Chris Brandon

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Chris Brandon
Personal information
Full name Christopher William Brandon
Date of birth 7 April 1976 (1976-04-07) (age 32)
Place of birth    Bradford, England
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Playing position Midfielder
Club information
Current club Bradford City
Youth clubs
Bradford City
Bradford Park Avenue
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
1995–1997
1997
1997–1999
1999
1999–2002
2002–2004
2004–2008
2007
2008–		 Bradford Park Avenue
Farsley Celtic
Stafford Rangers
Bradford Park Avenue
Torquay United
Chesterfield
Huddersfield Town
→ Blackpool (loan)
Bradford City

032 0(0)

071 0(8)
079 (11)
135 (12)
005 0(2)
000 0(0)   

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 23:42, 30 May 2008 (UTC).
* Appearances (Goals)

Christopher William "Chris" Brandon (born 7 April 1976) is an English professional footballer who plays for hometown club Bradford City in Football League Two. He started his career with City, but left for Bradford's non-league club, Bradford Park Avenue. His non-league career continued with Farsley Celtic and Stafford Rangers, before he joined Division Three side Torquay United. He has played nearly 300 league games for Torquay, Chesterfield and Huddersfield Town and also had a brief loan spell with Blackpool.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Brandon was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, on 7 April 1976.[1] He attended Yorkshire Martyrs Collegiate School in Bradford.[2]

[edit] Career

[edit] Early career

Originally a trainee for his hometown club Bradford City,[3] he was dropped by their academy and joined Bradford Park Avenue. He later played for Farsley Celtic before joining Stafford Rangers. He played 32 times for Rangers over two seasons before returning to play for Bradford Park Avenue.

[edit] Torquay United

In March 1999, he played in a reserve match for Lincoln City, but failed to win a contract. Five months later, he was signed by Torquay United, and immediately established himself as a first-team regular. In July 2000, he signed a new two-year deal with Torquay,[4] However, only two games into the following season, he picked up a stomach tear, which kept him out for the rest of the season.[5] In March 2002, he scored a vital goal in a 2–0 victory over Lincoln City, which helped Torquay to only their second home victory in four months and move them 13 points clear of the relegation zone.[6] During his disrupted three seasons with Torquay, he amassed 83 appearances with ten goals to his credit,[1] before he moved to Chesterfield in July 2002 on a free transfer, signing a two-year contract.[7]

[edit] Chesterfield

Brandon's first goal for Chesterfield was a 12-yard overhead kick which gave them a late 2–1 victory over Port Vale.[8] He scored again just ten days later as Chesterfield defeated Northampton Town 4–0.[9] His third goal was another volley during a 1–0 victory over Stockport County. However, he was substituted at half-time,[10] and he did not play for another two weeks, when he scored again in a League Cup game against West Ham United, which Chesterfield lost on penalties.[11][12] He scored in both the first and second rounds of the LDV Vans Trophy, but Chesterfield were defeated on penalties by Port Vale in the second round.[13][14] He finished the season with 10 goals but he played only one game during the final month, playing his last game on 21 April 2003,[11] when Chesterfield finished with just nine players because of serious injuries to Brandon and striker Caleb Folan.[15]

Brandon maintained his goalscoring at the start of the following season, scoring twice within the space of three days, as Chesterfield drew 3–3 with Wycombe Wanderers,[16] then 1–1 with Plymouth Argyle.[17] He only managed another four goals all season, but they included two against Lincoln City in an LDV Vans Trophy defeat and one goal to help Chesterfield's fight to avoid relegation in a 3–1 victory over local rivals Sheffield Wednesday.[18] He finished the season with six goals,[19] which took his tally for Chesterfield to 16 goals from 88 games.[1] And in July 2004, he was signed by Huddersfield Town manager Peter Jackson on a free transfer.[20]

[edit] Huddersfield Town

Brandon made his debut for Huddersfield on the opening day of the 2004–05 season in a 3–2 victory over Stockport County.[21] Chesterfield goalkeeper Carl Muggleton twice denied him a goal in his first home game three days later,[22] but Brandon only had to wait until the following month when he scored in a 4–0 victory against Hull City.[23] Brandon scored a total of six goals in his first season with Huddersfield,[21] but also received the first red card of his professional career in a 1–0 win over Blackpool for a professional foul.[24] Two of Brandon's goals came as Huddersfield pushed for a play-off place with a run of five successive victories,[25][26] but they could only finish ninth just one point behind Hartlepool United in the final play-off spot.[27] Jackson praised Brandon for his "workrate and skill" and offered him and captain Jon Worthington each new two-year deals.[28]

Huddersfield started the 2005–06 season in the same form. Brandon scored his first goal of the season during a 2–1 win over Doncaster Rovers on 29 August 2008,[29] which gave them their fifth win from seven games during the month. In mid-November, Brandon signed the two-year contract extension, which kept him at Huddersfield until June 2008, and instantly targeted promotion.[30] The following month Brandon scored the only goal of a 1–0 win over non-league Worcester City in the FA Cup second round to earn Huddersfield a tie with Premiership champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.[31] Two days later, Brandon received another red card, as both he and David Mirfin were sent off in the final minute of a 2–2 draw with Milton Keynes Dons.[32] Brandon returned to the side following his suspension and helped Huddersfield to win a place in the play-offs. He was an unused substitute in the first leg 1–0 victory over Barnsley,[33] and he played just eight minutes of the second leg, as Huddersfield lost 3–1 to again miss out on promotion.[34]

The following season was interrupted by an achilles injury for Brandon. It was not until February 2007, that Brandon scored his first goal of the 2006–07 season, during Huddersfield Town's 2–1 defeat to Crewe Alexandra.[35][36] He only played one more game for Huddersfield that season,[35] before he joined Blackpool on loan on 21 March 2007,[37] joining fellow Town teammate, goalkeeper Paul Rachubka. Blackpool were searching for promotion and Brandon helped when he scored two goals during a 4–1 defeat of Northampton Town.[38] However, he was sent off on 28 April 2007 in Blackpool's win at home to Scunthorpe United,[39] which resulted in his missing the Seasiders' play-off games, and therefore not being considered for their successful final at Wembley against Yeovil Town. Brandon played just five games during his loan spell.[40]

After it seemed certain that manager Simon Grayson was going to purchase Brandon,[41] talks seemed to mysteriously stall and instead Grayson bought Brandon's team-mate Gary Taylor-Fletcher.[42] Instead, Brandon returned to Huddersfield and was back in first team. However, after he was substituted on 14 October 2007 against Doncaster Rovers, he did not feature again until the New Year. On 5 January 2008, his second game back in the Huddersfield side, Brandon scored another FA Cup winning goal to knock out Premier League side Birmingham City out of the competition in a 2–1 defeat at the Galpharm Stadium.[43] He scored his second goal of the season, in the following game against Gillingham,[44] but was sent off in the final minute of a 1–1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion the next week.[45] Brandon's red card meant he was suspended for Huddersfield's fourth round FA Cup tie with Oldham Athletic, but following a 1–0 victory, he returned in time for their visit to Chelsea in the fifth round, which Chelsea won 3–1.[46] Brandon scored just one more goal during the rest of the season, with his last game coming on 15 April 2008 in the Yorkshire derby with Leeds United.[47] With his contract due to expire in the summer, it turned out to be his final game for Huddersfield after 135 league appearances, during which time he scored 12 goals, and a total of 148 games.[1]

[edit] Bradford City

After being one of eight players to be released by new Huddersfield manager Stan Ternent in early May 2008,[48] Brandon signed a two-year deal at hometown club Bradford City on 30 May 2008.[2]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  2. ^ a b Parker, Simon. "Brandon signs for Bantams", Telegraph & Argus, 2008-05-30. Retrieved on 2008-05-30. 
  3. ^ "Bradford bag midfielder Brandon", BBC Sport, 2008-05-31. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  4. ^ "Torquay in player search", BBC Sport, 2000-07-18. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  5. ^ Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  6. ^ "Torquay 2-0 Lincoln", BBC Sport, 2002-03-09. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  7. ^ "Chesterfield sign Brandon", BBC Sport, 2002-06-06. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  8. ^ "Chesterfield 2-1 Port Vale", BBC Sport, 2002-08-17. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  9. ^ "Chesterfield 4-0 Northampton", BBC Sport, 2002-08-27. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  10. ^ "Chesterfield 1-0 Stockport", BBC Sport, 2002-09-17. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  11. ^ a b Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  12. ^ "Hammers sneak past Spireites", BBC Sport, 2002-10-01. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  13. ^ "Chesterfield 2-0 Halifax", BBC Sport, 2002-10-22. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  14. ^ "Port Vale 1-1 Chesterfield (4-3 pens)", BBC Sport, 2002-11-12. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  15. ^ "Chesterfield 0-2 Brentford", BBC Sport, 2003-04-21. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  16. ^ "Wycombe 3-3 Chesterfield", BBC Sport, 2003-08-23. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  17. ^ "Chesterfield 1-1 Plymouth", 2003-08-25. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  18. ^ "Chesterfield 3-1 Sheff Wed", BBC Sport, 2004-03-07. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  19. ^ Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  20. ^ "Terriers make double swoop", BBC Sport, 2004-07-05. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  21. ^ a b Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-06-03.
  22. ^ "Huddersfield 0-0 Chesterfield", BBC Sport, 2004-08-10. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  23. ^ "Huddersfield 4-0 Hull", BBC Sport, 2004-09-05. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  24. ^ "Huddersfield 1-0 Blackpool", BBC Sport, 2005-02-19. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  25. ^ "Peterborough 1-2 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2005-04-01. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  26. ^ "Huddersfield 3-1 Doncaster", BBC Sport, 2005-04-09. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  27. ^ Final 2004/2005 Football League One Table. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-06-03.
  28. ^ "Jackson wants duo to extend deals", BBC Sport, 2005-05-19. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  29. ^ "Doncaster 1-2 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2005-08-29. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  30. ^ "Brandon signs new Terriers deal", BBC Sport, 2005-11-15. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  31. ^ "Worcester 0-1 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2005-12-04. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  32. ^ "MK Dons 2-2 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2005-12-06. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  33. ^ "Barnsley 0-1 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2006-05-11. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  34. ^ "Hudd'field 1-3 Barnsley (agg 2-3)", BBC Sport, 2006-05-15. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  35. ^ a b Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-06-06.
  36. ^ "Huddersfield 1-2 Crewe", BBC Sport, 2007-02-24. 
  37. ^ "Grayson secures Brandon loan deal", BBC Sport, 2007-03-21. Retrieved on 2008-06-06. 
  38. ^ "Blackpool 4-1 Northampton", BBC Sport, 2007-04-14. Retrieved on 2008-06-06. 
  39. ^ "Blackpool 3-1 Scunthorpe", BBC Sport, 2007-04-28. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 
  40. ^ Blackpool 2006/2007 player appearances. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-06-06.
  41. ^ "Brandon may start season with Town", Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 2007-06-25. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 
  42. ^ "Tangerines boost squad with duo", BBC Sport, 2007-07-10. Retrieved on 2008-06-09. 
  43. ^ "Huddersfield 2-1 Birmingham", BBC Sport, 2008-01-05. Retrieved on 2008-06-09. 
  44. ^ "Huddersfield 1-3 Gillingham", BBC Sport, 2008-01-12. Retrieved on 2008-06-09. 
  45. ^ "Brighton 1-1 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2008-01-19. Retrieved on 2008-06-09. 
  46. ^ Hughes, Ian. "Chelsea 3-1 Huddersfield", BBC Sport, 2008-02-16. Retrieved on 2008-06-09. 
  47. ^ Chris Brandon. Soccerbase. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
  48. ^ Thomson, Dougie. "Clear-out!", Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 2008-05-06. Retrieved on 2008-05-31. 

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Bradford City A.F.C. – current squad

3 Heckingbottom • 6 Bower • 7 Daley • 9 Conlon • 10 Thorne • 12 Clarke • 15 Colbeck • 16 Ainge • 19 O'Brien • 22 Nix • 23 Topp • 28 Taylforth • 29 Morgan • 32 Bullock • 29 Sharry • –– Brandon • –– McLaughlin • –– Osborne • Manager: McCall