmouth signed Nugent after he impressed for Preston North, scoring 33 goals in two seasons. Nugent never fulfiled his potential, and was involved in a bust-up with a teammate. After only three miserable goals in 33 games for Pompey, Nugent's England prospect could end as fast as it started two years ago.
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Will win more England caps
A strong powerful forward, injuries have hindered the progress of West Ham striker Dean Ashton. He has represented England at many youth levels but only has a cap for the senior squad. Still only 25, Ashton will go on to win more caps for England if he can maintain his fitness well.

Little or no more chances
Lee Hendrie, Alan Thompson, Joey Barton and Michael Ricketts unfortunately fall into this category, which means they are likely to remain as England's one cap wonders forever.

Lee Hendrie's brightest moment came in the period of 1993 to 2007 when he played more than 250 games for Aston Villa. Since then, he has lost his place and was loaned out several times before joining Derby. At 32, he will forever remember his one appearance for England against Czech in 1998.

Although Alan Thompson has won four titles with Scottish giant Celtic from 2000 to 2006, he was never considered an option for England's left side. He received his callup in 2004, when he was already 30 years old, against Sweden, which proved to be one of the highlights in his career. Thompson has since retired from soccer last season.

Never shy of controversial on and off-field incidents, Joey Barton will probably be more recognised of his footballing talents if he can keep his discipline well. A bright product of the Man City youth academy, Barton impressed enough to represent England against Spain in 2007. However, his high-profiled fights with teammates and fans dented his reputation to an extent that his international prospect is all but gone.

Michael Ricketts plundered 37 goals in 98 games for Bolton from 2000 to 2003, prompting England to call him up in 2002 for a match against Holland. That proved to be an one-off incident as Ricketts' career went downhill soon after that. Playing for as many as ten clubs after he left bolton, Ricketts never regained his goal-scoring form. Currently 30 years old and playing for League One's Tranmere, Ricketts can only watch England in action on TV.
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ENGLAND'S ONE CAP WONDERS
