He began his career with Tow Law before moving into league football with Hartlepool United when signing on a free transfer in August 1995. In his first season, 1995-96, he scored 7 goals in 39 matches and immediately became a huge favourite with the Hartlepool supporters for his aerial dominance and never-say-die attitude.

1996-97 was a mixed season for Howard. Still young and not yet settled on a position, he struggled with injuries, but despite a loss of form in the first half of the campaign, by mid term he looked to have found his best position, playing as an old-fashioned centre forward. His awkward style of play certainly causing the opposition defences plenty of problems. Unfortunately, his goal scoring record was patchy, although he ended the season on a high with two goals at Swansea when playing as a midfielder.

1997-98 was another mixed season for Howard. For most of the season he was played as an out-and-out centre forward, and there were signs that his awkward style of play could make him a real success in this position, but other times he was criticised for not being a regular goal scorer. However, there was no doubting that he had the right attitude, and few Hartlepool fans will forget the goal he scored with a tremendous 35-yard volley at Tranmere in the League Cup.

In 1998-99 he scored 5 goals in 28 matches before he became Northampton's record signing in February 1999 when moving for £120,000. However, he failed to score in the 12 matches that he played for Northampton during the season and he was sent off in only his 3rd game for the Cobblers.

In 1999-00 he scored 10 league goals in 41 appearances, his best total in a season. In December 1999, Northampton turned down a £75,000 bid for him from Carlisle and he was voted Internet Player of the Year for 1999-00.

Steve made his Luton debut in a 1-1 draw at Peterborough, and he scored in the next match, netting an 84th minute consolation from the penalty spot in a 3-1 defeat at Colchester. He failed to score in the next 8 matches, as Luton struggled at the bottom of the Second Division, with Luton failing to win a single one of those 8 games, and losing 4 of them. With the Hatters already relegated, Steve scored a spectacular goal from the half-way line in a 2-2 draw at Brentford, and he also netted on the last day of the season, scoring a 15th minute header from a corner in a 1-1 draw with Port Vale.

Steve had a magnificent 2001-02 season, which culminated in him winning the Division Three Golden Boot award after a phenomenal goal scoring record from Christmas onwards. A virtual ever-present during the season, he failed to score in the opening 7 games, despite Luton's good start to the campaign and he was at the centre of controversy in a 2-1 win at York on September 15th 2001, which almost brought to an end his Luton career. The Hatters were awarded a penalty, which Steve stepped forward to take - and missed. However, the referee ordered it to be re-taken as the goalkeeper had moved to soon. Despite being ordered by Hatters manager Joe Kinnear not to take the second spot-kick, Steve ignored him and took the second penalty - and missed once more. He then argued with the other Luton players before being substituted and storming off down the tunnel.

With his Luton career now in the balance, Steve was dropped for the next game, a home match with Lincoln while boss Joe Kinnear decided what punishment to take. He eventually escaped with a warning from Kinnear and returned to the side for the following match, a 5-1 home win over Torquay, with Steve celebrating his return to the team with a goal - his first of the season. He netted again in the next match in a 3-1 win at Leyton Orient as Luton hit good form and the promotion challenge was underway. A further goal followed 2 matches later, as Darlington were thumped 5-2 at Kenilworth Road and Steve began to finally win over the Hatters supporters. However, he then hit a lean spell once again and failed to net in the next 7 matches as Luton endured their worst run of form during the campaign. Netting again at Macclesfield in a disastrous 4-1 defeat at the end of November, Steve was playing reasonably well but wasn't scoring enough goals and was hardly setting the world alight.

A goal at former club Hartlepool in a 2-1 win on December 22nd 2001 saw Steve enter the New Year with just 5 goals. However, the New Year brought a new lease of life for Steve - and unbelievable results. 3 goals in 4 matches in January 2002 saw Steve increase his tally of goals for the season to 8, and February was an even better month for the Hatters striker as he bagged 5 goals in 7 matches, including the second in a 2-0 win over promotion rivals Plymouth and both goals in a 2-1 home win over York. March brought Luton 5 games - and Steve 5 goals as he continued his incredible goal scoring streak with a goal in a 2-1 victory at Rushden, a brace in a 3-0 home win over Exeter, one in a 5-0 demolition over Halifax and then the 3rd in a 3-1 win at Swansea - which saw Luton promoted back to Division Two at the first attempt. Now on 19 goals for the season, Steve didn't stop there - he hit two more in a 5-3 home win over Mansfield as Luton celebrated promotion in front of their own fans. And then...a hat-trick at Hull in a 4-0 win - the first ever hat-trick of Steve's career. With that match ball now on Howard's mantelpiece, he went in to the final game of the season at Shrewsbury knowing that a goal could potentially see him end the season by winning the Division Three Golden Boot award. Steve duly responded by netting in a 2-0 win and he ended the season with 24 goals - which was enough to earn him the Golden Boot award. He had ended the season with an astonishing 19 goals in 19 games from Christmas!

A magnificent season for both Steve and for Luton, he was rewarded for his tremendous campaign with the Player of the Season award and the joint Players' Player of the Season award, which he shared with Matthew Taylor.

Steve had another fantastic season during the 2002-03 campaign which culminated in him bagging another 23 goals in all competitions for the Hatters and once again finishing as Luton’s top goal scorer for the season.

He netted his first goal of the season in only the second match of the campaign in a disappointing 2-5 defeat at Blackpool, and he followed that up with another goal in the following game as the Hatters went down 1-2 at Plymouth Argyle. However, Steve scored a superb individual goal that day as he latched onto the ball and burst through The Pilgrims’ defence, holding off the challenges of several defenders before firing home for what was at the time an equalising goal. It was a great individual goal and certainly one that Steve wouldn’t have scored before he joined the Hatters – it just epitomised how much he had improved under the guidance of manager Joe Kinnear and his assistant Mick Harford – who was, of course, a great centre forward in his day and no doubt had a great influence on Steve’s improvement.

Three games later Steve was on the score sheet again as Chesterfield were beaten 3-0 at Kenilworth Road, and after a 0-0 draw at Brentford in a game that saw Steve head the ball against the cross bar and come close to scoring yet again, it sparked an amazing run of 5 consecutive games in which Steve found the back of the net.

It started with a trip to local rivals Watford in the League Cup First Round at Vicarage Road on September 10th 2002. In a game that meant so much to both sets of supporters, and with The Hornets also a Division above the Hatters, Luton took the lead courtesy of a thunderbolt strike from Matthew Spring. And Spring then slotted through a sublime pass for Steve and, with ex-Luton goalkeeper Alec Chamberlain to beat, Steve fired the ball into the far corner to give the Hatters a 2-0 lead – and send the 4,500 travelling supporters into raptures! Luton held on to win 2-1 and knock their deadly rivals out of the League Cup – it was a truly great night and Steve had not only further enhanced his reputation as a fans’ favourite, but he had also proven that he could perform against a higher Division club.

Four goals in the next four games in wins over Huddersfield Town and Swindon Town, and a defeat to Mansfield Town and draw with Notts County were showing that Steve was certainly capable of scoring goals in Division Two on a regular basis.

However, only one goal in the next 9 matches followed for Steve – that coming in an excellent 1-0 win at Crewe Alexandra, who were eventually promoted automatically to Division One.

But after this barren spell, Steve then enjoyed a purple patch once more as he netted 5 goals in his next 4 matches in wins over Tranmere Rovers, Cardiff City and Wycombe Wanderers, and a draw at Bristol City. The Boxing Day win over big-spending Cardiff City was one of the highlights of the season for the Luton supporters, and Steve’s goal against The Bluebirds was also rather special. With the Hatters leading 1-0, and the game in stoppage time, the Hatters earned a corner. Ahmet Brkovic took the corner on the right and swung it over. Steve was the only Luton player in the area, as the Hatters were looking to hold their lead and so were leaving bodies back. However, despite several Cardiff players outnumbering Steve in the box, Brkovic found Steve perfectly at the far post. As the ball fell, Steve hit it on the volley with the inside of his right foot, and the ball flew into the top far corner to seal the victory and once again send the Luton fans wild! It was a truly great finish. And then, in the win at Wycombe Wanderers, Steve bagged a brace, the first a great strike from the edge of the area, the second a trademark header from a long Ian Hillier throw-in.

He then scored another goal in a 1-1 draw at Peterborough United four matches later and, after another four games without a goal, Steve was back on target in 2 consecutive matches in a 3-0 win over Huddersfield Town and in a 1-1 draw at eventual champions Wigan Athletic.

However, he then failed to score in his next 5 matches as Luton’s slim hopes of making the play-off places faded away in a disappointing fashion.

Surprisingly, despite Luton’s play-off aspirations over and manager Joe Kinnear deciding to hand some youngsters first-team places to see how they coped in preparation for the forthcoming season, Steve enjoyed another rich vein of goal scoring as he ended the season with 6 goals from the final 5 games. He netted a brace in a 2-2 home draw with Bristol City and then scored the second hat-trick of his senior career in an amazing 5-0 win at Colchester United in a game that saw the Hatters astonishingly lead 4-0 at half-time. The final goal of his 23 for the campaign came in a 1-1 home draw with Stockport County in the final match of the season at Kenilworth Road.

The only downside to Steve’s season was that he picked up 13 yellow cards and 1 red card – against Queen’s Park Rangers – although this is the physical nature of his game.

It was still, however, another tremendous season for Steve and he again showed he has a real knack for scoring goals, especially in the air. He is a huge fans’ favourite and must now be worth between £500,000 - £1 million in the transfer market. He was rewarded for his fantastic season by sharing the Player of the Year award with Chris Coyne, as well as winning the Players Player of the Year trophy.

Steve had another excellent season with the club during the 2003-04 campaign as he once again finished as Luton Town's top goal scorer – netting 16 goals in all competitions for the Hatters.

After helping the club to a 3-1 opening day victory over Rushden & Diamonds, Steve netted in two consecutive matches – in a 4-1 home win over Yeovil Town in the League Cup First Round, and then in a 2-1 victory at Stockport County that briefly put the Hatters top of the table – albeit after only two League matches!

Unfortunately, two matches later, he was sent off in a 0-2 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion on the August Bank Holiday Monday and his poor disciplinary record would continue for the rest of the season as he picked up a total of 10 yellow cards and one red card during the campaign and this forced him to miss a few matches through suspension. However, Steve is a bustling striker who will compete for every challenge and if you were to take this aspect of his game away, he would certainly not be as good as player as he is.

He made up for his dismissal against Brighton & Hove Albion by netting a brace in the following match, a 3-2 home win over his former club Hartlepool United – and he netted again two matches later in a 1-1 home draw with rivals Queen's Park Rangers, Steve deflecting a Gary McSheffrey shot into the net to send the Hatters fans wild – only for the visitors to earn a point with a late equaliser.

He then endured a barren spell when he only found the back of the net once in the following 13 matches, that coming with a powerful headed goal in a 1-0 home win over Chesterfield in late November 2003. However, during that time, he had sustained a wrist injury that forced him to miss nearly two months of action between late September to November.

He then netted another goal in a 2-2 home draw with Stockport County as he fired home an indirect free-kick from inside the area after the visiting goalkeeper had picked up a back pass.

His form had attracted the interest of Sheffield Wednesday, who were looking to make the most of Luton Town's financial difficulties as the Hatters spent the entire season in administrative receivership. However, the club turned down The Owls' offer for Steve and, much to the delight of the Hatters fans, he remained a Luton Town player.

Three goals in two matches in late February 2004 saw Steve creeping up the Hatters' goal scoring charts as he fired home a brace in a 2-3 defeat at Grimsby Town and then a fine strike from the edge of the area in a 2-1 win at Peterborough United.

He continued his fine record of netting against his former club Hartlepool United when finding the back of the net in a 3-4 loss at The Victoria Ground in early April 2004 and then he finished the season with a real flourish as he netted 5 goals in the last 4 matches of the season. The first came in a 3-2 home win over Bristol City and he also netted in a 1-1 home draw with AFC Bournemouth.

However, his final three strikes of the campaign came in vein as the Hatters' brave attempts for a play-off place had come to an end after a 1-2 loss at Wrexham – a game in which Steve once again netted the Hatters' goal.

His final goals of the season came in a 3-2 home win over Sheffield Wednesday, a game which the Hatters had been trailing 0-2 before embarking on a remarkable comeback to claim all three points.

Finishing the season with 16 goals, Steve had once again attracted the attention of Sheffield Wednesday and The Owls made three offers for Steve – all of which were turned down by Luton Town manager Mike Newell.

Steve yet again had a tremendous season during the 2004-05 campaign as he finished as Luton Town’s top goal scorer for the fourth consecutive season, his goals firing the Hatters to the League One Championship and seeing them return to the Championship after 10 seasons in the bottom two Divisions of the Football League.

He began the season in fine fettle, scoring in the opening 5 matches of the season as the Hatters won their first six matches of the campaign and, in fact, it wasn’t until mid-October 2004 that they lost their first match!

His sixth goal of the season came in early October as he continued his tradition of scoring against his former club Hartlepool United by netting in a 3-0 victory over Pools under the floodlights on a Friday evening at Kenilworth Road. However, the Hatters then went on a run of three straight League defeats and the critics began to suspect that the wheels had come off the promotion bandwagon. Fortunately, it was only a minor blip as Luton, and Howard, recaptured their fine form and Steve netted nine goals in the next six matches, which included braces in FA Cup wins at League Two sides Southend United and Wycombe Wanderers, and a hat-trick in a 4-1 win at new rivals Milton Keynes Dons.

Unfortunately, Steve’s disciplinary problems continued to haunt him and he was given a straight red card in a 0-2 loss at Brentford for the use of his elbow on a Bees defender. Although it was his only red card of the season, he also picked up 13 yellow cards, which meant he had to sit out a few games through suspension.

Undeterred on his return following his dismissal at Brentford, he came back by scoring three goals in January and, after going 8 matches without finding the net, he finished the season in a purple patch, bagging four goals to end the season with 22 goals (16 in the League) as Luton Town romped to the League One Championship.

He was also rewarded for his outstanding season by being one of six Luton Town players named in the PFA League One Team of the Season, as voted for by his fellow professionals

However, out-of-contract at the end of the season, it appeared that Steve would be leaving Kenilworth Road as he had still not signed a new contract that had been offered to him since before Christmas. With Burnley, Stoke City, Sheffield Wednesday, Leeds United and Gillingham all rumoured to be interested in acquiring Steve’s services, it looked like the popular striker would be an ex-popular striker. However, manager Mike Newell managed to persuade the bustling striker that his future was in Bedfordshire and much to the delight of everyone at Kenilworth Road – not least the supporters – he penned a new two-year deal, with the option of a third year, and he will be a Championship striker with Luton Town during the 2005-06 season – Steve’s first-ever opportunity of playing his football at this level.

Steve had another superb season in 2005-06 as his 14 League goals propelled Luton Town to a 10th placed finish – an excellent achievement for their first season back playing Championship football. His goal scoring exploits also saw him finish as the Hatters top goal scorer for the fifth consecutive season.

The bustling striker, again devastating in the air and causing problems for a whole host of opposing defences, despite the step-up in class, once more remained a huge favourite with the Hatters faithful.

Undoubtedly one of the best strikers at Kenilworth Road in many a year, Steve opened his account for the season with a trademark thumping header in a 2-1 victory at Crystal Palace – a result that made the footballing world take note that Luton Town were a force to be reckoned with in the forthcoming season!

He followed that up with a real purple patch when bagging 5 goals in 7 matches in September and October, netting in live televised clashes with Hull City (1-0) and Sheffield Wednesday (2-2) and in impressive home victories over Preston North End (3-0) and Norwich City (4-2).

Perhaps his most surprising goal of the season came once again in front of the live television cameras as the BBC and the nation saw him prove he is equally as effective on the ground as in the air as he netted in a thrilling 3-5 FA Cup Third Round defeat against eventual FA Cup winners Liverpool. Equalising Steven Gerrard’s early strike, Steve latched onto Ahmet Brkovic’s sublime through ball, before rounding England goalkeeper Scott Carson and rolling the ball into the empty net when in an awkward position.

However, he reserved his biggest achievement in a Luton Town shirt for February 25th 2006 when his late header in a 1-2 loss at Leeds United saw him bag his 100th goal in all competitions for Luton Town. With the Hatters fans sporting a “100 up Howie” banner in celebration of his imminent achievement, Steve duly rewarded them with his trademark headed goal that saw the 2,500 travelling Hatters fans in raptures.

Finishing the season with 15 goals (14 in the League), Steve was rewarded with a Special Achievement Award at the end of the season in honour of his 100 goals for Luton Town Football Club.

A huge favourite with the Hatters faithful, Steve had scored 96 goals in 212 League appearances for Luton Town prior to the start of the 2006-07 season. However, in July 2006, Luton Town supporters received the news they had been dreading - Steve had been sold. Attracting interest from Norwich City and Leeds United, it was surprisingly Derby County who sealed his signature in a £1 million transfer, Steve signing a three-year deal at Pride Park. Hugely disappointing for Hatters fans, it would ultimately prove to be extremely hard to replace the massively popular striker - Luton Town's 5th top post-war goal scorer.

Steve made his Derby County debut in a 2-2 draw with Southampton on the opening day of the 2006-07 season. His £1 million fee made him Derby's biggest signing for over 5 years and he initially struggled to repay it as he failed to score in his first seven appearances for the club. He finally broke his duck with the winner in a 1-0 victory against Wolves at Molineux and went on to score in four consecutive games, the first player to do so for the club since Fabrizio Ravanelli in 2001.

Steve quickly became a fan's favourite as his work rate and goals helped the Rams to finish third in the Championship for the 2006-07 campaign and eventually earn promotion to the Premiership for the first time in 5 years following a 1-0 win over West Brom in the 2007 Championship play-off final. He finished the season as Derby County's top scorer with 19 goals, of which 16 came in the League and 3 in Cup competitions, two of which were vital goals in the Coca Cola Championship play-off semi-final first leg against Southampton at the St. Mary's Stadium, giving Derby a 2–1 lead prior to the second leg at Pride Park. Steve was also nominated for the January 2007 Championship Player of the Month award and was awarded the Jack Stamps Trophy as Derby's Player Of The Season for 2006-07.

However, Steve, and Derby as a team, found adapting to the 2007-08 Premiership difficult and he only managed one goal in the top flight, scoring his club's first away goal of the season in a 1-4 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford on 8 December 2007. He also missed a vital penalty in a 1-2 home defeat to Blackburn Rovers. It proved to be his last contribution in a Derby County shirt and he was sold to midland rivals Leicester City on January 1, 2008 for a fee of £1.5 million.

Following his move to Leicester City, Steve made his debut in a 1-3 defeat to QPR on January 1. He scored his first goal in an M69 derby on January 12, in which Leicester won 2-0. He managed a hat-trick in a 4-1 away win over West Brom on 15th March, then being named in the Championship Team of the Week as a result. He scored 6 goals in 20 games as Leicester were relegated to League One.