David Anthony Johnson
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| David Johnson | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | David Anthony Johnson | |
| Date of birth | August 15, 1976 (age 30) | |
| Place of birth | Kingston, Jamaica | |
| Height | 5' 6" | |
| Nickname | Johnno, (The) DJ | |
| Playing position | Striker | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Hucknall Town | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| Manchester United | ||
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1994-1995 1995-1997 1997-2001 2001 2001-2006 2005 2007- |
Manchester United Bury FC Ipswich Town Burnley FC(loan) Nottingham Forest Sheffield United (loan) Hucknall Town Total |
0 (0) 69 (26) 121 (62) 8 (6) 120 (55) 5 (1) 2 (2) 325 (152) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2003-2005 | Jamaica | 5 (1) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
David Johnson (born 15 August 1976 in Jamaica) is a former professional footballer. He was a striker of undoubted potential, but had been rather unlucky with his Forest career, where he suffered 3 career threatening injuries: Broken leg in two places, cruciate damage and a back problem, the latter has now ended his full time career.
He is now working behind the scenes at Nottingham Forest. In March 2007 he signed for Conference North side Hucknall Town [1]. He is expected to sign for Burton Albion for the 2007/08 season.[2]
[edit] Biography
"Johnno" (as he is affectionately known by Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest fans), started his career off with Manchester United as a trainee, but was released in 1995 when he was 19 because he was deemed too small. He moved to Bury FC where he began his playing career. He scored 25 goals in just over 80 appearances before being brought by Ipswich Town for £1 million.
He quickly became a crowd favourite with the East Anglian outfit when he scored 24 goals in his first season with the club. He went on to bag another 20+ goals for them in the next season and a half. David Platt then purchased him for Nottingham Forest in 2001 for £3 million.
Johnson only managed 3 goals in his first 19 appearances for the Reds, but in his second season (2002-2003) with the club, he had perhaps the best time in his football career, when he scored 29 goals in 46 games. This incredible feat helped propel Forest into the play-offs (where they eventually lost out to Sheffield United). He became one of the best loved players in Forest's line-up at the time when he formed the brilliant attacking partnership with Marlon Harewood. Harewood himself got 25+ goals that season.
He went on to score another 8 goals in 17 appearances before he suffered a career threatening injury when he broke his leg in two places. It kept him out of action for almost a year and seriously affected his football playing.
When he returned to action, he only managed 6 goals in 30+ appearances which saw him drop down the pecking order. Gary Megson put him on the transfer list when Forest where relegated to League One. Unlike the other 4 who were put on the list with him, Johnson managed to return to the first team and scored 3 goals in 12 starts. Then, just after he scored his 50th goal in a Forest shirt, he sustained another career threatening injury.
This time it was for a back problem in which he had to have 2 operations. It was a dislodged spinal disk in his back that had also trapped a nerve and it kept him out of action since early December and didn't play for the rest of the season. He scored 50 goals in just under 120 appearances for Forest, and is now something of a legend with the Forest Fans. He has had a variety of different hair styles during his time at Forest, including short hair, dreadlocks, afro, shaven and even bleach blonde but his most recent is the dreadlocks tied back in a pony tail.
Despite there being doubts over his Forest career, he was on the road to recovery and was reassured by the club that he will see out the rest of his contract. During his frustrating time on the sidelines he repayed the faith shown in him by his sponsor, Jerry Nicholls by giving a training session to Long Eaton under 14's.
Unfortunately he was forced to retire, due to the advice of the doctors, after the back problem continued. He will probably be fondly remembered for being a cult hero at the City Ground. Johnson revealed that he was devastated, but said he was thankful of all the support the club and fans gave him during his 10 month injury nightmare. He also said he wishes to stay in Nottingham and take on another role in the club, which Colin Calderwood and chairman Nigel Doughty have given him permission to do.
His international career has been notable by the fact that he played for Jamaica against U.S.A., before being invited to join the Welsh squad. Injury prevented him from playing, and in the meantime he pledged his future to Scotland before it was confirmed he was ineligible to play for them. He was also considered to play for England during his Ipswich days.
