John_Cornforth_(footballer)
John Cornforth (footballer)
Welsh footballer and manager
John Michael Cornforth (born 7 October 1967) is a former Wales international football player and is now a coach. Originally from Whitley Bay in the north-east of England, Cornforth and his family have been settled in Devon for some time.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Michael Cornforth[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1967-10-07) 7 October 1967 (age 56)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Whitley Bay,[1] England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1985–1991 | Sunderland | 32 | (2) |
| 1986 | → Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 7 | (3) |
| 1989 | → Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 1990 | → Lincoln City (loan) | 9 | (1) |
| 1991–1996 | Swansea City | 149 | (16) |
| 1996 | Birmingham City | 8 | (0) |
| 1996–1999 | Wycombe Wanderers | 47 | (6) |
| 1998 | → Peterborough United (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 1999 | Cardiff City | 10 | (1) |
| 1999–2000 | Scunthorpe United | 4 | (1) |
| 2000–2001 | Exeter City | 24 | (2) |
| International career | |||
| 1995 | Wales | 2 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2001–2002 | Exeter City | ||
| 2004–2005 | Newport County | ||
| 2006 | Torquay United | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Cornforth is currently[needs update] assistant manager at Northern Premier side Blyth Spartans.
Cornforth usually appeared in midfield during his playing days. He made a total of 322 starts for his various clubs over his career, scoring 36 goals in the process. Whilst at Swansea City he was a part of the team that won after a penalty shootout in the 1994 Football League Trophy Final.[3] At one point he commanded a transfer fee of £350,000, in his 1996 transfer from Swansea to Birmingham City.[4] His four-and-a-half years and nearly 200 games for Swansea led him to declare himself "a true Jack".[citation needed]
Cornforth was eligible to play for the Wales national football team due to his paternal grandmother, who was from Llantrisant. He had two caps before a cruciate ligament injury interrupted his career.[4]
Cornforth was player-coach, assistant manager[citation needed] and manager of Exeter City.
In July 2004 he joined the coaching team (unpaid) at his local side Crediton United.[5]
In September 2004 he took over from Peter Nicholas as manager of Newport County but was sacked in 2005.[6]
In January 2006 Cornforth took over as caretaker manager at Torquay United from Leroy Rosenior with the side deep in relegation trouble;[7] soon afterwards, he was appointed as manager until the end of the season.[8] The side's form worsened however, and Ian Atkins replaced Cornforth in April, having joined the club as an advisor to Cornforth the previous month.[9] Against all odds, Atkins managed to rescue the side and lift them a comfortable three points clear from relegation.
In August 2007, Cornforth rejoined his local side Crediton United as an advisor.[10] The following month he was reported to be combining this role with working as a milk tanker driver, while hoping for a return to football management at a higher level.[11]
In November 2010 Cornforth was appointed Manager of South West Peninsula League side Witheridge.[citation needed]
In February 2012 Cornforth joined Blyth Spartans F.C. as Assistant manager to Tom Wade.[citation needed]
Individual
- "John Cornforth". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- Sewell, Albert, ed. (1996). News of the World Football Annual 1996–97. London: Invincible Press. p. 401. ISBN 978-0-00-218737-4.
- White, Clive (25 April 1994). "Football: Sublime Swansea glide to victory: Welsh pride stirred at Wembley". The Independent. London. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
- Taylor, Ray. "County galler: John Cornforth". Newport County A.F.C. Archived from the original on 7 March 2005.
- "Cornforth helps out at local club". NonLeagueDaily. 27 July 2004. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2007.
- "County go for Cornforth". NonLeagueDaily. 29 September 2004. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2007.
- Joint, Laura (25 January 2006). "Leroy leaves Plainmoor". BBC Devon. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
- Joint, Laura (2 February 2006). "Cornforth is new Gulls boss". BBC Devon. Archived from the original on 11 February 2006. Retrieved 26 September 2007.
- "Atkins takes over as Torquay boss". BBC Sport. 13 April 2006. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
- "Cornforth joins Crediton". NonLeagueDaily. 7 August 2007. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2007.
- "Hurford catches the eye of former city boss Cornforth". Midweek Herald. Devon. 25 September 2007. Retrieved 26 September 2007.[permanent dead link]
- Lynch. The Official P.F.A. Footballers Heroes. p. 150.
- Soccerbase player profile
- Profile at UpThePosh! The Peterborough United Database