James Hunt (footballer)
Encyclopedia
James Malcolm Hunt is a former English
professional footballer who played as a midfielder
for Notts County
, Northampton Town
, Oxford United
, Bristol Rovers
, Grimsby Town
and Gainsborough Trinity
. He began his professional career in 1994 before retiring in June 2010 for family reasons.
became Formula One
World Champion in Derby
. Hunt started his professional career after graduating from the youth academy at Notts County
. He was promoted to the first team squad at the start of the 1994–1995 seasaon and was handed his debut by Russell Slade
. During his time at Meadow Lane
Hunt also played under Howard Kendall
, Steve Nicol
and Colin Murphy before finally being released by Sam Allardyce
at the end of the 1996–1997 season. Hunt played 73 times for County in all competitions, scoring one goal in the League Cup
.
brought Hunt to Northampton Town
in the summer of 1997. Hunt did not make his debut for Town until 21 October 1997 when he came on as a 55th minute substitute for David Rennie
. During his first full season with Northampton the club secured a play-off place with the Second Division
and after defeating Bristol Rovers
in the semi-final the club were defeated 1–0 by Grimsby Town
at Wembley Stadium
.
, and he became the club's captain until November 2006, when a disagreement with first team coach Paul Trollope
about Hunt being named as a substitute instead of being in the starting 11 led to him being transfer listed
.
in early 2007 on loan and was instrumental in the club's successful fight to avoid relegation. He was out of contract with the Pirates in the summer so signed permanently for The Mariners. Hunt cemented himself as one of the first team regulars in the side managed by Alan Buckley
during the 2007–2008 season. Buckley was sacked as manager in the early part of the following season, and when he was replaced by Mike Newell
, he opted to bring in such players as Jean-Paul Kamudimba Kalala
. Hunt found himself froze out of the first team, until the late season when he managed to re-established his place in Grimsby's first team following injuries to Kalala and Dean Sinclair
. Hunt managed to hold a regular position down and became an integral part of the team that for the third season in a row managed to avoid relegation. Despite earning a place back in the team, Hunt was released by Newell, stating at the age of 33, Grimsby could not offer Hunt first team football.
on May 29, 2009 where he remained for a new season before retiring from the game for family reasons.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
professional footballer who played as a midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
for Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
, Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
, Oxford United
Oxford United F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...
, Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers F.C.
Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Bristol, that competes in Football League Two. The team plays its home matches at the Memorial Stadium, in the Horfield area of the city....
, Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
and Gainsborough Trinity
Gainsborough Trinity F.C.
Gainsborough Trinity Football Club are an English football club based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.Between 1896 and 1912 they were members of the Football League. They are currently in the Conference North, and play their home matches at The Northolme, which has a capacity of 4,304...
. He began his professional career in 1994 before retiring in June 2010 for family reasons.
Notts County
He was born shortly after his namesakeJames Hunt
James Simon Wallis Hunt was a British racing driver from England who won the Formula One World Championship in . Hunt's often action packed exploits on track earned him the nickname "Hunt the Shunt." After retiring from driving, Hunt became a media commentator and businessman...
became Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
World Champion in Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
. Hunt started his professional career after graduating from the youth academy at Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
. He was promoted to the first team squad at the start of the 1994–1995 seasaon and was handed his debut by Russell Slade
Russell Slade
Russell Slade is an English football manager currently in charge of League One side Leyton Orient.-Notts County:Slade was assistant manager to Mick Walker at Notts County, and took over as caretaker manager when Walker was sacked in September 1994. When County appointed Howard Kendall as manager...
. During his time at Meadow Lane
Meadow Lane
Not to be confused with The Meadow, home of Southern Football League Premier Division football team Chesham UnitedThe Meadow Lane Stadium is a football stadium in Nottingham, England...
Hunt also played under Howard Kendall
Howard Kendall
Howard Kendall is an English football manager and former player. He is most famous for his connection to Everton, a club that he both played for and managed. His uncle Harry Taylor played for Newcastle United and Fulham in the 1950s....
, Steve Nicol
Steve Nicol
Stephen "Steve" Nicol is a Scottish former professional footballer. A utility player who played in the all-conquering Liverpool team of the 1980s, he was most recently coach of New England Revolution, and was the longest-tenured head coach in MLS to coach a single club.As a player, Nicol was a...
and Colin Murphy before finally being released by Sam Allardyce
Sam Allardyce
Samuel "Sam" Allardyce , nicknamed "Big Sam", is an English football manager and former professional player. In June 2011 he was appointed as manager of West Ham United....
at the end of the 1996–1997 season. Hunt played 73 times for County in all competitions, scoring one goal in the League Cup
League Cup
In association football, a League Cup or Secondary Cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament to be called "League Cup" was held in Scotland in 1946/47 and was entitled the Scottish...
.
Northampton Town
Ian AtkinsIan Atkins
Ian Leslie Atkins is a former English professional footballer who became a manager later in his career, and now works as a coach with Sunderland. During a 20-year playing career he had eight clubs, including two spells with Sunderland and Birmingham City and playing more than 200 games with his...
brought Hunt to Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
in the summer of 1997. Hunt did not make his debut for Town until 21 October 1997 when he came on as a 55th minute substitute for David Rennie
David Rennie (footballer)
David Rennie in Edinburgh) is a retired Scottish footballer who played as a defensive midfielder or defender. He made more than 400 appearances in the Football League, playing for Leicester City, Leeds United, Bristol City, Birmingham City, Coventry City, Northampton Town and Peterborough...
. During his first full season with Northampton the club secured a play-off place with the Second Division
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
and after defeating Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers F.C.
Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Bristol, that competes in Football League Two. The team plays its home matches at the Memorial Stadium, in the Horfield area of the city....
in the semi-final the club were defeated 1–0 by Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
.
Bristol Rovers
In 2004 he signed for Bristol RoversBristol Rovers F.C.
Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Bristol, that competes in Football League Two. The team plays its home matches at the Memorial Stadium, in the Horfield area of the city....
, and he became the club's captain until November 2006, when a disagreement with first team coach Paul Trollope
Paul Trollope
Paul Jonathan Trollope is an English-born Welsh international football midfielder, now turned manager. He was manager of Bristol Rovers from 2005 to 2010. In July 2011, Paul was appointed first-team coach at Birmingham City....
about Hunt being named as a substitute instead of being in the starting 11 led to him being transfer listed
Transfer market
The Transfer market and Transfer list are common slang terms for the virtual arena in which football players are available for transfer to clubs.- Transfer market :...
.
Grimsby Town
He joined Grimsby TownGrimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
in early 2007 on loan and was instrumental in the club's successful fight to avoid relegation. He was out of contract with the Pirates in the summer so signed permanently for The Mariners. Hunt cemented himself as one of the first team regulars in the side managed by Alan Buckley
Alan Buckley
Alan Peter Buckley is an English football manager. He was manager of League Two side Grimsby Town until his dismissal in September 2008...
during the 2007–2008 season. Buckley was sacked as manager in the early part of the following season, and when he was replaced by Mike Newell
Mike Newell (footballer)
Michael Colin "Mike" Newell is an English football manager and former professional footballer. As a player he notably was a member of the Blackburn Rovers team which won the Premier League in 1995, as well also playing for Crewe Alexandra, Wigan Athletic, Luton Town, Leicester City, Everton,...
, he opted to bring in such players as Jean-Paul Kamudimba Kalala
Jean-Paul Kamudimba Kalala
Jean-Paul Kamudimba Kalala , often referred to as Jean-Paul Kalala or JP Kalala, is a Congolese footballer, who plays a midfielder for Southend United. He started his career in France playing for Nice before moving to Grimsby Town in 2005...
. Hunt found himself froze out of the first team, until the late season when he managed to re-established his place in Grimsby's first team following injuries to Kalala and Dean Sinclair
Dean Sinclair
Dean Michael Sinclair is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for Conference National side Hayes & Yeading....
. Hunt managed to hold a regular position down and became an integral part of the team that for the third season in a row managed to avoid relegation. Despite earning a place back in the team, Hunt was released by Newell, stating at the age of 33, Grimsby could not offer Hunt first team football.
Gainsborough Trinity
Hunt signed for Gainsborough TrinityGainsborough Trinity F.C.
Gainsborough Trinity Football Club are an English football club based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.Between 1896 and 1912 they were members of the Football League. They are currently in the Conference North, and play their home matches at The Northolme, which has a capacity of 4,304...
on May 29, 2009 where he remained for a new season before retiring from the game for family reasons.
External links
- Profile of James Hunt at codalmighty.com