Jody Morris

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Jody Morris
Personal information
Full name Jody Morris
Date of birth 22 December 1978 (1978-12-22) (age 33)
Place of birth Hammersmith, England
Height 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Playing position Midfielder
Club information
Current club St. Johnstone
Number 4
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1995–2003 Chelsea 124 (5)
2003–2004 Leeds United 12 (0)
2004 Rotherham United 10 (1)
2004–2007 Millwall 65 (5)
2008– St. Johnstone 92 (4)
National team‡
1997 England U20 4 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:59, 28 January 2012 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 01:47, 4 January 2011

Jody Morris (born 22 December 1978 in Hammersmith, London) is an English football midfielder. He plays for Scottish club St. Johnstone. He has previously played for Chelsea, Leeds United, Rotherham United and Millwall.

Contents

[edit] Playing career

Morris came through the youth ranks at Chelsea, alongside his close friend John Terry.[1] While at Chelsea he made 124 League appearances and was a late substitute in the 2000 FA Cup Final, receiving a winner's medal. He was also briefly made captain of the club by manager Gianluca Vialli.[2] However, he was never a first team regular, finding himself behind players such as Roberto di Matteo, Dennis Wise, Didier Deschamps and Emmanuel Petit.[1] He was offered a new five-year contract with Chelsea in 2003 but chose to turn it down.[3] Graeme Souness offered him the chance of regular first team football at Blackburn Rovers and they shook hands on a deal, but it fell through.[3] He joined Leeds United instead, but made only 12 appearance for the club. After a short spell at Rotherham, where he scored once against Stoke,[4] he joined Millwall in 2004.

Morris made 70 first-team appearances for Millwall before fracturing his cheekbone and then suffered cruciate knee ligament damage at Derby County on his comeback game towards the end of the 2005–06 campaign. He signed a new one-year deal in June 2006, with the club having an additional one-year option.[5] In June 2007 Morris was released by Millwall.[6] Morris then had a brief trial period at Charlton Athletic, and trained with League Two side Brentford in a bid to earn himself a contract at the West London club.

Morris signed for Scottish side St. Johnstone on a short-term deal at the end of February 2008, playing under Derek McInnes, his former teammate at Millwall during the 2006–07 season.[7] He scored a goal on his debut against Dundee.[8] He played in the club's Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Rangers in April 2008 but was one of two Saints players to miss in the penalty shoot-out.[9] After a successful five months at McDiarmid Park, Morris signed a two-year deal with the Perth side at the end of the season. He was part of the title-winning team that in May 2009 gained promotion to the Scottish Premier League after a seven-year absence. Morris signed a new contract with Saints in October 2009, while Derek McInnes praised his influence on the squad.[10] After McInnes left St. Johnstone to manage Bristol City in October 2011, Morris assisted caretaker manager Alec Cleland with the coaching of the squad.[11]

[edit] Legal issues

Morris has had a bad image over several legal and ethical issues. Chronologically, these include allegations that: he was one of a group of Chelsea players who drunkenly abused American tourists at Heathrow Airport within hours of the 9/11 attacks on New York City and the Pentagon;[12] that he was involved in a drunken brawl (in 2002);[13] that he was involved in a sexual assault (in 2003).[14][15] He was also arrested for drunk-driving on 1 November 2006, after driving the wrong way down a one-way street. Morris, who had one previous conviction for drunk-driving, was disqualified from driving for four years, given 80 hours community service and a two-year suspended jail sentence.[16]

[edit] Honours

Chelsea

St. Johnstone

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Profile: Jody Morris". BBC Sport. 2002-01-09. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/1750675.stm. Retrieved 2008-04-21. 
  2. ^ Forsyth, Paul (21 August 2009). "Jody Morris relishes his second coming after wondering if he was totally washed up". London: Times Online. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/scotland/article6804566.ece. Retrieved 2009-09-08. 
  3. ^ a b Murray, Ewan (2008-03-18). "Morris becomes a Saint in hunt for redemption". London: The Guardian. http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2266245,00.html. Retrieved 2008-04-21. 
  4. ^ "Stoke 0–2 Rotherham". BBC Sport (BBC). 12 April 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/3592963.stm. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
  5. ^ "Jody Morris profile". millwallfc.co.uk. http://www.millwallfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/Squad/Profiles/0,,10367~5603,00.html. Retrieved 2006-11-22. 
  6. ^ "Lions release Morris and Cottrell". BBC Sport (BBC). 2007-06-09. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/millwall/6737421.stm. Retrieved 2007-06-09. 
  7. ^ "Saints snap up former Chelsea star Morris". http://www.thecourier.co.uk/output/2008/02/27/sportstory10991668t0.asp. Retrieved February 27, 2008. 
  8. ^ "Dundee 3–2 St Johnstone". BBC Sport (BBC). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/scot_div_1/7270221.stm. 
  9. ^ Murray, Ewen (2008-04-21). "Alexander pulls out all the stops as Rangers progress to second final". London: The Guardian. http://football.guardian.co.uk/Match_Report/0,,2275217,00.html. Retrieved 2008-04-21. 
  10. ^ "Morris pens deal to stay with Saints until 2012". The Scotsman (Johnston Press). 30 October 2009. http://www.scotsman.com/sport/morris_pens_deal_to_stay_with_saints_until_2012_1_781263. Retrieved 23 October 2011. 
  11. ^ "Alec Cleland keen on St Johnstone manager's job". BBC Sport (BBC). 22 October 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/15416381.stm. Retrieved 23 October 2011. 
  12. ^ "Leeds release Morris". ABC News Online. 2004-03-07. http://www.abc.net.au/sport/content/s1060595.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-01. [dead link]
  13. ^ "Footballers cleared over club brawl". BBC News. 2002-08-22. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2205505.stm. Retrieved 2007-05-01. 
  14. ^ "Jody Morris released on bail". Evening Standard. 2003-10-22. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-7284765-details/Jody+Morris+released+on+bail/article.do. Retrieved 2007-05-01. 
  15. ^ "Jody Morris sex charge dropped". BBC News. 2004-01-30. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_yorkshire/3445187.stm. Retrieved 2007-05-01. 
  16. ^ "Lions star gets ban". South London Press. 2006-11-10. http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/southlondonpress/slpheadlines/tm_method=full%26objectid=18071938%26siteid=50100-name_page.html. Retrieved 2007-06-24. 

[edit] External links

St. Johnstone F.C. – current squad


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