| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Paul David Huntington[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 17 September 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Carlisle, England | ||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Yeovil Town | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2006 | Newcastle United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2006–2007 | Newcastle United | 11 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Leeds United | 21 | (1) |
| 2009 | → Stockport County (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Stockport County | 17 | (0) |
| 2010– | Yeovil Town | 59 | (6) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004–2005 | England U18 | 2 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:12, 2 January 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Paul David Huntington (born 17 September 1987) is an English footballer. He plays primarily in the centre half position and currently plays for Yeovil Town.
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He joined Newcastle United Academy on 1 July 2004 from Trinity School in Carlisle. As a schoolboy he played at Wembley Stadium and also won the England Under 18 National Cup for his school in 2004. After impressing in the youth teams he was promoted to the reserve squad in late 2004 to play tougher opposition and gain experience. He made his reserve debut for the club on 7 December in a 3–0 home win over rivals Middlesbrough and made his official England Under 18 debut against Scotland fifteen days later in a 1–0 win partnering David Wheater at centre back and got his 2nd cap on 10 June 2005 v Norway at Vale Park in a 0-0 draw. He signed his first professional contract at the club in July 2005.
His first involvement in the first team at Newcastle was when he appeared on the bench for the club's Intertoto Cup games against ZTS Dubnic and Deportivo La Coruña in July 2005. In the summer of 2005 he was awarded the prestigious Jackie Milburn trophy, given each year to the rising star of north-east football. He was also named in the first team squad at Newcastle for the FA Cup third-round tie against Mansfield Town, remembered for being the game in which Alan Shearer scored his 200th goal for the club. Huntington made the substitutes bench for a UEFA Cup match against Celta Vigo
On 9 December he made his first Newcastle appearance as a late substitute against Blackburn Rovers in the unfamiliar role of right-back and duly received praise from Newcastle legend Alan Shearer on BBC programme Match Of The Day. The following match, on 14 December Huntington started his first ever game for Newcastle, again appearing at right back away at Chelsea in the Premier League and received Man Of The Match for keeping the likes of Arjen Robben and Didier Drogba at bay. He marked his first ever goal for Newcastle on 14 January 2007 when he scored the first equaliser for them in Newcastle's 3–2 win over Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. [2] He also played in a Uefa Cup semi-final against AZ Alkmaar losing on away goals over the two legs.He went on to make 16 appearances for the first team whilst making the bench for most of the 2006/07 season.
On 31 August 2007 he transferred to Leeds United for an undiclosed fee.[3] The move was seen as a coup by Leeds as Huntington had played in the Premier League. He made his home debut for the club as a substitute in the 2–0 victory on 8 September at home to Hartlepool United.
On 9 October 2007 Huntington opened his Leeds account by scoring against Darlington in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy Second Round on his full debut to help Leeds go to the next stage. He scored his first league goal against Luton Town on 26 January 2008. He also scored against Leyton Orient on 5 April. There were controversies surrounding whether it was he or Bradley Johnson who scored the goal, but in the end it was officially given to Huntington.[4]
Huntington established himself as Leeds' first-choice centre-back. He was on good form during the run-in to the end of the 2007–08 season and manager Gary McAllister said Huntington has a bright future ahead of him. He played at Wembley May 25, 2008 in the League One Play Off Final v Doncaster,losing 1–0 but playing well.He was handed the captain's armband during the 2008–09 pre season tour of Ireland in the game against Shelbourne. He started the season as a first choice centre back,although he was then ruled out for most of the season with hernia and groin operations and during this time Gary McAllister was sacked and replaced by Simon Grayson.
Huntington returned to training for Leeds for the 2009/10 season. Huntington made his first competitive appearance for Leeds for several months in the Carling Cup game against Darlington winning 1–0 but did not feature for Simon Grayson after this game.
10 September 2009 Huntington joined League One rivals Stockport County on a month's loan.Huntington made his Stockport debut in the 2–2 draw against Yeovil Town, and then subsequently made the League 1 team of the week after a fine performance against Huddersfield.After 9 appearances for Stockport, his two month loan spell came to an end. Stockport County wanted to extend the loan for a third and final month but Huntington was told to return by Leeds United.
On transfer deadline day February 1, 2010 Leeds United agreed to Huntingtons' request that his contract be paid up after lack of opportunities under Simon Grayson. This allowed him to seek another club to maximise his appearances this season and get in the shop window of other clubs for the summer when he was out of contract.
After leaving Leeds, he signed for Stockport County on a short term contract until the end of the season, and Huntington went on to make 26 appearances for Stockport.
On 16 July 2010 Huntington signed for Yeovil Town on a two year contract,[5] he scored his first goal for Yeovil and their 3rd in a 3–1 win over Tranmere Rovers on 11 September and made the League One Team Of The Week and repeated this achievement on 9 October after a 1–0 win at Rochdale. On 3 January 2011 Huntington scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against MK Dons at home, also receiving man of the match.[6] Huntington won the npower League One 'Player of the Month' for January, beating off competition from Brighton's Elliott Bennett, Craig Dawson from Rochdale and Bournemouth's Liam Feeney to win the coveted award which was presented to him his manager Terry Skiverton. During the month he scored three times against Sheffield Wednesday, Milton Keynes Dons and Brentford as well as being part of a defence that kept three clean sheets.[7] Due to recurring injuries to club captain Craig Alcock Huntington was appointed captain of the club as Yeovil finished in 14th place their 2nd highest ever finish. Huntington was runner up in both the Green and White Player of the Season Award and the Western Gazette Player of the Season Award.[8]
Before the start of the 2011/12 season Huntington was replaced as captain of Yeovil by Paul Wotton and relegated to vice-captain.[9] Huntington scored his first goal of the season in the 3-2 home defeat against Charlton Athletic on Boxing Day, and followed this up while captaining the side with a goal in the New Years Eve defeat against Bournemouth.
| Season | Club | Division | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Play-Offs | UEFA Cup | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 2006–07 | Newcastle United | Premier League | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 1 |
| 2007–08 | Leeds United | League One | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 3 |
| 2008–09 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Stockport County | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 | |
| 2010–11 | Yeovil Town | 40 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 4 | |
| 2011–12 | 19 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 2 | ||
| Total | 117 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 141 | 10 | ||
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