Carragher started his career at
Wigan Athletic after coming through the ranks at the Latics School of Excellence and made his debut in a 6–3 win over
Chester City in October 1993.
Kenny Swain's "Latics" then finished the
1993–94 campaign fourth from bottom of the
Third Division. New boss
Graham Barrow then led the
Springfield Park club to 14th in
1994–95, before he was replaced by
John Deehan. Wigan finished 10th in
1995–96, two points behind
Colchester United in the
play-off zone. Carragher made 16 appearances in
1996–97, as Wigan were crowned of the Third Division, finishing above
Fulham on
goal difference. He moved on to
Port Vale in 1997 after
John Rudge judged Carragher to be a potential replacement for the ageing
Dean Glover and
Neil Aspin. He made 25
First Division appearances in
1997–98, helping the "Valiants" to beat
Huddersfield Town 4–0 on the final day of the season to avoid
relegation by one point, at the expense of
Manchester City and
Potteries derby rivals
Stoke City. However, he featured just 12 times in
1998–99, and was not selected once by new boss
Brian Horton. He was though named as the club's Clubman of the Year. He scored his first goal at
Vale Park on 25 September 1999, in a 2–0 win over
Swindon Town, and went on to play 39 games as Vale were relegated to the
Second Division at the end of the
1999–2000 season. He played 56 of the club's 57 games in
2000–01, playing as a
sweeper in a defence of
Michael Walsh,
Sagi Burton,
Allen Tankard, and goalkeeper
Mark Goodlad. He also
captained the "Valiants" at the
Football League Trophy final at the
Millennium Stadium, which finished as a 2–1 win over
Brentford. He continued to lead the back line in
2001–02, making 47 appearances. Following his release from Vale, he joined
Stafford Rangers on non-
contract terms, playing eight
Southern League games, whilst
Burton Albion boss
Nigel Clough considered whether or not to make him an offer. Instead he signed for
Macclesfield Town in November 2003. He played 18 games in
2003–04, as the "Silkmen" avoided relegation into the
Conference by three places and seven points. Ironically,
manager John Askey was replaced by Brian Horton in April 2004. He played 39 games in
2004–05 and featured in the play-off semi-final defeat to
Lincoln City, but Horton released him from his contract at
Moss Rose in May 2005. ==Style of play==