Haarhoff was born in
Lusaka, Zambia. before joining the
youth system of professional club
Birmingham City. He made his first-team debutand his only first-team appearanceas a last-minute
substitute in the
Division One (second tier) match at home to
Crystal Palace on 16 October 1999. As the holder of a British passport born outside the United Kingdom, Haarhoff was eligible to play international football for any of the
Home Nations. He made his debut for Northern Ireland at under-18 level as a half-time substitute in a 3–1 defeat of their
Denmark counterparts in a
friendly international in February 2000. According to manager
Roy Millar, "He has quick feet and is very pacey. He goes past players and is exciting to watch", and his debut performance earned him a place in the starting eleven, also against Denmark, a couple of days later. After trials with
Doncaster Rovers and
Chester City in December 2000, Haarhoff signed a short-term deal with the latter club in January 2001 after Birmingham released him from his contract. He began well, but failed to make the starting eleven in the latter part of the season. With his contract due to expire, Haarhoff was one of several players called in by the chairman for two weeks' fitness training; those who failed to attend, Haarhoff included, were threatened with dismissal, but a few days later he was offered and accepted a two-year contract. In October 2001, after a change of ownership and management at the club, Haarhoff was offered a loan move to
Droylsden of the
Northern Premier League, which he turned down. In February 2002 he had been playing for the
reserve team, but returned to the first team as a substitute to score a last-minute winner to knock
Hereford United out and reach the quarter-final of the
FA Trophy. He was given a
squad number prior to the
2002–03 season, but in August 2002 he joined Droylsden on a three-month loan, a move which was made permanent five weeks later. Haarhoff signed for
Southern League Premier side
Moor Green in the 2003 close season, but failed to settle, and dropped down a division to fellow
Halesowen Town in March 2004. He played eight games in what remained of the
2003–04 season, contributing to the club's promotion to the Premier Division, and 44 games in all competitions in 2004–05, of which 31 were in the league. At the end of the season he was not offered a new contract, and opted to give up the pursuit of a career as a footballer in favour of his religion. In June 2005 he was baptised into the
Seventh-day Adventist Church, in which his father Jim was an elder. Since his retirement as a player, Haarhoff has worked with Halesowen Town's and Birmingham City's community programmes, and as a skills coach in the
Birmingham area under
the Football Association's Skills Coaches programme. He went on to set up his own coaching company. ==References==