Stern John facts for kids
John in 2018
|
|||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stern John | ||
| Date of birth | 30 October 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Saint Lucia (manager) | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995 | Mercer County Vikings | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1996 | Malta Carib Alcons | 7 | (1) |
| 1997 | Carolina Dynamo | 5 | (0) |
| 1997 | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers | 26 | (16) |
| 1998–1999 | Columbus Crew | 55 | (44) |
| 1999–2002 | Nottingham Forest | 72 | (18) |
| 2002–2004 | Birmingham City | 77 | (16) |
| 2004–2007 | Coventry City | 78 | (26) |
| 2005 | → Derby County (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| 2007 | Sunderland | 16 | (5) |
| 2007–2009 | Southampton | 47 | (19) |
| 2008–2009 | → Bristol City (loan) | 24 | (2) |
| 2009–2010 | Crystal Palace | 16 | (2) |
| 2009–2010 | → Ipswich Town (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2011–2012 | North East Stars | ||
| 2012 | Solihull Moors | ||
| 2014 | WASA FC | ||
| 2017–2018 | Central F.C. | ||
| Total | 437 | (150) | |
| International career | |||
| 1995–2011 | Trinidad and Tobago | 115 | (70) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2017–2020 | Central F.C. | ||
| 2020–2022 | Anguilla | ||
| 2022– | Saint Lucia | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Stern John, born on October 30, 1976, is a famous football manager and former player from Trinidad and Tobago. He currently coaches the Saint Lucia national team. Before that, he managed Anguilla from 2020 to 2022. As a player, he played for many clubs in the United States and England, including Columbus Crew, Nottingham Forest, and Birmingham City.
Contents
Playing Career: A Star Forward
Early Days in the US
Stern John grew up in Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago. He came from a family of athletes, with many professional footballers and cricket players. Until he was 16, he played cricket for Trinidad and Tobago's youth team. Then, he decided to focus completely on football.
In 1995, John moved to the United States to attend Mercer County Community College in New Jersey. The college's coach, Charlie Inverso, had recruited him from Trinidad. John helped the Mercer County Vikings win the 1995 NJCAA soccer championship. He scored 27 goals that season, including one in the final game.
He started his professional career in April 1997 with the Carolina Dynamo. A month later, he moved to the New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers. There, he scored 16 goals in 21 games and was named Rookie of the Year.
Becoming a Star with Columbus Crew
After playing in the 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup, where he scored two goals, John joined Columbus Crew. His second cousin, Ansil Elcock, who also played for the Crew, suggested John to the coach. John quickly became a key player.
He made his Major League Soccer (MLS) debut on March 29, 1998. In his fifth game, he scored his first MLS goal, getting a hat-trick (three goals) in a 5–1 win. John finished his first MLS season as the league's top scorer with 26 goals in 27 matches. He was also named to the MLS Best XI, which is a team of the best players. He was the first MLS player to score three hat-tricks in one season.
In 1999, he scored 18 goals, tying for the league's top scorer again. He ended his MLS career with an amazing 44 goals in 55 games.
Moving to English Football
After his success in the MLS, John moved to England in 1999 to play for Nottingham Forest in the English First Division. He scored 18 goals in 49 starts for the team.
In February 2002, he joined Birmingham City. He helped them get promoted to the Premier League, which is the top football league in England. He even scored a penalty in the play-off final shootout to help them win. John scored nine goals in 60 Premier League games for Birmingham City. Fans loved him for his important goals, like a last-minute equalizer against Aston Villa.
On September 14, 2004, John moved to Coventry City. In his first season, he scored 12 goals. In 2005, he was loaned to Derby County for three months before returning to Coventry.
In January 2007, John joined Sunderland. He scored his first goals for them in a 4–0 win against Southend United.
Later that year, on August 29, 2007, John moved to Southampton. He quickly started scoring goals, including a hat-trick against Hull City. He finished the 2007–08 season as the fourth-highest scorer in the Championship with 19 goals for Southampton. He helped Southampton avoid being relegated to a lower league.
John was loaned to Bristol City in October 2008. He scored his first goal for them in a game against Reading.
In July 2009, John signed with Crystal Palace. He later had a short loan spell at Ipswich Town, where he scored one goal. He scored his first goal for Crystal Palace in March 2010.
After a break from English football, John returned in August 2012 to play for Solihull Moors. He later came out of retirement to play for WASA FC in Trinidad and Tobago in 2014, scoring on his debut. In 2016, he became a player-coach for Central F.C. in the TT Pro League.
International Career: Representing Trinidad and Tobago
Stern John made his first appearance for the Trinidad and Tobago national team on February 15, 1995, against Finland. He scored a goal in that very first game!
He was a very important player for his country, known as the "Soca Warriors." He is still the team's all-time leading scorer, with an amazing 70 goals in 115 games. When he retired in 2011, he was the 7th highest international goalscorer in the world. He is also the top goal scorer in the CONCACAF region (North, Central America, and Caribbean).
John played a big part in helping Trinidad and Tobago qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He played in all three of his country's World Cup group matches. He was also named the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation Player of the Year in 2002. John is the second most capped (played the most games for) Trinidad and Tobago international player, after his former teammate Angus Eve.
Coaching Career
On November 9, 2020, Stern John became the new manager of the Anguilla national team. Then, on May 23, 2022, the Saint Lucia Football Association announced that John had become the head coach of the Saint Lucia national team.
Personal Life
For being part of the team that played in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, Stern John was given the Chaconia Medal (Gold Class). This is the second highest award given by the country of Trinidad and Tobago.
Honours
Columbus Crew
- U.S. Open Cup runner-up: 1998
Birmingham City
- Football League First Division play-offs: 2001–02
Sunderland
- Football League Championship: 2006–07
Trinidad and Tobago
- Caribbean Cup: 1996, 1999, 2001
Individual
- MLS Golden Boot: 1998
- MLS Best XI: 1998
- MLS All-Star, 1998, 1999
- Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation Player of the Year: 2002
Medals
Chaconia Medal Gold Class: 2006
See also
In Spanish: Stern John para niños
- List of top international men's football goalscorers by country
- List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
- List of men's footballers with 50 or more international goals
