26th August – Nicky Summerbee

Nicky Summerbee comes from a long line of professional footballers and just like his dad, Mike, will be loving how Manchester City are getting on at the moment.

The midfielder now does a lot of radio work and is regularly a pundit for Manchester City games and will be forever liked by those at the club as his dad is a cult hero there.

Summerbee didn’t have the easiest starts to his career and had trials at clubs like Manchester United, Leicester City and Norwich City before finally convincing Swindon Town that he was good enough. After signing for them in 1989 he would go on to make 112 league appearances for the club, scoring six goals and being an important member of the squad that got promoted to the Premier League in 1993.

His form convinced Manchester City to pay £1.3 million for his services and he proudly followed in his father’s footsteps. In his first season at the club they were struggling and even with Alan Ball replacing Brian Horton as manager nothing could change their fortunes. Unfortunately this ended in the club getting relegated from the Premier League and led to rumours of Summerbee leaving the club. In the summer of 1997 it looked as though he would be moving on after a trial with French side Bordeaux, however a move never materialised.

After 131 games for City, Summerbee did leave for Sunderland in November 1997. He made an instant impact on his debut against Portsmouth by scoring the final goal in a 4-1 win after coming on as a substitute. He continued his good form and was a regular in the side as he once again helped his side gain promotion from Division One and into the Premier League.

However, injuries and some argue things in his personal life contributed to him not having as much of an impact as he would have liked in the next few seasons for Sunderland. Summerbee was left in the wilderness by manager Peter Reid as the club began to thrive and an incident in a reserve match against Newcastle United put an end to his career at Sunderland.

Upon leaving Sunderland, he joined Bolton Wanderers, however this only lasted nine games, with him managing to score one goal against Crystal Palace. But he struggled to settle and more short term spells at Leicester City and Nottingham Forest followed. He finally found a place to call home again when he joined Bradford City in 2003.

He stayed with the club for two and a half years but towards the end his playing time was becoming limited and he had loan spells at Swindon Town and Tranmere Rovers. His final move was to Tamworth where he played four league games before retiring.

The final word can go to former Swindon Town manager Andy King. “I spoke about players performing well. Nicky Summerbee gave us much greater shape, and put some good balls into the box. The shape was the key thing.”

21st June – Peter Thorne

Peter Thorne was a striker that was feared in the lower leagues of English football for many years and scored just short of 200 goals in his career.

The forward was successful almost everywhere he went but his career began slowly at Blackburn Rovers, where he is only first team appearance came in the 1994 Charity Shield against Manchester United. To get some playing time Thorne went out on loan to Wigan Athletic during the season but unfortunately couldn’t score in his 11 games. Swindon Town then took a chance on him and despite his impressive 11 goals in 23 games he could not stop them from getting relegated from Division One. Thorne stayed at the club and helped them gain promotion with another 11 goals.

In his final season he scored 10 goals before moving to Stoke City in July 1997. Once again he was successful with 16 goals but his team were disappointing and another relegation followed. The next few years were heartbreaking for the club and the fans as they failed to gain promotion and were unfortunately defeated in several playoff attempts. But Thorne did score 30 goals in the 1999-00 season and also became a club hero by scoring the winning goal in the 2000 Football League Trophy final.

After 80 goals for Stoke, Cardiff City signed the striker for a club record £1.7 million in September 2001. The first season wasn’t ideal as he struggled with injuries but the following campaign he combined brilliantly with striker partner Robert Earnshaw and the pair scored a total of 52 goals. Over the next two seasons injuries haunted him however he still scored a decent amount of goals.

With Cardiff struggling financially this meant Thorne was allowed to leave for Norwich City. In his two seasons at the club he only managed two goals and the striker did contemplate retirement. Bradford City convinced Thorne to sign for them on a one year deal and he would become a popular player.

A hip injury stopped him from starting the league season but he quickly got up to the pace of League Two and would score regularly, including a hatrick in a 3-0 win over Notts County. Due to his form he was given a contract extension and once again rewarded his manager straight away by scoring two goals in each of the first two games and then adding a fifth of the season in the third game. By the start of November he already had 11 goals, however a shoulder injury slowed his progress and he ended the season with 17 goals. These would be his last career goals.

The final word can go to former Bradford manager Stuart McCall. “We know we’ve got a good goalscorer. Obviously with the little niggles that Thorney has had there is no guarantee he will play ‘X’ amount of games but if he does get 30 to 35 games, there is a good chance he will end with 15 to 20 goals.”

27th September – Lloyd Sam

A lot of high profile players have gone over to America in recent years but there are others that have went over from England and made a big impression, like Lloyd Sam.

The 30 year old plays alongside world superstars such as Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill as well as others that have played in England such as Bobby Convey, Richard Eckersley and Bradley Wright-Phillips. So Sam will certainly feel at home at the New York Red Bulls and is known as someone that can use his pace and direct running to create chances for his teammates and it is no surprise to see him setting up a lot of goals.

Sam started his career at Charlton Athletic and became a professional in 2003 at the age of 18. He began to impress in the youth team and was called up to the first team squad for a game against Arsenal but unfortunately did not get on the pitch. He then went out on loan to get some more first team experience and joined Leyton Orient in 2004 and played 10 times for the club before returning to Charlton and making his debut for them on the final day of the 2004-05 season against Crystal Palace.

His opportunities were still limited and after playing just twice in the following season, he went out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday and Southend United during the 2006-07 season. Sam did also play seven times in the Premier League that season but unfortunately Charlton were relegated but this meant that the winger was now going to get a chance in the first team on a regular basis.

At the start of the season he was a bright spot for Charlton and scored his first professional goal against Stockport County in the League Cup. After this the club began to struggle and after missing out on promotion they started to fall down the table and were relegated once more at the end of the 2008-09 season. They narrowly missed out on a return to the Championship with Sam playing 43 league games as they lost in the playoff semi finals against Swindon Town.

After not being offered a new contract he joined Leeds United on a free transfer on the 9th July 2010 but he did not make a great start as he gave away a penalty on his debut against Derby County in a 2-1 defeat. However, in the next league game he scored against Nottingham Forest and also received the man of the match for his performance. He then went on to score against Millwall on 21st August but this positive start did not last as Sam suffered several niggling injuries which kept him out of action for long periods.

He only featured in 18 league games for Leeds in his first season and did extra work in preseason to get himself fit for the new season and in the friendly matches he provided a lot of assists and topped it off by scoring in a 3-1 win over Newcastle United. This was still not good enough to get him a regular place in the side and on the 14th March 2012 joined Notts County on loan for the rest of the season and scored five goals in 10 games, including a hatrick against Yeovil Town in a 3-1 win.

When his contract came to an end at Leeds he signed for New York Red Bulls on the 16th August 2012 and impressed in his first five games before and injury ruled him out for the rest of the season. He has now recovered from this and helped the club win its first ever Supporters’ Shield in 2013, scoring the third goal in a 5-2 win over Chicago Fire.

The final word can go to the Notts County manager that brought him in on loan Keith Curle. “I like Lloyd. It took him a bit of time to settle at first, but in the end he was enjoying it and was playing free flowing, entertaining, attacking football. Lloyd just keeps getting better and better.”

12th September – David Prutton

With 25 England under 21 caps to his name a lot was expected of David Prutton unfortunately his career did not quite progress as well as he hoped but he has still had a decent career.

Now a free agent he has been looking for a club and started doing media work, suggesting that he may already have plans for when he does announce his retirement. Prutton has been a model professional for most of his career but he is arguably most famous for an incident while at Southampton.

The midfielder came through the youth system at Nottingham Forest and went on to make his debut in 1999 and stayed with the club until 2003, making 155 appearances for Forest and scoring seven goals. He moved to Southampton for £2.5 million which was seen as a great investment.
Prutton proved to be a versatile player for Southampton and impressed in his first four months at the club, playing in midfield and at right back. During the 2003-04 season he continued his progression by playing 30 times and scored his first goal for the club on the final day against Charlton Athletic.

The 2004-05 season however was one to forget as Southampton were relegated to the Championship and Prutton was banned for 10 games after being sent off in a game against Arsenal and then proceeding to push referee Alan Wiley on several occasions while shouting at the assistant referee. He tried to put it right by staying at the club and help them get promoted, however he broke his metatarsal in September against QPR and after he returned he could not break into the side.

In January 2007 he returned to Nottingham Forest on loan to try and help them secure promotion back to the Championship. He played 13 times but he was sent off in League One semi final second leg against Yeovil Town. After his loan spell he joined Leeds United on the 7th August 2007.

During the 2007-08 season he was one of their most consistent performers, however there would be playoff heartbreak for him as they lost in the final against Doncaster Rovers. Under both Dennis Wise and Gary McAllister he was an automatic first choice but this changed when Simon Grayson took over. Once again Leeds lost in the playoffs but Prutton usually had to settle for a place on the bench before joining Colchester United on the 26th January 2010.

He scored on his debut against MK Dons and ended the season in good form, despite being offered a new contract by the club he decided to sign for Swindon Town. He only stayed for one season as they were relegated to League Two and signed for Sheffield Wednesday. He also scored on his debut for Wednesday with a fantastic volley against Rochdale on the opening day of the 2011-12 season.

Wednesday got promoted at the end of the season and in the following campaign Prutton played his part in keeping them in the Championship but he was getting less game time. He had to go out on loan to play games, firstly to Scunthorpe United and then Coventry City before being released by his parent club.

The final word can go to Coventry City manager Steven Pressley. “He has played at the highest domestic level. He also has a detailed knowledge of this division and its demands. It was vitally important that we brought in a player with established quality, leadership skills and experience and David certainly fits that mould.”

22nd June – Kieran Lee

Kieran Lee had a pretty slow start to his career at Sheffield Wednesday but last season proved to be one of their best players and was a very influential player on the pitch.

It is not surprising that he eventually showed his quality at Hillsborough because of how well he had already done in the past at previous clubs. It seemed like injuries were going to be a problem for him but his form improved dramatically after Dave Jones left the club and he started playing in the centre of midfield under Stuart Gray.

Lee did start his career as a central midfielder but at first club Manchester United he was used mostly as a fullback and after impressing for the under 18s and the reserves he was offered a professional contract at the club. During the 2006-07 season he was named the captain of the reserves team and also made his first team debut coming on as a substitute in a third round League Cup game against Crewe Alexandra. The scores were level at full time so the game went to extra time and Lee scored to make it 2-1 with a composed finish that seasoned pros would have been proud of.

He played once more in the League Cup that season and also made his Premier League debut against Chelsea on the 9th May and at the end of the season he was named the Reserve Player of the Year. Although he was named as a substitute in a Champions League game against Roma he never played for the Old Trafford club again and on the 2nd January he joined QPR on loan. He spent four months at the London club and made seven appearances before being released by his parent club.

In the summer of 2008 he joined Oldham Athletic and his career really kicked off and he became one of the most consistent players for the next few seasons. But he had to wait until the 26th December to make his debut in a 3-0 win over Crewe and to make it better he even provided the assist for the final goal. Lee had to wait until the next season to get his first goal and it was an important 95th minute equaliser against Swindon Town and he eventually became a first team regular for the first time in his career.

When Paul Dickov became manager of Oldham his performances went to the next level and he was regarded as one of the best fullbacks in the Football League. At the end of the 2010-11 season he picked up four Player of the Year awards at the club, including Players’ Player of the Year and the Fans’ Player of the Year. Remarkably at the end of the following season he followed this up once more with yet another four awards.

Sheffield Wednesday then signed Lee in 2012 and the 26 year old is now one of their most important players and in the season just gone he played 26 times, scoring once and creating another four goals.

The final word can go to the Oldham chairman Simon Corney. “Sometimes when players leave, you feel let down because you think they owe you something, but this is absolutely not the case with Kieran. He’s a great boy; I can’t speak highly enough of him; I wish we had 11 Kieran Lees”

11th April – Nile Ranger

He may have had problems off the pitch but today is not a day to focus on them things as Nile Ranger turns 23.

Focusing on his actions on the pitch isn’t always easy and the player himself will know that he has to win over the fans of every club he plays for in the future. He had a very good reputation as a youngster and impressed for Newcastle United’s youth teams and reserves which led to him receiving a three and a half year contract.

He made his debut for the first team on the club’s first game back in the Championship and was rewarded with a start soon after in a 1-0 win against Leicester City where he led the line brilliantly and was awarded the man of the match. He spent a lot of time as a substitute at the club but he did show a lot of potential and scored his first career goal to seal a victory against Coventry City. The manager at the time Chris Hughton felt he could become a first team regular soon. “Nile is a young player who is improving all the time. It’s less than 18 months since he made his debut and he’s coming on leaps and bounds.”

However his time at Newcastle came to an end and he left by mutual consent but before this he enjoyed a successful spell on loan at Sheffield Wednesday where he was vital in helping them achieve automatic promotion from League 1. Dave Jones had a lot of faith in the player and felt he made the difference saying . “I wouldn’t have signed him if I didn’t think he could do a job. If he can focus on football I have an excellent player that will do a fantastic job for the club.”

Ranger scored in the final game of the season against Wycombe Wanderers to get the club promoted and sparked one of the biggest celebrations League 1 has ever seen.

For one reason or another the club did not sign him permanently and his next move was to League 1 Swindon Town where he has been very successful in his first season as a regular. In the league he has seven goals in 19 games. He certainly has the talent to succeed at this level and should be able to go further in the game but it may be difficult to get a transfer so he will have to do his best to get Swindon promoted.

The last word can go to his manager Mark Cooper who believes that it may have happened this season. “I think everyone knows, if Nile Ranger had been fit all season we’d be in the playoffs.”