John McDermott (footballer)
Encyclopedia
John McDermott is a former English footballer
. McDermott, who is a right-back, has played his entire career at Grimsby Town
, and holds the club's all-time appearance record, having played 647 league
games, 754 games overall for the Mariners. He is one of only 17 players in the history of English football to play more than 600 Football League matches for a single club. Grimsby Town FC and the Grimsby Telegraph newspaper are running a campaign for McDermott to be awarded an MBE; the Telegraph is hosting an online petition. John is currently the Assistant Manager at Harrogate Town
.
Over the decades he was seen by many as a consistent performer as he won Grimsby Town 'Player of the Year' a record three times. In 1994 McDermott suffered an injury and was injured for nine months. He regained his place in the team in 1996 and was quickly becoming one of the most respected defenders outside the Premier League and was linked with moves to Sunderland AFC and Ipswich Town but did not leave his beloved Grimsby Town. McDermott has experienced it all after around 20 years at the club. In an age where players change clubs as often as golfers, it seems that Macca was a great exception, proving loyalty by repeatedly renewing his contract. One of his famous quotes on the situation of present-day footballers is:
"If someone would rather sit in the reserves at a big club and drive around in a Ferrari rather than going out on-loan and playing, then I think it's a sad day."
Having said this there was a time where he was expected to move to fierce rivals Hull, but the deal never materialised.
He was appointed captain by player/manager Paul Groves, and won BBC Radio Humberside 'Sports personality of the year' award. Other great memories
for him included the notable win over Tottenham Hotspur in the Carling Cup. Further highlights followed in the 2005–06 season as he had his second testimonial against local rivals Hull City
and was included in Four,Four Two magazine's list of the top 50 players outside the Premier League
Throughout his 20-year career, McDermott has experienced promotion or relegation nine times. He considers his Man of The Match award in the Auto Windscreens Shield
victory in 1998 to be the highlight of his career.
McDermott was described by one Grimsby Town fanzine
as a defender who 'defends without tackling'; meant as a compliment to his ability to shackle opposition strikers without committing fouls.
. McDermott was substituted in the 73rd minute as Grimsby fought out a 2–2 draw. Upon leaving the field, play paused briefly as both sets of fans applauded McDermott off the field.
but was overlooked for the position, and United in turn appointed Tommy Taylor
. In October 2008 McDermott distanced himself from speculation linking him to managing Grimsby Town after the sacking of Alan Buckley
. McDermott then turned to coaching the Grimsby Institute Academy male and female football teams.
On 26 April 2009, John won the PFA Merit Award
, one of the highest accolades in the game. In October 2009, he was once again linked with the vacant managers post at Grimsby following the sacking of Mike Newell
. This time McDermott as well as Dean Windass
expressed a desire to take the job. McDermott was appointed assistant manager of Harrogate Town
ahead of the 2010-2011 season.
PLEASE NOTE Stats unavailable until 1997.
Stats accurate as of 16:47, 28 December 2009.
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
. McDermott, who is a right-back, has played his entire career at 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 holds the club's all-time appearance record, having played 647 league
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
games, 754 games overall for the Mariners. He is one of only 17 players in the history of English football to play more than 600 Football League matches for a single club. Grimsby Town FC and the Grimsby Telegraph newspaper are running a campaign for McDermott to be awarded an MBE; the Telegraph is hosting an online petition. John is currently the Assistant Manager at Harrogate Town
Harrogate Town F.C.
Harrogate Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. The club was founded in 1914 and currently competes in the Conference North division of the Football Conference.-History:...
.
Career
He was released at apprentice level. However, when the apprenticeship scheme was revamped he was re-signed as a trainee at Grimsby Town and after 13 appearances in the second division he signed professional terms. At the start of Macca's career he was a utility player but then established himself as a regular right-back for the Mariners.Over the decades he was seen by many as a consistent performer as he won Grimsby Town 'Player of the Year' a record three times. In 1994 McDermott suffered an injury and was injured for nine months. He regained his place in the team in 1996 and was quickly becoming one of the most respected defenders outside the Premier League and was linked with moves to Sunderland AFC and Ipswich Town but did not leave his beloved Grimsby Town. McDermott has experienced it all after around 20 years at the club. In an age where players change clubs as often as golfers, it seems that Macca was a great exception, proving loyalty by repeatedly renewing his contract. One of his famous quotes on the situation of present-day footballers is:
"If someone would rather sit in the reserves at a big club and drive around in a Ferrari rather than going out on-loan and playing, then I think it's a sad day."
Having said this there was a time where he was expected to move to fierce rivals Hull, but the deal never materialised.
He was appointed captain by player/manager Paul Groves, and won BBC Radio Humberside 'Sports personality of the year' award. Other great memories
for him included the notable win over Tottenham Hotspur in the Carling Cup. Further highlights followed in the 2005–06 season as he had his second testimonial against local rivals Hull City
Hull City A.F.C.
Hull City Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, founded in 1904. The club participates in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football...
and was included in Four,Four Two magazine's list of the top 50 players outside the Premier League
Throughout his 20-year career, McDermott has experienced promotion or relegation nine times. He considers his Man of The Match award in the Auto Windscreens Shield
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
victory in 1998 to be the highlight of his career.
McDermott was described by one Grimsby Town fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
as a defender who 'defends without tackling'; meant as a compliment to his ability to shackle opposition strikers without committing fouls.
Retirement
McDermott announced on 20 December 2006 that he would retire at the end of the 2006–07 season. McDermott played his final home game for Grimsby on 29 April 2007 against local rivals Lincoln City. The game finished 0–0. McDermott made his final appearance for Grimsby away to Shrewsbury, the final league game of the season, and coincidentally Shrewsbury's final League game at Gay MeadowGay Meadow
The Gay Meadow is the former home ground of Shrewsbury Town FC, a football club in England. It was situated just outside the town centre of Shrewsbury, on the banks of the River Severn and it opened in August 1910....
. McDermott was substituted in the 73rd minute as Grimsby fought out a 2–2 draw. Upon leaving the field, play paused briefly as both sets of fans applauded McDermott off the field.
After Playing
In July 2007 McDermott applied for the vacant managers job at Boston UnitedBoston United F.C.
Boston United Football Club are an association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. They currently play in the Conference North. The club is known as 'the Pilgrims' in reference to the Pilgrim Fathers, who fled from Boston to the USA and founded Boston, Massachusetts. The club's...
but was overlooked for the position, and United in turn appointed Tommy Taylor
Tommy Taylor (footballer born 1951)
Thomas Frederick Taylor is an English football manager and former footballer. As a footballer, he played as a defender. He is the former manager of Belper Town.-Career:...
. In October 2008 McDermott distanced himself from speculation linking him to managing Grimsby Town after the sacking of 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...
. McDermott then turned to coaching the Grimsby Institute Academy male and female football teams.
On 26 April 2009, John won the PFA Merit Award
PFA Merit Award
The Professional Footballers' Association Merit Award is an award given by the Professional Footballers' Association for meritorious service to football....
, one of the highest accolades in the game. In October 2009, he was once again linked with the vacant managers post at Grimsby following the sacking of 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,...
. This time McDermott as well as Dean Windass
Dean Windass
Dean Windass is an English footballer, who predominantly played as a striker, and is known for his spells at Bradford City and his hometown team Hull City...
expressed a desire to take the job. McDermott was appointed assistant manager of Harrogate Town
Harrogate Town F.C.
Harrogate Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. The club was founded in 1914 and currently competes in the Conference North division of the Football Conference.-History:...
ahead of the 2010-2011 season.
Club
| Season | Club | Division | League | FA Cup FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's... |
League Cup Football League Cup The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis... |
FA Trophy FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a knockout cup competition in English football, run by and named after The Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams... |
Play Offs Football League Play-Offs The Football League play-offs are an annual series of football matches to determine some of the promotion places within the Football League. Essentially, each division of the league offers a certain number of automatic promotion places to the top two or three clubs. A further promotion place is... |
Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 1987-88 | 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... |
Division 3 Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two... (Old) |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1988-89 | Division 4 Football League Fourth Division The Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season... (Old) |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1989-90 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1990-91 | Division 3 Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two... (Old) |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1991-92 | Division 2 Football League Second Division From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams... (Old) |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1992-93 | Division 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1993-94 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1994-95 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1995-96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1996-97 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1997-98 | Division 2 Football League Second Division From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams... |
41 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 62 | 2 | |
| 1998-99 | Division 1 Football League First Division The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship.... |
37 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 1 | |
| 1999-00 | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| 2000-01 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 0 | ||
| 2001-02 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 | ||
| 2002-03 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 0 | ||
| 2003-04 | Division 2 Football League Second Division From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams... |
21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 | |
| 2004-05 | League Two Football League Two Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system.... |
39 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 2 | |
| 2005-06 | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 1 | ||
| 2006-07 FA Premier League 2006-07 The 2006–07 FA Premier League was the fifteenth season of the FA Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The season started on 19 August 2006 and concluded on 13 May 2007.... |
23 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 | ||
| Grimsby Total | 646 | 10 | 38 | 2 | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 754 | 12 | ||||
PLEASE NOTE Stats unavailable until 1997.
Stats accurate as of 16:47, 28 December 2009.
Grimsby Town
- Division FourFootball League Fourth DivisionThe Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season...
runners up, Promoted: 1990 - Division ThreeFootball League Third DivisionThe Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
3rd place, Promoted: 1991 - Auto Windscreens ShieldFootball League TrophyThe Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
winner: 1998 - Second DivisionFootball League Second DivisionFrom 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
playoff winner: 1998 - Coca Cola League Two Play-off runner up: 2005-062005-06 in English footballThe 2005–06 season was the 126th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:*The rebuilt Wembley Stadium was due to open in time for the FA Cup final in May. However, in August 2005, The Football Association reserved the Millennium Stadium as a backup, as there was some doubt whether...
- Supporters Player of the Year: 2005
- Supporters Young Player of the Year: 1987, 1990, 1992
- Grimsby Town FC Special Achievement Award: 2007
- PFA Merit AwardPFA Merit AwardThe Professional Footballers' Association Merit Award is an award given by the Professional Footballers' Association for meritorious service to football....
: 2009