Jonathan Douglas
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Douglas is an Irish
football player who currently plays for Brentford
. Douglas made his debut in the League of Ireland
for Monaghan United aged 16. He is primarily a defensive midfielder but has also played as an attacking central midfielder, right midfield, left midfield and right back in his career.
after having been a trialist at Celtic
and made his debut against West Ham United
in the Worthington Cup
on October 31, 2000
. A cruciate ligament
injury in 2001 hampered his progress, and he was out for many months, managing to make it back in early 2002.
In March 2003, he was loaned to Chesterfield
for six weeks, in which time he played seven matches and scored once against Blackpool
. Ironically Blackpool were his next loan destination, joining them for three months, where he made a significant impact, playing in 16 league games and scoring three goals.
Despite being a tenacious central midfield, whose strengths focussed on energy and aggression rather than technical skill, Blackpool manager, Steve McMahon used the on-loan Douglas as an emergency left midfielder. This unexpected role was to prove a stroke of luck for Douglas. Not soon afterwards, Graeme Souness, manager of Blackburn Rovers, found his side struggling near the bottom of the Premier League and missing a left midfielder due to injuries and inadequate transfer dealings.
Jonathan Douglas was recalled by Rovers and promoted straight into the much re-jigged Rovers side, which adopted very defensive tactics to grind out results. The unheralded collaboration of Jonathan Douglas, Martin Andresen, Jonathan Stead, Lorenzo Amoruso and others, eventually proved successful in eking out results to guarantee Rovers safety in the Premier League. Douglas first Blackburn goal, a spectacular volley, came during this time, in a 4–3 victory over Fulham
.
Douglas had shown his potential as a utility squad player for Blackburn and Rovers awarded him a three-year contract.
However, manager Souness departed to Newcastle United and under new boss, Mark Hughes, Douglas soon fell down the pecking order and moved out on loan to Gillingham of the Championship, along with Rovers' youngster, Jay McEveley. Douglas was a regular in the side that so narrowly got relegated. However, he had once again impressed with his tenacious work-rate.
enough to make the move permanent, and on August 31, 2006, Douglas moved to Leeds permanently for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal with the club. Douglas' performances impressed new manager Dennis Wise
and kept him in the Leeds starting lineup. Douglas' only goal for the club that season came in the 2-1 victory against Coventry City
.
After Leeds' captain, Kevin Nicholls
requested a transfer to Luton Town
, Douglas was made captain by Wise. He had played numerous matches as Leeds captain previously due to injuries to Nicholls, Shaun Derry
and Gary Kelly. Douglas was forced to sit out the rest of the season when he received his 15th yellow card in the defeat at Colchester United
. Leeds' relegation that season saw many Leeds fans believing that Douglas would leave the club; it was reported that Douglas had a training ground bust up with Wise. However, despite being stripped of the club captaincy, Douglas has been playing regularly in the Leeds first team in the 2007-08 season
. Despite rumours of a transfer to Burnley
, Douglas stayed at Elland Road
. On the 28th October 2007 Leeds defeated Millwall
4-2 with Douglas grabbing his second brace for the Yorkshire club in his two years at the club. A serious leg injury late on at Walsall
ruled Douglas out for much of the remainder of 2007–08, an injury which coincided with Leeds' dip in form after their astonishing start to life in League 1, as Leeds struggled to replace the running power and positional sense of the injured Irishman.
He returned to the squad on 22 March, playing the last ten minutes of the match against Walsall, a match Leeds won 2–0. Leeds reached the playoff final against Doncaster Rovers but lost the game 1-0. After Leeds' failure to win promotion to the Championship, Douglas was again linked with a move to Burnley. He scored the first goal in Leeds' 4–0 romping of Crystal Palace
in the second round of the Carling Cup and again in the 5–2 league defeat of Crewe Alexandra
. Douglas' played in a more unfamiliar position of right back as Leeds reached the playoffs again, only to be knocked out the competition when they lost 2-1 on aggregate to Millwall.
On 21 May 2009 it was reported that Leeds would be offering him a new deal. However the following day it was reported by official club text that Douglas, along with goalkeeper David Lucas
, had been released from the club. This seemed to be down to a difference of opinion between club and player of the valuation of his services.
after being released from Leeds United. On 10 October 2009, Douglas was given a straight red card in a match against Millwall
. Swindon felt the decision was unfair and prepared an appeal against the automatic three match ban for the dismissal. On 14 October the appeal was rejected and an extra one match ban added taking Douglas' suspension to four matches. This incited chairman Andrew Fitton to launch a scathing attack on The FA
and its justice system. Douglas missed a home match with Hartlepool United
, two away trips to Norwich City
and Tranmere Rovers
and the visit of Conference South
side Woking
in the FA Cup
First Round. Douglas was part of the Swindon side which reached the League One
playoffs. They won their playoff semi final after beating Charlton Athletic
on penalties but were defeated by one goal to nil in the final at Wembley
by Millwall
. Douglas was later awarded both the Club's Player of the year award and the Club's Player's Player of the year award for the season 2009/2010. Douglas scored an absolute screamer with a volley into the top corner from 25 yards out against Sheffield Wednesday in a 3-1 defeat. Swindon were relegated to League Two
after finishing bottom of the League One table in the 2010-11 season.
on 29 June 2011. At the start of the 2011/12, along with Richard Lee
, he was named as a deputy to club captain Kevin O'Connor.
, the first against Poland
on April 28, 2004. Having already featured in a number of friendlies, Douglas made his competitive debut for Ireland in the European Championship Qualifier against the Czech Republic
on 11 October 2006, starting in central midfield alongside Lee Carsley
. He also came on as a substitute in Ireland's next qualifier against San Marino
. He was a regular choice in Steve Staunton's
Republic of Ireland
squad.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
football player who currently plays for Brentford
Brentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....
. Douglas made his debut in the League of Ireland
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland is the national association football league of the Republic of Ireland. Founded in 1921, as a league of eight clubs, it has expanded over time into a two-tiered league of 22 clubs. It is currently split into the League of Ireland Premier Division and the League of Ireland...
for Monaghan United aged 16. He is primarily a defensive midfielder but has also played as an attacking central midfielder, right midfield, left midfield and right back in his career.
Club career
He first joined Blackburn RoversBlackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
after having been a trialist at Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
and made his debut against West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
in the Worthington Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
on October 31, 2000
2000-01 in English football
The 2000–01 season was the 121st season of competitive football in England.-Overview:Manchester United secured their 3rd Premiership title in succession and their 7th title in just nine seasons...
. A cruciate ligament
Cruciate ligament
Cruciate ligaments are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee...
injury in 2001 hampered his progress, and he was out for many months, managing to make it back in early 2002.
In March 2003, he was loaned to Chesterfield
Chesterfield F.C.
Chesterfield Football Club is an English football club based in Chesterfield, Derbyshire. The club currently plays in Football League One, the third tier of English football. Despite being the fourth oldest Football League club in England, they have spent most of their existence in the lower...
for six weeks, in which time he played seven matches and scored once against Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
. Ironically Blackpool were his next loan destination, joining them for three months, where he made a significant impact, playing in 16 league games and scoring three goals.
Despite being a tenacious central midfield, whose strengths focussed on energy and aggression rather than technical skill, Blackpool manager, Steve McMahon used the on-loan Douglas as an emergency left midfielder. This unexpected role was to prove a stroke of luck for Douglas. Not soon afterwards, Graeme Souness, manager of Blackburn Rovers, found his side struggling near the bottom of the Premier League and missing a left midfielder due to injuries and inadequate transfer dealings.
Jonathan Douglas was recalled by Rovers and promoted straight into the much re-jigged Rovers side, which adopted very defensive tactics to grind out results. The unheralded collaboration of Jonathan Douglas, Martin Andresen, Jonathan Stead, Lorenzo Amoruso and others, eventually proved successful in eking out results to guarantee Rovers safety in the Premier League. Douglas first Blackburn goal, a spectacular volley, came during this time, in a 4–3 victory over Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...
.
Douglas had shown his potential as a utility squad player for Blackburn and Rovers awarded him a three-year contract.
However, manager Souness departed to Newcastle United and under new boss, Mark Hughes, Douglas soon fell down the pecking order and moved out on loan to Gillingham of the Championship, along with Rovers' youngster, Jay McEveley. Douglas was a regular in the side that so narrowly got relegated. However, he had once again impressed with his tenacious work-rate.
Leeds United
On 19 August 2005, he joined Leeds United on a season-long loan. He impressed in the early half of the season, making over 40 appearances for the club and scoring five goals in the process as Leeds reached the Championship playoff final but ended up losing 3-0 in the final against Watford. These performances impressed former manager Kevin BlackwellKevin Blackwell
Kevin Patrick Blackwell is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He has an identical twin, Noel.-Early career:...
enough to make the move permanent, and on August 31, 2006, Douglas moved to Leeds permanently for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal with the club. Douglas' performances impressed new manager Dennis Wise
Dennis Wise
Dennis Frank Wise is an English former football manager and player, and former Executive Director at Newcastle United....
and kept him in the Leeds starting lineup. Douglas' only goal for the club that season came in the 2-1 victory against Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
.
After Leeds' captain, Kevin Nicholls
Kevin Nicholls
Kevin John Richard Nicholls is an English former footballer who played in midfield. He is currently a coach at Conference National side Rushden & Diamonds....
requested a transfer to Luton Town
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...
, Douglas was made captain by Wise. He had played numerous matches as Leeds captain previously due to injuries to Nicholls, Shaun Derry
Shaun Derry
Shaun Peter Derry is an English footballer who plays for Queens Park Rangers. Derry is known for his hard-tackling and aggressive midfield style...
and Gary Kelly. Douglas was forced to sit out the rest of the season when he received his 15th yellow card in the defeat at Colchester United
Colchester United F.C.
Colchester United Football Club is an English football club based in Colchester. The club was formed in 1937, and briefly shared their old Layer Road home with now defunct side Colchester Town who had previously used the ground from 1910....
. Leeds' relegation that season saw many Leeds fans believing that Douglas would leave the club; it was reported that Douglas had a training ground bust up with Wise. However, despite being stripped of the club captaincy, Douglas has been playing regularly in the Leeds first team in the 2007-08 season
The Football League 2007-08
The Football League is contested through three divisions in England and Wales. The divisions are the League Championship, League One and League Two. The winner and the runner up of the League Championship will be automatically promoted to the Premier League and they will be joined by the winner of...
. Despite rumours of a transfer to Burnley
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...
, Douglas stayed at Elland Road
Elland Road
Elland Road is an all-seater football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It has been the permanent residence of Leeds United A.F.C...
. On the 28th October 2007 Leeds defeated Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
4-2 with Douglas grabbing his second brace for the Yorkshire club in his two years at the club. A serious leg injury late on at Walsall
Walsall F.C.
Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...
ruled Douglas out for much of the remainder of 2007–08, an injury which coincided with Leeds' dip in form after their astonishing start to life in League 1, as Leeds struggled to replace the running power and positional sense of the injured Irishman.
He returned to the squad on 22 March, playing the last ten minutes of the match against Walsall, a match Leeds won 2–0. Leeds reached the playoff final against Doncaster Rovers but lost the game 1-0. After Leeds' failure to win promotion to the Championship, Douglas was again linked with a move to Burnley. He scored the first goal in Leeds' 4–0 romping of Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
in the second round of the Carling Cup and again in the 5–2 league defeat of Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra F.C.
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional football club based in Crewe, Cheshire. Nicknamed The Railwaymen due to the town's links with the rail industry, they currently play in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football, and are based at the Alexandra Stadium.The club...
. Douglas' played in a more unfamiliar position of right back as Leeds reached the playoffs again, only to be knocked out the competition when they lost 2-1 on aggregate to Millwall.
On 21 May 2009 it was reported that Leeds would be offering him a new deal. However the following day it was reported by official club text that Douglas, along with goalkeeper David Lucas
David Lucas (footballer)
David Anthony Lucas is an English footballer who plays for Rochdale as a player/coach.-Preston North End:As a young goalkeeper, Lucas started his career at Preston North End. He went on to spend nearly ten years as a professional at the Lancashire club, punctuated by loan appearances for...
, had been released from the club. This seemed to be down to a difference of opinion between club and player of the valuation of his services.
Swindon Town
On 10 July 2009, he signed for Swindon TownSwindon Town F.C.
Swindon Town Football Club are a team based in Swindon, Wiltshire. Currently in League Two, Swindon have been managed by Paolo Di Canio since 23 May 2011...
after being released from Leeds United. On 10 October 2009, Douglas was given a straight red card in a match against Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
. Swindon felt the decision was unfair and prepared an appeal against the automatic three match ban for the dismissal. On 14 October the appeal was rejected and an extra one match ban added taking Douglas' suspension to four matches. This incited chairman Andrew Fitton to launch a scathing attack on The FA
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
and its justice system. Douglas missed a home match with Hartlepool United
Hartlepool United F.C.
Hartlepool United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Hartlepool that currently play in League One. The team won promotion to League One in the 2006–07 season...
, two away trips to Norwich City
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
and Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers F.C.
Tranmere Rovers Football Club are an English team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club currently compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system...
and the visit of Conference South
Conference South
Conference South is one of the second divisions of the Football Conference in England, taking its place immediately below the Conference National...
side Woking
Woking F.C.
Woking Football Club is a football club from in Woking, Surrey, England, formed in 1889. They are playing in the Conference South in the 2011–12 season. For the 2011/2012 season, Woking are sharing their ground with Conference National club Hayes & Yeading United.-Promotion to the...
in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
First Round. Douglas was part of the Swindon side which reached the League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
playoffs. They won their playoff semi final after beating Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
on penalties but were defeated by one goal to nil in the final at Wembley
Wembley
Wembley is an area of northwest London, England, and part of the London Borough of Brent. It is home to the famous Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena...
by Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
. Douglas was later awarded both the Club's Player of the year award and the Club's Player's Player of the year award for the season 2009/2010. Douglas scored an absolute screamer with a volley into the top corner from 25 yards out against Sheffield Wednesday in a 3-1 defeat. Swindon were relegated to League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
after finishing bottom of the League One table in the 2010-11 season.
Brentford
Douglas rejected an offer of a new contract at Swindon to sign for BrentfordBrentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....
on 29 June 2011. At the start of the 2011/12, along with Richard Lee
Richard Lee (footballer)
Richard Anthony Lee is an English footballer. He is a goalkeeper and currently plays for Brentford.-Playing career:...
, he was named as a deputy to club captain Kevin O'Connor.
International career
Douglas has earned international caps for the Republic of IrelandRepublic of Ireland national football team
The Republic of Ireland national football team represents Ireland in association football. It is run by the Football Association of Ireland and currently plays home fixtures at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, which opened in May 2010....
, the first against Poland
Poland national football team
The Poland national football team represents Poland in association football and is controlled by the Polish Football Association, the governing body for football in Poland...
on April 28, 2004. Having already featured in a number of friendlies, Douglas made his competitive debut for Ireland in the European Championship Qualifier against the Czech Republic
Czech Republic national football team
The Czech Republic national football team represents the Czech Republic in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of the Czech Republic, the governing body for football in the Czech Republic. Their current head coach is Michal Bílek...
on 11 October 2006, starting in central midfield alongside Lee Carsley
Lee Carsley
Lee Kevin Carsley is a former professional footballer who played in the Football League and Premier League for Derby County, Blackburn Rovers, Coventry City, Everton and Birmingham City. Although English by birth, he represented the Republic of Ireland internationally...
. He also came on as a substitute in Ireland's next qualifier against San Marino
San Marino national football team
The San Marino national football team is the national football team of San Marino, controlled by the San Marino Football Federation...
. He was a regular choice in Steve Staunton's
Steve Staunton
Stephen "Steve" Staunton is an Irish association football manager and former professional footballer, who was most recently manager of Darlington...
Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland national football team
The Republic of Ireland national football team represents Ireland in association football. It is run by the Football Association of Ireland and currently plays home fixtures at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, which opened in May 2010....
squad.