Dave Kitson

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For the Somerset cricketer, see David Kitson (cricketer). For the politician, see Dave Kitson (South African politician).

Dave Kitson
Kitson warming up for Reading in 2008
Personal information
Full name David Barry Kitson[1]
Date of birth (1980-01-21) 21 January 1980 (age 44)
Place of birth Hitchin, England
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
0000–1998 Hitchin Town
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2000 Hitchin Town 2 (0)
2000–2001 Arlesey Town
2001–2003 Cambridge United 102 (40)
2003–2008 Reading 135 (54)
2008–2010 Stoke City 34 (3)
2009 → Reading (loan) 10 (2)
2009 → Middlesbrough (loan) 6 (3)
2010–2012 Portsmouth 68 (12)
2012–2013 Sheffield United 33 (11)
2013–2014 Oxford United 32 (4)
2014–2015 Arlesey Town 0 (0)
Total 420 (129)
Managerial career
2014–2015 Arlesey Town (player-assistant manager)
2023– Reading Blue Coat School (assistant manager)
2024– Nauru
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

David Barry Kitson (born 21 January 1980) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is national team manager and international ambassador for Nauru and works as a coach for Reading Blue Coat School and The Dave Kitson Academy.

He made 420 appearances in the Premier League and Football League, including 145 for Reading.

Kitson began his career with non-league Hitchin Town and Arlesey Town before he joined Cambridge United in 2001 and became one of the brightest prospects in the Third Division, which led to him being signed by Reading in 2003 for a fee of £150,000.

He enjoyed great success with Reading, forming a formidable strike partnership with Kevin Doyle as Reading won the Championship title with a record 106 points and gained promotion to the Premier League for the first time in 2006. After two seasons in the top flight Reading were relegated and Kitson signed for Stoke City for a club record fee of £5.5 million.[3]

He had loan spells with Reading and Middlesbrough before joining Portsmouth. He spent two seasons at Fratton Park but agreed to cancel his contract with Portsmouth in August 2012 with the club in danger of being liquidated, and subsequently joined Sheffield United on a short term deal, before signing a two year contract at Oxford United in June 2013.

Early life[edit]

Born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, Kitson spent the early part of his football career in non-league with Hitchin Town and Arlesey Town and worked for Sainsbury's as a shelf stacker.[4]

Club career[edit]

Cambridge United[edit]

Kitson joined Cambridge United, then in Division Two, in 2001 after being recommended by agent Barry Silkman to U's manager John Beck.

He made his debut in 3–2 victory away over Stoke City on 17 March 2001.[5] On the final day of the same season, Kitson notched his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw at Swansea City.[5]

The following season saw the club relegated from League One but Kitson scored 10 goals,[6] finishing as the club's second-top goalscorer, one behind Tom Youngs.

It was in the 2002–03 campaign that Kitson really found his feet. He scored 25 goals in a prolific campaign which saw him hot on the heels of David Crown's club record of 27 goals in a season.[7] After 11 goals in 19 appearances at the start of the 2003–04 season,[8] Kitson left Cambridge to join second-tier outfit Reading. His return of 47 goals in 123 appearances in all competitions ensured Kitson's place among the club's all-time legends.[2][9]

Reading[edit]

Kitson playing for Reading

Kitson was sold to Reading on 26 December 2003, for a fee of £150,000.[10]

At Reading, he scored five goals in 10 starts in his first season.[8] In the 2005–06 season, despite injury he went on to record an impressive goals-to-game ratio, and continued to do so as Reading won the Championship title with a record 106 points.

Following promotion with Reading, Kitson scored the club's first Premier League goal in their 3–2 home win against Middlesbrough on the opening day of the 2006–07 season,[11] but was then badly injured later in the same match.[12] The injury kept him out of the game until Reading's FA Cup victory over Birmingham City on 27 January 2007.[13]

On 27 March 2007, he committed his future to Reading, signing a new deal until June 2010.[14]

At the start of 2007–08, he was sent off less than a minute after coming on as a substitute for Reading against Manchester United, for a challenge on Patrice Evra.[15]

Stoke City[edit]

On 18 July 2008, Kitson moved in a £5.5m move from Reading to Stoke City, breaking Stoke's record transfer fee.[16]

Speculation soon arose as to whether Kitson was settled at Stoke, as he struggled to adapt to the side's style of play after being played out of position by manager Tony Pulis. As a result, he failed to score any goals in any of the 18 competitive games he played for Stoke City in the 2008–09 season.[17]

Chairman Peter Coates and Pulis denied any rumour that he might be leaving the Britannia Stadium.[18] He rejoined Reading on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season on 10 March 2009.[19]

Dave Kitson playing for Sheffield United in March 2013

Kitson later revealed that he made the "wrong decision" in joining Stoke, adding that he and his family were happy at Reading and that "I threw all of that away for what I thought was going to be a new challenge... I hold my hands up – it was my fault. I made the decision to go to Stoke, I didn't have to, no-one forced me to go, and it was a bad decision."

Addressing his lack of goals for Stoke, he said "I'd been bought for a lot of money but I wasn't sure I was being utilised in the way I thought I was going to be... You do have some days at training when you go back in and wonder what you're doing there."[20]

However, Reading failed to gain promotion, meaning that Kitson returned to Stoke. Kitson stated that he would "start his Stoke career again".[21]

His first competitive goal for Stoke came in a 1–0 League Cup win at Leyton Orient on 26 August 2009.[22]

He scored his first league goal for Stoke on 29 August 2009, which proved to be the winning goal against Sunderland and then scored again with a goal against Bolton Wanderers.[22]

However Kitson lost his place to James Beattie and joined Middlesbrough on a two-month loan.[23] He scored his first goals for Middlesbrough when he scored a brace against Peterborough United on 28 November 2009.[22]

He returned to Stoke on 1 January 2010. He scored in the FA Cup against Manchester City and Bolton.[22]

Portsmouth[edit]

Kitson joined Portsmouth with Liam Lawrence on deadline day as part of a deal which saw Marc Wilson join Stoke City.[24] Kitson made his Portsmouth debut on 11 September 2010 in a 0–0 draw with Ipswich at Fratton Park.[25] He scored his first goal for the club in a 4–1 defeat at Crystal Palace on 14 September 2010 and a further 2 goals in a 6–1 win over Leicester at Fratton Park on 24 September 2010.[25] In his first season, Kitson made 39 appearances and scored 8 goals.[25]

In his second season, Kitson was frequently left out of the squad, before Steve Cotterill left the club to become manager of Nottingham Forest. Kitson experienced a dip in form and was dropped to the bench by Cotterill's successor Michael Appleton. Kitson registered his first Portsmouth goal since October 2011 at Doncaster Rovers with a 90th minute equaliser, before Márkó Futács scored in stoppage time to secure a 4-3 win,[26] which kept Portsmouth in the division for at least one more week and confirmed Doncaster's relegation. Kitson left the club in August 2012.[27]

Sheffield United[edit]

Kitson playing for Oxford United in 2013

On 31 August 2012, Kitson joined Sheffield United on a short-term deal.[28] He made his debut on 15 September 2012, coming on as a second-half substitute in the 1–1 draw with Bury.[29] His first goal for the Blades came in a 1–1 draw against Notts County at Bramall Lane on 29 September 2012.[29]

On 16 November 2012 Kitson extended his contract until the end of the season, stating that "It wouldn't have sat comfortably with me to leave a job half done after integrating myself into a great squad... I still would like to go to America but we will revisit that at a later date because the aim is to have a good crack at winning promotion here."[30]

Kitson played regularly for the remainder of the season, making 37 appearances in total and scoring 11 goals,[31] but with the Blades failing to gain promotion he was released when his contract expired in June 2013.[32]

Oxford United[edit]

On 27 June 2013, Kitson joined League Two club Oxford United, signing a two-year contract.[33][34] He scored four league goals in his only season at the club.[35] On 22 July 2014 Kitson announced his decision to retire from playing professional football.[36]

Return to Arlesey Town[edit]

On 15 December 2014, Kitson was appointed as a player and assistant manager to new boss Nick Ironton at Arlesey Town, the club he played for between 2000 and 2001.[37] Kitson departed the club in February 2015 following Ironton's departure.

Management[edit]

On 14 March 2024, Kitson was announced as Nauru's national team manager and international ambassador.[38][39][40]

Coaching[edit]

In October 2023, Kitson launched The Dave Kitson Academy, offering one-to-one and group coaching sessions.[41] Kitson's former Reading team-mate James Harper joined the academy's coaching team in January 2024.[42]

With Kitson on board as a coach and assistant manager, Reading Blue Coat School's 1st XI won a national cup competition for the first time in the school's 378-year history, beating Cranleigh School 2-1 after extra-time in the ISFA Under 18s Shield at Burnham FC on 19 March 2024.[43][44]

Other roles in football[edit]

In April 2021, Kitson was announced as chairman of Arlesey Town.[45] On 19 February 2024, Kitson announced that he had resigned as Arlesey chairman, due to his commitments with The Dave Kitson Academy, his Berkshire-based football academy. He expressed an interest in becoming a director of a football club in Berkshire.[46]

Kitson also gives talks to football clubs, schools, businesses and other organisations about his career and other topics including resilience and mental health. In April 2024, he delivered one of his talks to the Under 21s and Under 18s at his former club Cambridge United.[47][48][49]

Media work[edit]

Kitson has worked as a Talksport pundit and a Premier League pundit for Stadium Astro in Malaysia. He writes a weekly column in the Reading Chronicle.[50][51]

Personal life[edit]

Kitson has been written about as being a 'leading contender' as the former Premier League player behind The Secret Footballer series of Guardian columns and best selling books, but the former player's identity has never been revealed.[52][53]

In October 2023, Kitson joined fans of his former club Reading in a march from the town centre to the club's Select Car Leasing Stadium, in protest against the club's owner Dai Yongge.[54]

Kitson signed as a player for Reading Sunday League side Caversham United to support Sunday League Day on 24 March 2024 and raise money for Prostate Cancer UK. In his first competitive game for 10 years, Kitson scored twice on his Caversham United debut in a 2-2 draw against Reading Sunday League Division 2 rivals Rose & Thistle - including a stoppage time equaliser.[55][56][57]

In his weekly column in the Reading Chronicle, Kitson revealed that one of his ambitions is to create a football-related television series and that he had been in talks with former Soccer AM producer James Long, with a view to trying to get the series made. Kitson said: "I genuinely believe that we could put together something really special that shows football in a whole new light."[58]

Kitson is a supporter of Talking Royals - a podcast that supports Reading FC fans who are facing mental health challenges.[59]

Career statistics[edit]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Hitchin Town 1997–98[60] Isthmian League Premier Division 2 0 0 0 — 1[a] 0 3 0
1998–99[60] Isthmian League First Division 0 0 0 0 — 3[b] 0 3 0
Total 2 0 0 0 — 4 0 6 0
Cambridge United 2000–01[5] Second Division 8 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 1
2001–02[6] Second Division 33 9 2 0 1 0 4[c] 1 41 10
2002–03[7] Third Division 44 20 6 1 2 1 4[c] 3 55 25
2003–04[8] Third Division 17 10 1 1 1 0 0 0 19 11
Total 102 40 9 2 4 1 8 4 123 47
Reading 2003–04[8] First Division 17 5 0 0 0 0 — 17 5
2004–05[61] Championship 37 19 0 0 0 0 — 37 19
2005–06[62] Championship 34 18 2 0 3 4 — 40 22
2006–07[11] Premier League 13 2 4 2 0 0 — 18 4
2007–08[15] Premier League 34 10 0 0 2 0 — 36 10
Total 135 54 6 2 5 4 — 146 60
Stoke City 2008–09[17] Premier League 16 0 1 0 1 0 — 18 0
2009–10[22] Premier League 18 3 2 1 2 1 — 22 5
Total 34 3 3 1 3 1 — 40 5
Reading (loan) 2008–09[17] Championship 10 2 — — 2[d] 0 12 2
Middlesbrough (loan) 2009–10[22] Championship 6 3 — — — 6 3
Portsmouth 2010–11[25] Championship 35 8 1 0 1 0 — 37 8
2011–12[26] Championship 33 4 1 0 1 0 — 35 4
Total 68 12 2 0 2 0 — 72 12
Sheffield United 2012–13[29] League One 33 11 2 1 0 0 2[e] 0 37 12
Oxford United 2013–14[35] League Two 32 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 36 4
Career total 422 129 26 6 14 6 16 4 478 145
  1. ^ Appearance in East Anglian Cup
  2. ^ Two appearances in Isthmian League Cup, one appearance in Herts Senior Cup
  3. ^ a b Appearances in Football League Trophy
  4. ^ Appearances in Championship play-offs
  5. ^ Appearances in League One play-offs

Honours[edit]

Cambridge United

Reading

Individual

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Dave Kitson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  2. ^ a b Dave Kitson at Soccerbase Edit this at Wikidata
  3. ^ "Kitson joins Stoke in club-record deal". The Guardian. 18 July 2008.
  4. ^ "Reading FC Memories: Dave Kitson was not a typical footballer, and that's what makes him special". BerkshireLive. 22 July 2014.
  5. ^ a b c "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2000/2001". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  6. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2001/2002". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  7. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  8. ^ a b c d "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  9. ^ "U'S LEGENDS RETURN TO ABBEY FOR MICK GEORGE CHARITY MATCH – SECURE YOUR PLACE!". www.cambridge-united.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  10. ^ "Cash Point!". Cambridge Evening News. 27 March 2006. Archived from the original on 9 May 2006. Retrieved 16 May 2006.
  11. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  12. ^ "Royals come back from two-nil down to beat Boro in first ever Premiership match". Reading FC. 19 August 2006. Archived from the original on 27 September 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2007.
  13. ^ "Royals progress to the fifth round after good away win against Blues". Reading FC. 27 January 2007. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 5 February 2007.
  14. ^ "Kitson signs new three-year contract". Reading FC. 27 March 2007. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2007.
  15. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  16. ^ "Stoke seal £5.5m Kitson transfer". BBC Sport. 18 July 2008.
  17. ^ a b c "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  18. ^ "Kitson going nowhere, says Coates". BBC Sport. 27 November 2008.
  19. ^ "Kitson returns to Reading on loan". BBC Sport. 10 March 2009. Retrieved 10 March 2009.
  20. ^ "Striker Kitson regrets Stoke move". BBC Sport. 12 March 2009.
  21. ^ "Dave's Determined". Stoke City F.C. 15 August 2009. Archived from the original on 25 July 2009. Retrieved 16 August 2009.
  22. ^ a b c d e f "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  23. ^ "Kitson Completes Loan Move To Boro". Stoke City F.C. 17 November 2009. Archived from the original on 20 November 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2009.
  24. ^ "Kitson and Lawrence In, Wilson Out". Portsmouth FC. 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 3 September 2010. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
  25. ^ a b c d "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  26. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  27. ^ "Two left as Dave Kitson leaves Fratton Park". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  28. ^ "Striker agrees Blades deal". Sheffield United FC Official Web Site. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  29. ^ a b c "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  30. ^ "Dave Kitson extends Sheffield United contract". BBC Sport. 16 November 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  31. ^ "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  32. ^ "Retained list". Sheffield United FC Official Website. 18 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
  33. ^ "Dave Kitson: Oxford United sign ex-Sheffield United striker". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  34. ^ "United Sign Kitson". Oxford United F.C. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  35. ^ a b "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  36. ^ a b "Dave Kitson: Former Oxford, Stoke City and Reading striker retires". BBC Sport. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  37. ^ "New Manager Appointed". Arlesey Town F.C. 14 December 2014. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  38. ^ "Dave Kitson: Former Reading forward set to manage Nauru in first international match". BBC. 25 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  39. ^ "Dave Kitson to coach Nauru football team - a team that doesn't exist yet". nzherald.co.nz. 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  40. ^ "Nauru appoint former Premier League player". FOOTBALL IN OCEANIA. 14 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  41. ^ "Reading FC legend sets up football academy in Berkshire". The Reading Chronicle. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  42. ^ "Reading FC legend links up with former teammate for coaching". The Reading Chronicle. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  43. ^ "ISFA U18 SHIELD". Independent Schools Football Association. 29 February 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  44. ^ "Reading FC legend helps school to first win in 378-year history". Reading Chronicle. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  45. ^ "New Arlesey Town chairman Dave Kitson looking to make the community proud". The Herts Advertiser. 2 August 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  46. ^ "Reading FC legend hoping to pursue director role at Berkshire based football club". Wokingham Today. 19 February 2024. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  47. ^ "Dave Kitson delivers talk to U's youngsters". cambridgeunited.com. 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  48. ^ "Reading FC Column: Thank you - and what next for Reading FC?". Reading Chronicle. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  49. ^ "LHS CONNECTED: March 2024". Little Heath School. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  50. ^ ""He's unleashed them": Dave Kitson DOES NOT WANT Ange to CHANGE his tactics!". YouTube.
  51. ^ "Reading FC legend to become exclusive column contributor". Reading Chronicle. 25 October 2023.
  52. ^ "Fans identify The Secret Footballer as mystery star trends online". Birmingham Live. 9 April 2018.
  53. ^ "'Is it you?' - Ex-Stoke City striker Dave Kitson quizzed on being The Secret Footballer". StokeOnTrentLive. 23 August 2020.
  54. ^ "Reading FC legend Dave Kitson leads fans protest march to Mad Stad". Wokingham.Today. 28 October 2023.
  55. ^ "Reading FC legend signs for Sunday League Caversham United". Reading Chronicle. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  56. ^ "7 former pros we can't believe are still playing non-league football in 2024". Planet Football. 6 March 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  57. ^ "Kitson scores twice for Caversham United in his first competitive game for 10 years". RDG.TODAY. 25 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  58. ^ "Reading FC Column: I'm hoping Rocket will give me a boost". Reading Chronicle. 12 April 2024.
  59. ^ "Reading FC legend to appear on Talking Royals podcast". Wokingham.Today. 25 February 2024.
  60. ^ a b "Fixtures 1990–1999". fishpondersfactsandstats.info. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  61. ^ "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  62. ^ "Games played by Dave Kitson in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
  63. ^ Fletcher, Paul (24 March 2002). "Blackpool lift LDV Vans Trophy". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  64. ^ David McKechnie (28 April 2003). "Henry lands PFA award". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  65. ^ "Players of the Season". Reading FC. Retrieved 1 May 2023.

External links[edit]

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