Carl Winchester

Carl Winchester
Personal information
Full nameCarl Winchester[1]
Date of birth12 April 1993
Place of birthBelfast, Northern Ireland
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Playing positionMidfielder / Full back
Club information
Current team
Oldham Athletic
Number15
Youth career
2009–2010Linfield
2010–Oldham Athletic
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2009–2010Linfield1(0)
2010–Oldham Athletic72(5)
National team‡
Northern Ireland U163(0)
2010Northern Ireland U173(0)
Northern Ireland U182(0)
Northern Ireland U194(1)
2011–Northern Ireland U2114(0)
2011–Northern Ireland1(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 17:05, 8 February 2015 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22:40, 1 April 2015 (UTC)

Carl Winchester (born 12 April 1993 in Belfast) is a Northern Irish football player who plays for Oldham Athletic and the Northern Ireland national football team.

Career

Early years

Winchester came through the Linfield Academy 'Linfield Rangers', alongside his twin brother, Jude. He played for Linfield Rangers before making his first team debut for Linfield as a substitute on 1 May 2010 against Portadown.[3] He studied at Corpus Christi College, Belfast.

Oldham Athletic

After visiting Oldham Athletic on trial in April 2010, along with Ryan Burns,[4] he agreed to join the club in late April and then joined the club in May 2010 on a two-year scholarship.[5][6]

He made his senior debut for the club on 6 November 2010, starting the FA Cup first round match against Accrington Stanley.[7] He followed this up on 20 November making his Football League debut for the club, playing the full match in a 1–0 victory at Dagenham & Redbridge.[8]

He scored his first goal for the club in the last match of the 2010–11 season on 7 May 2011. He has become a regular starter and also a fans favourite due to his energetic runs and versatility. He has played at right back, right midfield and even in a more central midfield role during his time at Oldham.[9] He was offered a two-year professional contract by the club in May 2011,[10] which it was announced he had signed at the end of June.[11]

The one – year option that the club had on Winchester's contract was exercised, extending his contract till the end of the 2014–15 season, with manager Lee Johnson stating that the club would be looking to loan him out next season to somewhere that could offer him a lot more game time than Oldham could currently offer him, as well as stating that he believed "there was a real player in there somewhere".[12]

However, after a string of excellent performances at the start of the 2014/15 season, Winchester established himself in the first team, making 23 appearances by Christmas. And on 17 January 2015, Winchester scored his third goal for the club against Fleetwood in a 2–0 win, with an excellent curling effort.[13]

Continuing his fine form throughout what was seen as his breakthrough season, playing primarily in midfield, On 2 March 2015, Winchester signed a new two and a half year deal until the end of the 2017 season with Oldham Athletic.[14]

International career

Already an Northern Irish under-16s international, he made his under-17s international debut on 17 March 2010 in the UEFA Under-17s Championship elite round match against Spain, followed up by matches against Poland and Belgium later that week.[15] In August 2010 he was called up to the under-18s team[16] and played all three matches for them in an international tournament in Poland.[17]

In February 2011, Winchester was called up to the Northern Ireland under-21s team[18] Winchester earned his first cap for the Northern Ireland U-21s against Wales U-21 on 9 February 2011 aged just 17.[19] In March 2011 he was called up for the Northern Ireland under-19s team for the first time.[20] He made his debut at under-19s level on 11 April in a friendly against Slovakia, scoring one of the three Northern Irish goals in the match,[21] his first goal for his country.[22]

On 13 May 2011 he was again called up to the Northern Ireland under-21s as a squad member against Faroe Islands in a Euro qualifier on 31 May.[23] Seven days later he received his first call up to the senior Northern Ireland national football team for the Celtic Cup matches against Republic of Ireland and Wales on 24th and 27th May.[24] In the Republic of Ireland match he was an unused substitute as Northern Ireland lost 5–0[25] before making his debut as a substitute for the full international team on 27 May against Wales.[26] Despite making his debut for Northern Ireland, he is still eligible for the Republic of Ireland as the Celtic Cup is not considered a fully competitive tournament by FIFA.

In June 2011 he received his first call-up to the Northern Ireland under-20s team, alongside team-mate Kirk Millar for July's Milk Cup tournament.[27]

In September 2011, Winchester was called up to the Northern Ireland under-21s for the European Championship qualifiers against Serbia U-21s and Denmark U-21s, Winchester was an unused substitute against Serbia u-21s in a 1–0 defeat.[28] However Winchester started and played the full game in a 3–0 defeat to the Denmark u-21s team in the Euros Qualifier.[29]

Career statistics

Club Season League Cup League Cup Europe Other[30] Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Linfield 2009–10 100000000010
Oldham Athletic 2010–11 611000000071
Oldham Athletic 2011–12 12000100000130
Oldham Athletic 2012–13 9010000010110
Oldham Athletic 2013–14 811000000091
Career total 35220100010395
Up to date, as of 30 January 2014.

References

  1. ↑ "Professional retain list & free transfers 2012/13" (PDF). The Football League. 18 May 2013. p. 40. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
  2. ↑ Rollin, Glenda; Rollin, Jack, eds. (2012). Sky Sports Football Yearbook 2012–2013 (43rd ed.). London: Headline. p. 509. ISBN 978-0-7553-6356-8.
  3. ↑ "Profile: Carl Winchester". Linfield Football Club. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  4. ↑ "Centenary Shield affected by flight chaos". Ulster TV. 16 April 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  5. ↑ "Versatile Carl's move cements Linfield link". Oldham Chronicle. 29 April 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  6. ↑ "Nine new boys aim to make their mark". Oldham Chronicle. 6 May 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  7. ↑ "Accrington 3–2 Oldham". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 6 November 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  8. ↑ "Dag & Red 0–1 Oldham". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 20 November 2010. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
  9. ↑ "Oldham 1 – 2 MK Dons". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 7 May 2011. Retrieved 7 May 2011.
  10. ↑ "Pro Deal For Winchester". Oldham Athletic AFC. 12 May 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  11. ↑ "Carl Winchester signs new Oldham Athletic contract". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 29 June 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
  12. ↑ "Oldham Athletic retained list". Oldham Athletic A.F.C. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  13. ↑ "Fleetwood Town 0–2 Oldham Athletic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
  14. ↑ "Latics Boost as Winchester Signs". Oldham Chronicle. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  15. ↑ "Profile: Carl Winchester". UEFA. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  16. ↑ "Winchester's international call". Oldham Athletic AFC. 16 August 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  17. ↑ "Globetrotter Winchester". Oldham Athletic AFC. 1 September 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  18. ↑ "Latics pair win international calls". Oldham Athletic AFC. 6 February 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
  19. ↑ "New Feeney Injury Blow". Oldham Athletic AFC. 10 February 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
  20. ↑ "Winchester Wins International Call". Oldham Athletic AFC. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  21. ↑ "Under 19 Squad Fixtures". Irish Football Association. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
  22. ↑ "Winchester First Goal For Country". Oldham Athletic AFC. 12 April 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
  23. ↑ "Northern Ireland Call For Carl". Oldham Athletic AFC. 13 May 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  24. ↑ "Full International Call For Carl". Oldham Athletic AFC. 20 May 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  25. ↑ "Rep of Ireland 5–0 N Ireland". BBC Sport. 24 May 2011. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  26. ↑ "Wales 2–0 N Ireland". BBC Sport. 27 May 2011. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
  27. ↑ "Millar, Winchester Win Milk Cup Call Ups calls". Oldham Athletic AFC. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  28. ↑ "Winchester on Bench". Oldham Athletic AFC. 7 September 2011. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  29. ↑ "Winchester Wins Caps". Oldham Athletic AFC. 7 September 2011. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  30. ↑ Includes other competitive competitions, including the FA Community Shield and Football League play-offs

External links