Ian Knight (footballer)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ian Johne Knight | ||
| Date of birth | 26 October 1966 | ||
| Place of birth | Hartlepool, England | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Barnsley | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1984–1985 | Barnsley | 0 | (0) |
| 1985–1990 | Sheffield Wednesday | 21 | (0) |
| 1989 | → Scunthorpe United (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 1990–1992 | Grimsby Town | 21 | (2) |
| 1992 | Carlisle United | 1 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | Boston United | ? | (?) |
| 1993 | Grantham Town | ? | (?) |
| National team | |||
| 1986 | England U-21 | 2 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2010– | Abbotsford Mariners | ||
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. | |||
Ian John Knight (born 26 October 1966) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender. He played for Sheffield Wednesday and Grimsby Town before retiring due to injuries.
Playing career
Knight began his career promisingly. He established himself in the first-team at Sheffield Wednesday, and was capped twice for the England under-21s.[1]
Injury
Knight was badly injured on 4 February 1987 in a FA Cup replay against Chester City. Two minutes into the game a poor tackle by Gary Bennett left Knight's leg broken in seven places.[2] Although he recovered from the injury, Knight lost his place in the first-team and was sold to Grimsby Town. However, recurring injury problems limited him to only 21 appearances in two years and he left the club in 1992. He then had a brief spell at Carlisle United, appearing once in the league before dropping into non-league football, where he played for Boston United and Grantham Town before deciding to retire.
He later sought £1.5 million damages against Bennett for the incident. In 1997, Knight settled the case out of court with Chester City.[3] It was the first time a professional footballer had successfully claimed compensation for a career-ending injury.[4]
Post-playing career
Shortly after retiring, Knight worked on a youth programme at Grimsby. When his contract with Grimsby ended, he moved to Canada where he coached youth teams at the Greater London Soccer Club.[5] In April 2010, he was appointed head coach of the Abbotsford Mariners.[6]
Career statistics
Source:[7]
| Season | Club | Division | League | FA Cup | League Cup | FL Trophy | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 1984–85 | Barnsley | Second Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |
| 1985–86 | Sheffield Wednesday | First Division | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | |
| 1986–87 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 19 | 0 | |||
| 1987–88 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1988–89 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | |||
| 1989–90 | Scunthorpe United (loan) | Fourth Division | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Grimsby Town | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | ||
| 1990–91 | Third Division | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | |
| 1991–92 | Second Division | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1992–93 | Carlisle United | Third Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 45 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 53 | 2 | ||
References
- ↑ England – U-21 International Results 1986–1995
- ↑ Culley, Jon (14 April 1996). "'There was talk of amputation'". London: The Independent. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
- ↑ http://www.chester-city.co.uk/october97news.asp
- ↑ "Injury time | Features | The Lawyer". 17 June 2002. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ↑ "Ex-pro Ian carves coaching career". Hartlepool Mail. 6 June 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
- ↑ "SYL Coach Climbs USL Ladder – Ian Knight Joins Abbotsford Mariners in PDL". 30 March 2010. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ↑ "The English National Football Archive". Soccerdata. Retrieved 24 February 2013.