Christopher Stringer (born 2 June 1983) is an English former professional footballer who played for Sheffield Wednesday as a goalkeeper. He made his senior debut for the club at the age of seventeen in 2000 and made twelve appearances in all competitions before being forced to retire from football at the age of 20.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christopher Stringer[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 June 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Grimsby, England | ||
| Height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2000–2004 | Sheffield Wednesday | 9 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 7 January 2008 | |||
Career
editBorn in Grimsby,[3] Stringer began his career in the youth system at Sheffield Wednesday after joining the club at the age of eleven.[4] He made his senior debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 13 August 2000, the opening day of the 2000–01 season, as a substitute at the age of seventeen after starting goalkeeper Kevin Pressman was sent off after just 13 seconds.[5][6] The sending off was the fastest red card in English football history,[7] beating the previous record by six seconds. He conceded once during the remainder of the match as it ended in a 1–1 draw.[8] Wednesday signed Paul Musselwhite to cover for the suspended Pressman but he was ineligible for their following match against Blackburn Rovers as he was not registered to play in time, handing Stringer his first senior start.[9] He made five further appearances during the season and was handed a contract extension with manager Paul Jewell describing him as "enthusiastic, and has never let us down".[10]
He made five appearances over the following three seasons as persistent injuries restricted his playing time.[11] Stringer was one of thirteen players released by Wednesday in May 2004 as manager Chris Turner looked to reduce the club's wage bill.[12] At the age of 20, after struggling with injuries and having not played a competitive match for over a year, he announced his retirement from professional football. Operations on his calf muscles had resulted in him developing blood clots and doctors had advised him against further attempts at playing. He stated, "I would carry on playing [...] but my health is more important and I have to get on with my life."[11]
Career statistics
edit| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sheffield Wednesday | 2000–01[13] | First Division | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2001–02[14] | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2002–03[15] | First Division | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2003–04[16] | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
References
edit- ^ "Chris Stringer". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Chris Stringer". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Chris Stringer". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ David Miller (24 January 2001). "FA Cup: Rookie keeper offers Wednesday hope". The Telegraph. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Phil Shaw (13 August 2000). "Pressman exits early but Wolves lack bite". The Independent. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Marcus Foley (29 July 2016). "English football records: Fastest yellow, red card; most yellows in a match". Eurosport. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ "Pressman sent for earliest ever bath". BBC Sport. 13 August 2000. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ Daniel Taylor (14 August 2000). "Record red for Pressman". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Daniel Taylor (29 August 2000). "Stringer helps to tie up Rovers". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ Steve Bateman. "Stringer to stay at Wednesday". Sky Sports. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ a b Ian Appleyard (13 May 2004). "Owls' Wage Bill Slashed by £2.6m". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Owls boss wields the axe". BBC Sport. 13 May 2004. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Games played by Chris Stringer in 2000/2001". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Games played by Chris Stringer in 2001/2002". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Games played by Chris Stringer in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
- ^ "Games played by Chris Stringer in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 March 2018.