Where did my career go (the Francis Jeffers Story)

justshane

Anyone remember Sam Della Bona, or maybe it was Dalla Bona? Left Chelsea in the pre-Abramovich era as a youngster citing that he wanted to return to Italy. I remember thinking this was a massive blow for Chelsea at the time. Didn't sparkle too bright and now playing Siera B I think.

LuckyLloyd

justshane wrote: »

Anyone remember Sam Della Bona, or maybe it was Dalla Bona? Left Chelsea in the pre-Abramovich era as a youngster citing that he wanted to return to Italy. I remember thinking this was a massive blow for Chelsea at the time. Didn't sparkle too bright and now playing Siera B I think.

Made of glass if I remember correctly.

mike65

Back to the tragedy of Jeffers

Floriana

On 12 October 2012, Jeffers signed for 25-time Maltese Premier League winners Floriana F.C.[31] After only 2 games and 1 goal Jeffers left the club as he was told they could not longer pay him.

ben.schlomo

mike65 wrote: »

Back to the tragedy of Jeffers

I'll see that and raise you this.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/francis-jeffers-found-police-wielding-1742244

srfc19

ben.schlomo wrote: »

Hes gone on to be a first team regular for St Johnstone for the last few years, again not in the vain of the thread title. As for Bellion, a first team regular in a Ligue1 team who consistently finish in the upper echelons, how would that be throwing a career away? Every time i read a new post in here its just completely missed the point of the thread, time to be closed if you ask me.

I don't know about this one. I've been quite vocal in the defense of some of the ridiculous names mentioned here (Owen, Beattie etc) but I think Morris fits in.

He came through the ranks and played a lot of games with Chelsea and really was touted as the next big thing, before drifting around a few lower league teams, and St Johnstone (not far above mid-LOI level, realistically.)

If he had made a big money move ala Jeffers then we would be talking about him without a doubt, but without it I reckon he's still a fair shout.

ben.schlomo

srfc19 wrote: »

I don't know about this one. I've been quite vocal in the defense of some of the ridiculous names mentioned here (Owen, Beattie etc) but I think Morris fits in.

He came through the ranks and played a lot of games with Chelsea and really was touted as the next big thing, before drifting around a few lower league teams, and St Johnstone (not far above mid-LOI level, realistically.)

If he had made a big money move ala Jeffers then we would be talking about him without a doubt, but without it I reckon he's still a fair shout.

Shtop he was never rated as the' next big thing' and while i have no love for the SPL its a number of levels above the type of leagues and teams Jeffers has been with. I reckon hes done enough to deserve to be free of this thread anyway.

srfc19

ben.schlomo wrote: »

Shtop he was never rated as the' next big thing' and while i have no love for the SPL its a number of levels above the type of leagues and teams Jeffers has been with. I reckon hes done enough to deserve to be free of this thread anyway.

He had a bit of a revival with St Johnstone, but as far as I'm aware Roterham were League 2 when he was playing with them and Milwall in League 1.

Hardly a number of levels above Charlton, Rangers, Ipswich Sheff Wed & Motherwell now are they?

The only two really weak teams Jeffers were with were Newcastle Jets and Floriana.

ben.schlomo

srfc19 wrote: »

He had a bit of a revival with St Johnstone, but as far as I'm aware Roterham were League 2 when he was playing with them and Milwall in League 1.

Hardly a number of levels above Charlton, Rangers, Ipswich Sheff Wed & Motherwell now are they?

The only two really weak teams Jeffers were with were Newcastle Jets and Floriana.

Again though Jeffers played for England, got an 8million pound move to Arsenal and then went on to be a flop in Australia where Heskey even scores goals. Morris played over 100 games for Chelsea, and was never capped higher than U-20 so to be lump in the bracket in the first place is just wrong, hes nothing more than a journeyman.

Quazzie

As far as I can see the only person who belongs in this thread for some people is Frannie Jeffers himself. Whats the point of even having the thread if every single suggestion is shot down, because it's not an identical case to Jeffers.

ben.schlomo

Quazzie wrote: »

As far as I can see the only person who belongs in this thread for some people is Frannie Jeffers himself. Whats the point of even having the thread if every single suggestion is shot down, because it's not an identical case to Jeffers.

Silly suggestions like Owen, Beattie etc are shot down, genuine ones like Nsereko, Ricketts etc are good choices, although given the amount of stupid entries i called for it to be closed a while back.

wonga77

http://www.joe.ie/football/football-features/joes-forgotten-footballers-hamilton-ricard-0035079-1

Jarrod

Franny Jeffers is on the bench for Accrington Stanley today, if anyone's interested. He's been given their prestigious number 9 jersey too.

Dozen Wicked Words

Jarrod wrote: »

Franny Jeffers is on the bench for Accrington Stanley today, if anyone's interested. He's been given their prestigious number 9 jersey too.

He's just come on to a rousing boo from the home fans. James Beattie another of the has been footballers gracing Accrington these days.

Xlami

Anyone reckon our new pope took inspiration from this story when choosing his papal name?

Kristopherus

He's on a hat-trick at this moment. Big change from playing in the Champs Lge with the Gooners this time 10 years ago.

Dozen Wicked Words

Dozen Wicked Words wrote: »

He's just come on to a rousing boo from the home fans. James Beattie another of the has been footballers gracing Accrington these days.

James Beattie played top flight for a long time in fairness. He was more of a late bloomer in fact if anything. I think he got the best out of his career if matched with his abilities.

srfc19

I think Franny Jeffers doesnt even fit into this thread anymore. Still scoring goals in his thirties. Great player.

Pierce_1991

srfc19 wrote: »

I think Franny Jeffers doesnt even fit into this thread anymore. Still scoring goals in his thirties. Great player.

I always assumed the thread title was more ironic than anything else. Franny is obviously world class.

I remember as a ten year seeing him score his first goal for Arsenal against Bolton, we knew we had a superstar on our hands.

dreamers75

Stuart Taylor aged 32 played his 72nd career game yesterday.

Oranage2

srfc19 wrote: »

I think Franny Jeffers doesnt even fit into this thread anymore. Still scoring goals in his thirties. Great player.

I really think arsenal should sign him, he's the type of 'fox in the box' we desperately need.

gnfnrhead

dreamers75 wrote: »

Stuart Taylor aged 32 played his 72nd career game yesterday.

He's been second or third choice pretty much his whole career (including nearly 10 years at Arsenal and another 3 at City in that role) but yet has a Premier League title, FA cup and two community shields to his name. More than most players will get.

yohan the great

dreamers75 wrote: »

Stuart Taylor aged 32 played his 72nd career game yesterday.

A bit like Steve Harper except he actually won things as a sub

willowthewisp

dreamers75 wrote: »

Stuart Taylor aged 32 played his 72nd career game yesterday.

He also has a premier league medal, played in enough games in 01/02 to qualify for one for Arsenal.

Bounty Hunter

saw this today and thought of this thread

Former West Ham, Aston Villa and Bolton midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker, 28, has taken his tough-tackling reputation all the way to the MLS. The Vancouver Whitecaps player caused a San Jose Earthquakes player to do a front somersault with a firm challenge.

Correct me if im wrong but the guy was Wimbledon, West Ham & England U-21 captain right? He cost Villa 8.5m when he was signed and now at 28 he should be hitting the prime of his career and yet even as a Villa fan (where most people probably think of him in relation to) where things didn't really work out for him im left wondering what the hell he is doing playing for Vancouver?

GavRedKing

Had he won the FA cup with West Ham he would have been the youngest ever captain to do so.

Surprised he ended up in the MLS so soon, unless he wanted a new challenge, new culture etc etc

EdenHazard

gnfnrhead wrote: »

He's been second or third choice pretty much his whole career (including nearly 10 years at Arsenal and another 3 at City in that role) but yet has a Premier League title, FA cup and two community shields to his name. More than most players will get.

Really lessons the whole 'I have the same amount of premiership medals as Stevie Gerrard' I doubt he can be too proud of them medals tbh, except obviously for the fact his talent was good enough to make a career as a third choice keeper at big clubs. Just don't see how he never would have wanted to experience regular starting football. He had to be decent at the very least. Pretty much a terrible career I would have thought. When he retires he'll probably have struggled to over 100 appearences in his career. More than me sure, but then I wasn't given the talent.

Easy Rod

Bounty Hunter wrote: »

saw this today and thought of this thread



Correct me if im wrong but the guy was Wimbledon, West Ham & England U-21 captain right? He cost Villa 8.5m when he was signed and now at 28 he should be hitting the prime of his career and yet even as a Villa fan (where most people probably think of him in relation to) where things didn't really work out for him im left wondering what the hell he is doing playing for Vancouver?

He's black and physically strong so clearly forged his birth cert, chap is probably early forties.

James__10

Calum Davenport


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calum_Davenport

GavRedKing

James__10 wrote: »

Calum Davenport


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calum_Davenport

Didnt his sisters boyfriend stab him in the leg after Davenport attacked his mother and sister?

I remember something strange going on anyway and he lost a lot of blood in the attack.

Edit, just seen it in the wiki page. woops. :pac:

dreamers75

http://balls.ie/football/ireland-international-where-are-they-now-usa-friendly-lapira/

Few on this list.

Joe O Ceauruill

Corholio

Bounty Hunter wrote: »

saw this today and thought of this thread



Correct me if im wrong but the guy was Wimbledon, West Ham & England U-21 captain right? He cost Villa 8.5m when he was signed and now at 28 he should be hitting the prime of his career and yet even as a Villa fan (where most people probably think of him in relation to) where things didn't really work out for him im left wondering what the hell he is doing playing for Vancouver?

Remember when his agent said he had Champions League teams after him, Juventus was mooted. Then he went to Bolton.

EdenHazard

How bad was that Ireland team? :O Development squad or not, its absolutely cat. The one this summer will be far superior

The_Kew_Tour

dreamers75 wrote: »

http://balls.ie/football/ireland-international-where-are-they-now-usa-friendly-lapira/

Few on this list.

Joe O Ceauruill

Make no mistake about it Stan will go down as one of the worst managers of all time,

Some those players were hopeless.

srfc19

Corholio wrote: »

Remember when his agent said he had Champions League teams after him, Juventus was mooted. Then he went to Bolton.

Fairly certain Harchester were about to sign him at one stage.

Where did it all go wrong Nigel??

The_Kew_Tour

The_Kew_Tour wrote: »

Make no mistake about it Stan will go down as one of the worst managers of all time,

Some those players were hopeless.

Trap would probably still start these lads ahead of Houlihan and James McCarthy his mind is so full of strange thoughts and you'd have guys defending his decisions too thats the gas thing

klose

The_Kew_Tour wrote: »

Make no mistake about it Stan will go down as one of the worst managers of all time,

Some those players were hopeless.

Love this bit about about joe gamble

Then: Considered the League of Ireland’s best defensive midfielder Gamble was another to receive a late call up following withdrawals. Cork City had a game postponed to accommodate him. Steve Staunton showed how much he knew about defensive minded gamble by playing him as a right winger in his only start.

:pac:

Shout out to joe lapira!

carlowboy

Deleted User wrote: »

Thing about USA players also tbf is they improve with age. All of a sudden they seem to turn a corner and that might come with the fact that they perform relatively well in major tournaments and gain alot of confidence from this

If the expectation is off Freddy, which it may be, he may well develop into a decent player at a decent level, say an Everton or a Fulham. Brian McBride and Clint Dempsey took a while to get to a level where they became the best players they could be at any form of top level. Landon Donovan is another example.

All 3 of them look decent internationals but they really didnt shine until they hit their late 20s at club level so there is hope for Freddy yet. The expectation at such a young age could have hampered his development greatly. 14 playing Senior pro football and then having a Nike deal thrown at you is fierce pressure for a young man

Or he could just be, you know, a lot older than 23.

Leejo

Easy Rod wrote: »

He's black and physically strong so clearly forged his birth cert, chap is probably early forties.

Bit racist...

adaminho

Surprised these two weren't mentioned, cost a combined £5 million when both 16 from Leeds to Chelsea.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Taiwo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Woods_%28footballer%29

couerdelion

The_Kew_Tour wrote: »

Make no mistake about it Stan will go down as one of the worst managers of all time,

Some those players were hopeless.

Got two draws against two decent enough teams with a team that is pretty shocking on paper. Whatever you want to blame him for the amount of injuries and pullouts that left him with those players isn't his fault.

The_Kew_Tour

couerdelion wrote: »

Got two draws against two decent enough teams with a team that is pretty shocking on paper. Whatever you want to blame him for the amount of injuries and pullouts that left him with those players isn't his fault.

Does not hide the fact that he could of capped better players then that.

Alan O Brien is possibly the worst player I have ever seen.

geeky

I'm not sure if he's been mentioned but Leon Knight has to take the biscuit.

In 98-99, I remember an official Chelsea diary of the season describing him as the next big thing, this in a book where there were some critical remarks of other players in the squad. Really bigging the lad up.

His list of clubs says it all, and he seems to have fallen out with everyone he's ever worked with. A right lunatic.

1999–2003 Chelsea 1 (0)
2001 → Queens Park Rangers (loan) 11 (0)
2001–2002 → Huddersfield Town (loan) 31 (16)
2002–2003 → Sheffield Wednesday (loan) 24 (3)
2003 → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) 2 (4)
2003–2006 Brighton & Hove Albion 106 (30)
2006–2007 Swansea City 28 (15)
2006–2007 → Barnsley (loan) 9 (0)
2007–2008 Milton Keynes Dons 33 (5)
2008 Wycombe Wanderers 20 (5)
2008–2009 Rushden & Diamonds 12 (4)
2009 Thrasivoulos Fylis 3 (0)
2009–2010 Hamilton Academical 6 (0)
2010 Queen of the South 6 (0)
2010–2012 Coleraine 43 (20)
2012 Glentoran

Montroseee

As a United fan, I'm quite sure Anderson's career is going to be a 'what could have been.' The lad was bought from Porto at 19/20 for a very pricey fee and came with all the promise and potential in the world. I remember watching him in the 08 season and thinking this guy is going to be a box-to-box general. Some of his performances in the champions league especially at that age were just incredible.

Unfortunately, its turned sour over the years and I can't bear to watch him play without thinking of his vast underachievement. I fully expect him to be sold in the summer for a fee of 5-7M and a disappointing chapter to end (Hargreaves + Anderson).

jimjamcos

Montroseee wrote: »

As a United fan, I'm quite sure Anderson's career is going to be a 'what could have been.' The lad was bought from Porto at 19/20 for a very pricey fee and came with all the promise and potential in the world. I remember watching him in the 08 season and thinking this guy is going to be a box-to-box general. Some of his performances in the champions league especially at that age were just incredible.

Unfortunately, its turned sour over the years and I can't bear to watch him play without thinking of his vast underachievement. I fully expect him to be sold in the summer for a fee of 5-7M and a disappointing chapter to end (Hargreaves + Anderson).

Think it was announced last week that he's leaving. You'll get people disregarding your post on the basis he 'won' numerous PL titles. You're right though...he could of had a special career but has been/is a squad player and will have achieved very little of significance by his career end! Another example of a young Brazilian who took his foot off the peddle and put the party shoes on once he got his big move.