Charlie Austin

For other people with similar names, see Charles Austin (disambiguation).
Charlie Austin

Austin playing for Queens Park Rangers in 2014
Personal information
Full nameCharles Austin[1]
Date of birth5 July 1989[1]
Place of birthHungerford, England
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1]
Playing positionForward
Club information
Current team
Queens Park Rangers
Number9
Youth career
Reading
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2006–2007Kintbury Rangers27(20)
2007–2008Hungerford Town30(5)
2008Thatcham Town0(0)
2008–2009Poole Town42(48)
2009–2011Swindon Town54(31)
2011–2013Burnley82(41)
2013–Queens Park Rangers62(34)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 May 2015.
† Appearances (Goals).

Charles "Charlie" Austin (born 5 July 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Queens Park Rangers.

Released by Reading as a youth, Austin played non-league football up to 2009, when he was signed by Swindon Town after a prolific season for Poole Town. He then went on to Burnley and QPR.

Career

Non-league

Born in Hungerford, Berkshire,[1] Austin trained with Reading's youth teams as a youngster but was released for being too small when he was 15.[2] He subsequently played for local team Kintbury Rangers and his hometown side Hungerford Town.[3] Austin departed Hungerford in 2008 and was briefly on the books of Thatcham Town but ultimately left without making any appearances for the club.

Moving with his family to Bournemouth, he then switched to nearby semi-professional Wessex League Premier Division team Poole Town while also working as a bricklayer.[4] In the season of 2008–09, Austin scored 46 goals in 46 appearances for Poole in all competitions.[5]

Austin spent the pre-season of the 2009–10 season on trial with League Two club Bournemouth. Although Bournemouth's manager, Eddie Howe, was keen to sign the striker on a permanent deal, Bournemouth were unable to make a move for the striker due to a transfer embargo imposed on the club by the Football League.[6] Austin continued to play for Poole Town, scoring 18 goals in 11 games at the beginning of the season.[7]

Swindon Town

Austin was offered a trial at Swindon Town in September 2009 after Swindon Town's then chief scout Ken Ryder "stumbled across Charlie playing for Poole Town...and he scored four goals...and then the following week he scored three or four".[8] Austin was then, after being watched for three games by the Swindon Town scouting team, asked to go on a week-long trial at Swindon Town.[8] Austin impressed in his first reserve game against Swansea and scored a hat trick,[8] immediately after he was signed by Danny Wilson for an undisclosed fee and given a contract until the end of the season.[9] He made his debut appearance for Swindon Town on 6 October in a 1–1 draw with Exeter in the 2009–10 Football League Trophy, replacing Ben Hutchinson as a substitute in the 88th minute.[10][11] Austin made his Football League debut coming on in the 70th minute in the league match away at Norwich City on 24 October 2009 and on 21 November 2009, he scored his first professional goal in only the third minute of his full debut away at Carlisle United.[12] He scored again on his full home debut three days later against Huddersfield Town, hitting the match-winner in the 59th minute for a 2–1 victory.[13]

After forming a successful strike partnership with Billy Paynter and scoring 10 goals in 11 starts, Austin was rewarded with an extended two-and-a-half-year contract with the club in February 2010.[14] On 14 May 2010, Austin scored the first goal as Swindon took a narrow 2–1 advantage in the first leg of the League One play-off semi-final against Charlton Athletic. In the second leg at Charlton, Swindon progressed to the final at Wembley after a penalty shoot-out in which Austin scored. Swindon lost the final 1–0 against Millwall; Austin found himself through on goal with an opportunity to equalise in the 72nd minute but shot wide after the ball bobbled on the Wembley turf as he struck the ball.[15] At the end of his first season as a professional, Austin had scored 20 goals in 32 starts.[16]

Despite suffering a dislocated shoulder in September, Austin scored another 17 goals in 27 games at the start of the 2010–11 season.[17] His form prompted several Championship clubs to make offers for him during the January transfer window – all of which were rejected by Swindon.[18] Disappointed at Swindon's reluctance to sell, Austin subsequently stated he was eager to play at a higher level and handed in a transfer request.[18][19] Swindon accepted a bid from Ipswich Town just over a week later but they failed to agree personal terms with Austin and Burnley subsequently stepped in with an undisclosed fee which was also accepted.[20]

Burnley

On 28 January 2011, Austin signed for Burnley on a three-and-a-half-year contract.[20] He made his Burnley debut on 1 February in a 1–0 loss away to Doncaster Rovers.[21] In his first full season with Burnley, Austin scored 16 goals in the Championship and finished the campaign as the club's top goalscorer in the league.

On 23 October 2012, Austin scored two goals in a 3–4 win over Bristol City, and subsequently equalled Ray Pointer's club record of scoring in eight consecutive appearances, which was achieved back during the 1958–59 season.[22][23]

Two weeks later, on 6 November 2012, Austin broke another Burnley record as he became the quickest-ever player to reach 20 goals in a season after scoring in a 1–0 win over Leeds United — his 17th appearance of the season. The record was previously held by Bert Freeman, who scored 20 goals in his first 19 matches for the club during the 1911–12 season. He also became only the second-ever Burnley player to score 20 goals before the end of November after Andy Lochhead, who reached 20 goals in 25 games on 26 November 1966.[24][25] Austin managed to get his goal tally up to 23 goals by the end of the calendar year.

On 8 July 2013, a fee was agreed between Burnley and Premier League club Hull City for Austin.[26] However, on 9 July 2013, Austin failed his medical and Hull pulled out of the deal.[27]

Queens Park Rangers

Austin (left) playing for Queens Park Rangers in 2015

Austin moved to Queens Park Rangers, on a three-year deal, on 1 August 2013. QPR paid Burnley an undisclosed fee,[28] believed to be £4 million.[29] He scored his first goal for QPR in a League Cup tie against Exeter City on 6 August 2013.[30] On 14 September 2013, Austin scored his first league goal for QPR in a 1–0 win over Birmingham City at Loftus Road.[31] On 28 September 2013, he scored a penalty in a 2–0 win at home to Middlesbrough. On 5 October 2013, he scored 2 goals including a penalty in a 2–0 win at home to Barnsley which increased his goal tally in the home and away season to 6.[32] He scored his 100th professional goal and his 18th of the season in the 3–2 win over Barnsley. His 20th goal of the 2013–14 season sent QPR to Wembley as his team defeated Wigan Athletic 2–1 on 12 May 2014.[33]

On 6 December 2014, Austin scored against former club Burnley in a 2–0 win, but was later sent off for two bookings.[34] Two weeks later, he scored his first Premier League hat-trick in a 3–2 win over West Bromwich Albion, bringing his league tally for the season up to 11.[35] With five goals in five games in December 2014, he was awarded the Premier League Player of the Month award, becoming the only second QPR player to do so.[36] By scoring a league hat-trick for QPR, Austin became the first Rangers player in more than ten years to achieve the feat; not since striker Jamie Cureton netted three times in a 4–1 home victory over Coventry City on 28 September 2004 had it been done.[37] On 7 April Austin scored yet another goal in a 3-3 draw over Aston Villa which took his goal tally to 17 goals for the season.[38]

Personal life

Austin is engaged to his long-term partner Bianca Parker with whom he has a daughter, Avabella.[39][40] Austin was found guilty of assault in 2013 after he punched a man who had accused him of taking drugs in a nightclub toilet cubicle.[41] He was fined £1,800 and ordered to pay £1,320 in costs.[41][42]

Career statistics

As of match played 12 April 2015.
Club statistics
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Kintbury Rangers 2006–07[43] Hellenic League Division One East 272000—1[lower-alpha 1]12821
Hungerford Town 2007–08[44] Hellenic League Premier Division 30500—7[lower-alpha 2]63711
Poole Town 2008–09[45] Wessex League Premier Division 343444—8[lower-alpha 3]84646
2009–10[46] Wessex League Premier Division 81434—001118
Total 424878—885764
Swindon Town 2009–10[47] League One 3319——5[lower-alpha 4]13820
2010–11[48] League One 211233102[lower-alpha 5]22717
Total 54313310736537
Burnley 2010–11[48] Championship 40———40
2011–12[49] Championship 41161041—4617
2012–13[50] Championship 37250033—4028
Total 82411074—9045
Queens Park Rangers 2013–14[51] Championship 311710213[lower-alpha 6]23720
2014–15[52] Premier League 30171000—3117
Total 61342021326837
Career Total 29617913111052620345215
  1. ↑ Appearance in Hellenic League Supplementary Cup
  2. ↑ One appearance and three goals in Hellenic Floodlit Challenge Cup, six appearances and three goals in Hellenic Challenge Cup
  3. ↑ One appearance and one goal in FA Vase, three appearances and four goals in Dorset Senior Cup, four appearances and three goals in Wessex League Cup
  4. ↑ Two appearances in Football League Trophy, three appearances and one goal in League One play-offs
  5. ↑ Appearances in Football League Trophy
  6. ↑ Appearances in Championship play-offs

Honours

Individual

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 28. ISBN 9-781845-966010.
  2. ↑ Pitt-Brooke, Jack (27 January 2014). "From brickie to big league? Charlie Austin on his journey from building sites to QPR". The Independent. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "Town in top form ahead of Fulham Cup tie". Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard. 29 December 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  4. ↑ James, Stuart (7 March 2010). "Charlie Austin pinches himself on road from bricklayer to football hero". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 13 March 2010.
  5. ↑ "Poole Town Player Statistics 2008/09". Poole Town F.C. 2009. Retrieved 19 October 2009.
  6. ↑ "Austin's Robins move is on the cards". Bournemouth Daily Echo. 26 September 2009. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  7. ↑ "Poole Town Player Statistics 2009/10". Poole Town F.C. 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "interview with Ken Ryder in The Dugout Magazine". 11 November 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  9. ↑ "Charlie Austin Deal Complete". Swindon Town F.C. 2 October 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2009.
  10. ↑ "Exeter 1–1 Swindon". BBC Sport. 6 October 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  11. ↑ "Exeter City vs Swindon Town". Swindon Town F.C. 6 October 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  12. ↑ "Carlisle 0–1 Swindon". BBC Sport. 21 November 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  13. ↑ "FULL TIME: Town 2 Huddersfield 1". Swindon Advertiser. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
  14. ↑ "Striker Charlie Austin commits future to Swindon Town". BBC Sport. 2 February 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
  15. ↑ Szczepanik, Nick (29 May 2010). "Paul Robinson breaks deadlock for Millwall". The Times (London). Retrieved 30 May 2010.
  16. ↑ "Swindon Town rubbish reports of Austin departure". BBC Sport. 9 June 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  17. ↑ "Town see Austin bid accepted". Sky Sports. 27 January 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Swindon Town's Charlie Austin hands in transfer request". BBC Sport. 18 January 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  19. ↑ "Austin open to Swindon exit". Sky Sports. 13 January 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "Swindon Town striker Charlie Austin joins Burnley". BBC Sport. 28 January 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
  21. ↑ "Full Time: Doncaster Rovers 1 Burnley 0". Lancashire Telegraph. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  22. ↑ "Charlie Austin equals Burnley goalscoring record at Bristol City". BBC Sport. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  23. ↑ "Austin's Pride at Matching Ray Pointer". Burnley Football Club. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  24. ↑ "Charlie Sets New Record". Burnley Football Club. 6 November 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  25. ↑ "Burnley striker Charlie Austin reaches 20-goal landmark". BBC Sport. 7 November 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  26. ↑ "Charlie Austin: Hull City set to sign Burnley striker". BBC Sport. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  27. ↑ "Transfer news: Burnley striker Charlie Austin fails medical at Hull City". Sky Sports. 9 July 2013.
  28. ↑ "Charlie Austin: QPR sign Burnley striker for undisclosed fee". BBC Sport. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  29. ↑ "Hotshot Charlie Austin secures move to Championship favourites QPR". Daily Star. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  30. ↑ "Exeter 0 – 2 QPR". BBC Sport. 6 August 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  31. ↑ "QPR 1–0 Birmingham". BBC Sport. 14 September 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  32. ↑ "QPR 2 – 0 Barnsley". BBC Sport. 5 October 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2013.
  33. ↑ "Queens Park Rangers 2–1 Wigan (agg 2–1)". BBC Sport. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  34. ↑ Oliver, Pete (6 December 2014). "QPR 2–0 Burnley". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  35. ↑ "QPR 3–2 West Brom". BBC Sport. 20 December 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  36. ↑ "Austin and Pellegrini claim Barclays' monthly awards". Premier League. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
  37. ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/3677234.stm
  38. ↑ "Aston Villa 3–3 QPR". BBC Sport. 7 April 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  39. ↑ "Burnley boss hails new father Charlie Austin". Burnley Express. 15 August 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  40. ↑ "Championship: Burnley's Charlie Austin cleans up at club's end-of-season awards night". Sky Sports. 6 May 2013.
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 "Charlie Austin guilty of Swindon nightclub assault". BBC. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  42. ↑ "Burnley striker Charlie Austin found guilty of nightclub assault". Lancashire Telegraph. 4 June 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  43. ↑ "All competitions : Player's Appearances – Austin Charlie". FootballMitoo. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  44. ↑ "All competitions : Player's Appearances – Austin Charlie". FootballMitoo. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  45. ↑ "Poole Town 2008/2009 player appearances". Poole Town F.C. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  46. ↑ "Poole Town 2009/2010 player appearances". Poole Town F.C. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  47. ↑ "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  49. ↑ "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  50. ↑ "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  51. ↑ "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
  52. ↑ "Games played by Charlie Austin in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  53. ↑ "Austin and Pellegrini claim Barclays' monthly awards". Premier League. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charlie Austin.