Shane Long facts for kids
Long with the Republic of Ireland in 2013
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Shane Patrick Long | ||
| Date of birth | 22 January 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Gortnahoe, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–2002 | Borris St. Kevins | ||
| 2002–2004 | St. Michael's | ||
| 2004–2005 | Cork City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2005 | Cork City | 1 | (0) |
| 2005–2011 | Reading | 174 | (44) |
| 2011–2014 | West Bromwich Albion | 81 | (19) |
| 2014 | Hull City | 15 | (4) |
| 2014–2022 | Southampton | 198 | (28) |
| 2021 | → AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 11 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | Reading | 30 | (1) |
| Total | 510 | (98) | |
| International career | |||
| 2005–2006 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 8 | (0) |
| 2006 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 1 | (0) |
| 2007–2021 | Republic of Ireland | 88 | (17) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Shane Patrick Long (born on January 22, 1987) is an Irish former professional footballer. He played as a striker, which means he was mainly focused on scoring goals.
Shane Long started his football journey at Cork City. He then moved to Reading, where he helped his team win the EFL Championship in the 2005–06 season. He also famously helped Reading beat Liverpool in an FA Cup match in 2010. Later, he won a "Player of the Season" award at Reading.
In 2011, he joined Premier League team West Bromwich Albion. After that, he played for Hull City in 2014 and then Southampton in August 2014. On April 23, 2019, he scored the fastest goal ever in Premier League history!
Long also played for the Republic of Ireland. He made 88 appearances for his country and scored 17 goals over 14 years. He retired from playing football at the end of the 2022–23 season.
Contents
Early Life and Other Sports
Shane Long was born in Gortnahoe, County Tipperary, Ireland. Before becoming a football star, he was a very talented hurler. Hurling is a fast-paced Irish sport played with a stick and ball.
He played in two big under-18 hurling semi-finals for Tipperary at Croke Park, which is a famous stadium in Ireland. People thought he was a very quick and promising player in hurling. Shane also played Gaelic football when he was younger. He started his football career with St Kevin's FC in 1994 and later joined St. Michael's in 2002.
Club Football Career
Starting at Cork City
Shane Long was first noticed by Pat Dolan and joined Cork City on July 1, 2004, with a scholarship. He joined the main team in 2005. His first senior game in the League of Ireland was on March 25, 2005, when he came on as a substitute.
Soon after, Reading became interested in him and another player, Kevin Doyle. Shane Long signed with Reading on June 7, 2005.
Time at Reading
In the 2005–06 season, Reading won the Football League Championship. Shane Long scored three goals in ten games, mostly coming on as a substitute. He made his first league start on April 17, 2006. For a while, he was often a substitute behind other strong players.
On July 4, 2007, Long signed a new contract to stay with Reading until 2011.
In 2010, during an FA Cup match against Liverpool, Long won a penalty that led to extra time. He then scored a header, helping Reading win and move to the next round of the FA Cup. He continued to score important goals for Reading, including two goals against Plymouth Argyle in February 2010.
In another FA Cup match against Aston Villa, Long scored two goals in the first half. However, Aston Villa came back to win the game. On May 2, 2010, Long played his 150th game for Reading.
In the 2010–11 season, Long had an amazing year. He scored two goals against Derby County and two more against Bristol City. He also scored the only goal in an FA Cup match against West Brom. Because of his great performances, Shane Long won the "Player of the Season" award for Reading.
He scored two more goals in a play-off semi-final against Cardiff City, helping Reading win 3–0. He finished that season with 28 goals in 58 matches, which was his best scoring year.
Moving to West Bromwich Albion
On August 9, 2011, Shane Long joined Premier League team West Bromwich Albion. The transfer fee was around £4.5 million. He was given the number 9 shirt.
He scored in his very first game for West Brom against Manchester United. He also scored in his second game against Chelsea. Long continued to score important goals for West Brom throughout his time there.
In the 2012–13 season, he started strong, scoring against teams like Everton, Aston Villa, Manchester City, and Chelsea. He finished that season with 11 goals in all competitions.
Playing for Hull City
On January 17, 2014, Long signed with Hull City. He made his first appearance for Hull on January 28, 2014. In his next match, he scored his first goal for Hull City in a 1–1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur.
He scored his third goal for Hull against his old club, West Brom, helping Hull win 2–0. Shane Long could not play in Hull's historic FA Cup Final run because he had already played for West Brom in the competition that season.
Time at Southampton
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On August 14, 2014, Shane Long signed a four-year contract with Southampton. The fee was reported to be around £12 million. He made his first appearance for Southampton three days later.
He scored his first goal for Southampton in a League Cup match against Stoke City on October 29. He scored his first league goals for the club with two goals against Leicester City.
On May 16, 2015, Long helped his teammate Sadio Mané score the fastest hat-trick in Premier League history. Long himself scored two goals in that same game, including a fantastic 35-yard lob that was named Southampton's "Goal of the Season."
In the 2015–16 season, he scored against Vitesse Arnhem in the UEFA Europa League. He also scored two goals against Arsenal in a game Southampton won 4–0. On May 1, 2016, he scored his 100th career goal in English football.
On July 21, 2016, Long signed a new contract with Southampton until 2020. On April 5, 2019, he became only the fourth Irish player to score 50 Premier League goals.
On April 23, 2019, Shane Long scored the fastest goal in Premier League history against Watford. He scored just 7.69 seconds after the game started! This broke the old record held by Ledley King.
On June 4, 2020, he signed another two-year contract extension with Southampton. His contract with Southampton ended on July 1, 2022, and he left the club.
Loan to AFC Bournemouth
On February 2, 2021, Long joined Championship club AFC Bournemouth on loan. He made his debut for Bournemouth five days later. He scored his first goal for the team on February 20, 2021.
Return to Reading and Retirement
On July 13, 2022, Shane Long returned to Reading, signing a one-year contract. He played for Reading for one more season. He officially retired from playing football at the end of that season.
International Career
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Shane Long's good performances for Reading helped him get called up to the Republic of Ireland Under-19 team. He earned his first senior cap (played his first game) for the Republic of Ireland on February 7, 2007, in a 2–1 win against San Marino.
When he played his second game for Ireland, he became the first person to play both hurling and international football at Croke Park. He scored his first international goal on May 26, 2007, in a friendly match against Bolivia. He then scored two goals in Ireland's 4–0 win over Denmark. He was nominated for the "Football Association of Ireland Young Player of the Year" award in 2007.
In March 2011, Long came on as a substitute in a Euro 2012 qualifier and played very well. He then started the next game against Uruguay and scored a goal. On May 26, 2012, Long scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also played in UEFA Euro 2012.
On May 29, 2013, Long scored his ninth goal for Ireland, a header against England at Wembley Stadium. He also captained Ireland for the first time on June 2, 2013. On March 29, 2015, Long came off the bench to score a last-minute goal against Poland in a Euro 2016 qualifier. On October 8, 2015, he scored the winning goal against the reigning world champions, Germany, in another Euro 2016 qualifier.
Personal Life
Shane Long played Minor hurling for Tipperary and reached the All-Ireland Semi-Finals in 2002 and 2003. He played club hurling for Gortnahoe when he was young and even returned to play junior hurling with them in 2024.
In June 2013, Shane Long married his partner, Kayleah Adams, in Enniskerry in County Wicklow. They have three children together.
Career Statistics
These tables show how many games Shane Long played and how many goals he scored for different clubs and for his national team.
Club
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Cork City | 2005 | League of Ireland Premier Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Reading | 2005–06 | Championship | 11 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 15 | 4 | |
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 21 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 24 | 4 | ||
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 29 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 32 | 3 | ||
| 2008–09 | Championship | 37 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 | 9 | |
| 2009–10 | Championship | 31 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 36 | 9 | ||
| 2010–11 | Championship | 44 | 21 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 52 | 25 | |
| 2011–12 | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 174 | 44 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 203 | 54 | ||
| West Bromwich Albion | 2011–12 | Premier League | 32 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 33 | 8 | |
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 34 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 37 | 11 | ||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 17 | 3 | ||
| Total | 81 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | 87 | 22 | |||
| Hull City | 2013–14 | Premier League | 15 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 15 | 4 | |
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 15 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 4 | ||
| Southampton | 2014–15 | Premier League | 32 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 39 | 7 | |
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 28 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 34 | 13 | |
| 2016–17 | Premier League | 32 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 45 | 5 | |
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 30 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 35 | 2 | ||
| 2018–19 | Premier League | 26 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 5 | ||
| 2019–20 | Premier League | 26 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 31 | 3 | ||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 13 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 19 | 2 | ||
| Total | 198 | 28 | 21 | 4 | 20 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 245 | 37 | ||
| AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 2020–21 | Championship | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 |
| Reading | 2022–23 | Championship | 30 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 2 | |
| Career total | 510 | 98 | 43 | 13 | 28 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 598 | 121 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic of Ireland | 2007 | 7 | 3 |
| 2008 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2011 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2013 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2014 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 8 | 3 | |
| 2016 | 12 | 3 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 88 | 17 | |
- Scores and results list Republic of Ireland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Long goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 May 2007 | Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, United States |  Bolivia |
1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 22 August 2007 | NRGi Park, Aarhus, Denmark |  Denmark |
3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 3 | 4–0 | |||||
| 4 | 8 October 2010 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Russia |
2–3 | 2–3 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 5 | 17 November 2010 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Norway |
1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 6 | 29 March 2011 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Uruguay |
1–1 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 7 | 26 May 2012 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Bosnia and Herzegovina |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 8 | 11 September 2012 | Craven Cottage, London, England |  Oman |
3–0 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 9 | 29 May 2013 | Wembley Stadium, London, England |  England |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 10 | 15 November 2013 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Latvia |
3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 11 | 5 March 2014 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Serbia |
1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 12 | 29 March 2015 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Poland |
1–1 | 1–1 | UEFA Euro 2016 qualification |
| 13 | 4 September 2015 | Estádio Algarve, Faro, Portugal |  Gibraltar |
4–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2016 qualification |
| 14 | 8 October 2015 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Germany |
1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2016 qualification |
| 15 | 29 March 2016 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Slovakia |
1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 16 | 27 May 2016 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Netherlands |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 17 | 9 October 2016 | Zimbru Stadium, Chișinău, Moldova |  Moldova |
1–0 | 3–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Awards and Achievements
Shane Long won several awards during his career:
- Reading
- Football League Championship: 2005–06 (This means his team won the league title)
- Southampton
- EFL Cup runner-up: 2016–17 (His team reached the final but didn't win)
- Republic of Ireland
- Nations Cup: 2011 (He won a tournament with his national team)
- Individual Awards
- Reading Player of the Season: 2010–11 (He was voted the best player for Reading that season)
- FAI Young International Player of the Year: 2010 (Award for the best young Irish international player)
- FAI International Goal of the Year: 2013 (for his goal against England)
- Southampton Goal of the Season: 2014–15 (His amazing lob goal was voted the best goal for Southampton that season)
- Tipperary GAA (Hurling)
- Munster Minor Hurling Championship: 2003 (He won a championship in hurling with his county team)
See also
In Spanish: Shane Long para niños
