Simon Francis (footballer)

Simon Francis
Personal information
Full nameSimon Charles Francis
Date of birth16 February 1985
Place of birthNottingham, England
Height1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Playing positionDefender
Club information
Current team
Bournemouth
Number2
Youth career
Nottingham Forest
Notts County
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2002–2004Bradford City55(1)
2004–2006Sheffield United12(0)
2005→ Grimsby Town (loan)5(0)
2005–2006→ Tranmere Rovers (loan)17(1)
2006–2010Southend United157(4)
2010–2012Charlton Athletic34(0)
2011–2012→ Bournemouth (loan)5(0)
2012–Bournemouth137(3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 February, 2015.
† Appearances (Goals).


Simon Charles Francis (born 16 February 1985) is an English footballer who plays for AFC Bournemouth as a defender.

Career

Born in Nottingham, Francis was rejected as a youngster by both of the city clubs Notts County.[1] and Nottingham Forest.[2] Instead he joined Bradford City as a trainee in 2002 after being spotted playing for South Nottingham College.[3] He made his debut for Bradford on 16 November 2002 against Nottingham Forest days after he came on as substitute for England under 18s against France.[2][4] He made more than 50 starts for the Bantams before he being sold for £200,000 by the administrators in 2004.[5] Bradford received offers from Sunderland and Sheffield United, with Francis choosing the latter to be nearer his home in Nottingham and link up with manager Neil Warnock.[6][7]

Competition for places meant that Francis was never quite able to hold down a regular place at Bramall Lane, restricting him to just 15 appearances for the Blades during his two-year sojourn. He spent most of the 2005–06 season on loan with Grimsby Town[8] and then Tranmere Rovers.[9] His final appearance for Sheffield United was as a late substitute at Luton in the penultimate game of the season.

On 13 June 2006, Francis transferred to League One side Southend United for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year contract.[10]

In June 2008, he was initially transfer listed by Southend United after failing to agree a new contract, but two weeks later he signed for another two years with Southend.[11]

In January 2010 Southend reluctantly accepted an offer for Francis from Peterborough United but he failed to agree personal terms.[12][13] Following Southend's relegation in to League Two, Francis stated that he had no desire to leave the relegated club.[14] Three weeks later, Southend accepted a £150,000 offer for Francis from Brentford.[15]

On 8 July 2010 new Southend manager Paul Sturrock agreed to cancel the defenders contract, allowing him to find a new club as a free agent. On 30 July Francis signed for Charlton Athletic.

On 7 November 2011, Francis signed on loan to AFC Bournemouth and the deal was made permanent in January 2012.[16] Francis was instrumental in Bournemouth's promotion to The Football League Championship in 2012-2013 and won Players' Player of the Season.[17] In Bournemouth's first season in the second tier of English football since 1990, Francis played all but 45-minutes of the season. [18] In the summer of 2014, Francis signed a further contract for three-years at AFC Bournemouth. [19]

References

  1. ↑ Walker, Alex (10 February 2005). "The ones that got away". BBC Nottingham. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Bantams hit 'crisis level'". Telegraph & Argus. 14 November 2002. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  3. ↑ "Francis in at the deep end". Telegraph & Argus. 15 November 2002. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  4. ↑ "Francis making a big impression". Telegraph & Argus. 3 December 2002. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  5. ↑ "Bantams forced to sell Francis". BBC Sport. 17 March 2004. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  6. ↑ "Francis makes Blades move". BBC Sport. 15 March 2004. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  7. ↑ "Simon says: I choose United". Telegraph & Argus. 13 March 2004. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  8. ↑ "Mariners seal Francis loan deal". BBC Sport. 27 September 2005. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  9. ↑ "Francis stays on loan at Tranmere". BBC Sport. 23 January 2006. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  10. ↑ "Francis seals Southend transfer". BBC Sport. 14 June 2006. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  11. ↑ "Francis set to stay at Southend". BBC Sport. 17 June 2008. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
  12. ↑ "Simon Francis to stay with Southend United". BBC Sport. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  13. ↑ "Tommy Williams open to new Peterborough contract offer". BBC Sport. 12 January 2010. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  14. ↑ "Southend defender Simon Francis has no desire to leave". BBC Sport. 6 May 2010. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  15. ↑ Phillips, Chris (26 May 2010). "Steve Tilson not sure Simon Francis will join Brentford from Southend United". The Echo. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  16. ↑ http://www.afcb.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10324~22981,00.html
  17. ↑ https://twitter.com/afcbournemouth/status/328634293721104384
  18. ↑ http://www.afcb.co.uk/team/player-profile/simon-francis/2
  19. ↑ http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/2014-08-15-simon-francis-signs-new-three-year-contract-with-afc-bournemouth-1829641.aspx

External links