Mixing
John McCombe
 McCombe playing for York City in 2014 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Paul McCombe[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1985-05-07) 7 May 1985[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Pontefract, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1] | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Boston United | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 0000–2003 | Huddersfield Town | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2007 | Huddersfield Town | 14 | (0) |
| 2006 | → Torquay United (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Hereford United | 27 | (0) |
| 2008–2013 | Port Vale | 185 | (14) |
| 2013–2014 | Mansfield Town | 5 | (2) |
| 2014–2016 | York City | 55 | (4) |
| 2016–2017 | Macclesfield Town | 48 | (2) |
| 2017–2018 | Chester | 23 | (0) |
| 2018 | Harrogate Town | 14 | (1) |
| 2018– | Boston United | 0 | (0) |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:59, 8 June 2018 (UTC) | |||
John Paul McCombe (born 7 May 1985) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre back for National League North club Boston United.
McCombe graduated through the Huddersfield Town Academy to make his first-team debut in May 2003. Unused in 2003–04, he also rarely featured in 2004–05, 2005–06, and 2006–07. During this time he a brief periods on loan at Torquay United, though he never took to the field for them. He spent the 2007–08 season with Hereford United, helping the club to win promotion into League One. McCombe joined Port Vale in May 2008, and after establishing himself in the first team in 2008–09 and 2009–10, he managed to win the club's Player of the Year Award in 2011. He helped the club to secure promotion out of League Two in 2012–13.
After leaving Port Vale in May 2013, McCombe signed for Mansfield Town on a free transfer. He left Mansfield for York City in January 2014, and stayed with York for two years. He joined Macclesfield Town in February 2016, and played in the club's defeat at the 2017 FA Trophy Final. He signed for Chester in June 2017 before moving to Harrogate Town in February 2018, who he helped to win promotion out of the National League North via the play-offs three months later.
Contents
1 Career
1.1 Huddersfield Town
1.2 Hereford United
1.3 Port Vale
1.4 Mansfield Town and York City
1.5 Later career
2 Style of play
3 Personal life
4 Career statistics
5 Honours
6 References
7 External links
Career
Huddersfield Town
Born in Pontefract, West Yorkshire,[1] McCombe joined Huddersfield Town as a trainee, and was converted from playing as a centre forward to become a centre back.[2] He made his first-team debut on 3 May 2003, coming onto the pitch as a late substitute for Jon Stead in a 1–1 draw with Oldham Athletic at Kirklees Stadium.[3] Unused in the 2003–04 season, he had to wait until September 2004 for his next first-team appearance.[4] He made seven appearances in 2004–05.[5]
McCombe's only appearances of 2005–06 were against Blackburn Rovers in the League Cup – where he only played because of injuries and suspensions, against Boston United in the Football League Trophy – when manager Peter Jackson rested all his first-team players, and on the last match of the season against Swindon Town.[citation needed] In between these appearances he spent February on loan at Torquay United, but did not appear for John Cornforth's struggling team.[citation needed]
On 15 March 2007, he, along with Hartlepool United's Michael Proctor, agreed to join Boston United on loan.[6] However, due to Boston's financial state, Boston chairman Jim Rodwell was unable to sanction the deals.[7] He was released by Huddersfield in May 2007, and two months later he signed for Hereford United,[8] ending his eleven-year association with the club.[9]
Hereford United
He began 2007–08 as third-choice centre back, but an injury to Dean Beckwith gave McCombe his chance.[citation needed] He turned in a number of impressive performances, preserving Hereford's unbeaten record and scoring his first professional goal from a Kris Taylor cross in a 2–0 FA Cup victory against Hartlepool United.[10] McCombe made 27 league appearances as Hereford gained promotion from League Two, but was dropped for the run-in, in favour of Karl Broadhurst.[citation needed] This coincided with McCombe's mistake in a key fixture against Chester City when he conceded a penalty kick in the last minute for handball, which enabled Chester to draw the match 2–2.[11] He was to make only one more appearance for the club, as a second-half substitute on the final day of the season.[12] In May 2008, manager and chairman Graham Turner confirmed that out-of-contract McCombe would not be offered a new deal.[13]
Port Vale
McCombe playing for Port Vale in 2009
On 29 May 2008, McCombe agreed a two-year contract to join Port Vale.[14] He claimed one of the reasons he put pen to paper was that having met manager Lee Sinnott 13 years previously, he knew that Sinnott could help improve his game.[15] However, he established himself as a first-choice centre back under new manager Dean Glover, but was also told he was too 'nice' and needed to be more aggressive in his defending.[16] Nevertheless, his performances 2008–09 earned him the chairman's Player of the Year award,[17] as well as the nickname 'Boom Boom McCombe' from fans.[18]
Retaining his first-team place in 2009–10, he was transfer listed in late September 2009, along with the entire Port Vale squad, after manager Micky Adams saw his team slip to a third consecutive defeat.[19] However, by the end of October 2009 he had played in the opening 18 matches of the season, picking up a goal on the way,[20] and was confident of earning a new contract by the season's end.[21] On 12 December 2009, he received the first sending off of his career, following a professional foul on Northampton Town's Adebayo Akinfenwa.[22] This brought to an end his run of 29 consecutive starts, and kept him out of the team for the next six weeks, as manager Micky Adams switched his tactics during McCombe's absence,[23] moving from a 3–5–2 to 4–4–2 formation.[24] He was offered a new two-year contract by the club at the end of the season,[25] which he quickly signed.[26]
McCombe playing for Port Vale in 2010
He started 2010–11 in fine form, and his strong performances in November 2010 saw him nominated for the League Two player of the month award.[27] His strong performances continued throughout the season, and he was rewarded with the club's Player of the Year award.[28]
Adams continued to use McCombe in the heart of the Vale defence at the start of 2011–12, however he dropped him from the first team after 11 matches in favour of loan signing Liam Chilvers.[29] He marked his return to the first team on 14 October 2011 with the second goal of a 3–0 win over Northampton Town.[30] However, he was dropped after the next match, a 4–0 defeat at home to Morecambe, only to win back his first-team place the following month after turning down the chance to leave the club on loan.[31] With the loanees back at their parent clubs, Gareth Owen out injured and Clayton McDonald in court, McCombe helped to guide teenage centre back Joe Davis through the final stages of the season.[32] He agreed to sign a new two-year deal with the club in June 2012.[33]
He formed a solid centre-back partnership with Clayton McDonald at the start of 2012–13.[citation needed] On 27 October 2012, he was sent off for the second time in his career, again against Northampton at Sixfields, as he put in a late challenge on midfielder Alex Nicholls, who managed to score the opening goal of the match just before McCombe made his challenge; it was later confirmed that the tackle had broken Nicholls's leg.[34] Opposition manager Aidy Boothroyd accepted McCombe's apology, and Northampton player Akinfenwa also stated that McCombe was "not a malicious character".[35] McCombe himself picked up an injury on 1 January 2013, damaging knee ligaments in a defeat to Fleetwood Town, and was ruled out of action for several weeks.[36] Vale secured promotion with a third-place finish at the end of the season, with McCombe playing 37 matches in a regularly changing four back.[citation needed] Despite still being under contract, he chose to leave the club in the summer.[37]
Mansfield Town and York City
McCombe playing for York City in 2014
McCombe signed for Mansfield Town on a free transfer in June 2013, and was described by manager Paul Cox as "a commanding player who will add knowledge and experience to our defence".[38] He left Field Mill by mutual consent in January 2014, having made only seven starts for Mansfield in 2013–14.[39]
McCombe signed for League Two club York City on 12 January 2014 on a two-and-a-half-year contract, after his release from Mansfield.[40] He made his debut as an 85th-minute substitute for Ryan Jarvis in a 2–0 away defeat to Hartlepool United on 25 January 2014.[41] On 1 February 2016, McCombe left Bootham Crescent by mutual consent after not playing a match three months into new manager Jackie McNamara's tenure.[42]
Later career
On 1 March 2016, McCombe joined National League club Macclesfield Town on a contract running until the end of 2015–16.[43] He debuted later that day, as an 81st-minute substitute in a 2–1 home defeat to Torquay.[44] He made 12 appearances and scored one goal[44] as Macclesfield finished in 10th-place in the 2015–16 National League.[45] He retained his first-team place for the following season, and scored the winning goal as Macclesfield won 1–0 away to League One team Walsall in the first round of the FA Cup.[46] He made 44 appearances in 2016–17,[44] including in the 2017 FA Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium, where Macclesfield were beaten 3–2 by York City.[47]
McCombe rejected a new contract offer from Macclesfield to join their National League rivals Chester on 6 June 2017 on a one-year contract.[48] He left the club on 8 February 2018[49] and signed for National League North club Harrogate Town the following day.[50] Harrogate finished second at the end of the 2017–18 season,[51] and went on to secure promotion after beating Brackley Town 3–0 in the play-off final.[52] Having made 16 appearances and scored one goal,[44] McCombe was released by Harrogate at the end of 2017–18.[53]
He signed for National League North club Boston United on 8 June 2018 on a one-year contract.[54]
Style of play
A solid and efficient centre back, in the opposition's box he is a goal threat from set pieces.[55]
Personal life
In January 2009, he was attending Manchester Metropolitan University, studying for a sports science qualification.[56] He is a Sheffield Wednesday fan.[57]
His elder brother Jamie is also a professional footballer.[58]
Career statistics
- As of end of 2017–18 season
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Huddersfield Town | 2002–03[59] | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
2003–04[4] | Third Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2004–05[5] | League One | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
2005–06[60] | League One | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
2006–07[61] | League One | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 20 | 0 | ||
Torquay United (loan) | 2005–06[60] | League Two | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
Hereford United | 2007–08[12] | League Two | 27 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 32 | 1 |
Port Vale | 2008–09[62] | League Two | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 34 | 2 |
2009–10[63] | League Two | 40 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 48 | 4 | |
2010–11[64] | League Two | 42 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 5 | |
2011–12[65] | League Two | 40 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 44 | 4 | |
2012–13[66] | League Two | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 37 | 1 | |
| Total | 185 | 14 | 11 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 211 | 16 | ||
Mansfield Town | 2013–14[41] | League Two | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
York City | 2013–14[41] | League Two | 19 | 3 | — | — | 2[b] | 0 | 21 | 3 | ||
2014–15[67] | League Two | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 34 | 0 | |
2015–16[68] | League Two | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 6 | 1 | |
| Total | 55 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 61 | 4 | ||
Macclesfield Town | 2015–16[44] | National League | 12 | 1 | — | — | — | 12 | 1 | |||
2016–17[44] | National League | 36 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 4[c] | 0 | 44 | 1 | ||
| Total | 48 | 2 | 4 | 1 | — | 4 | 0 | 56 | 2 | |||
Chester | 2017–18[44] | National League | 23 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | |
Harrogate Town | 2017–18[44] | National League North | 14 | 1 | — | — | 2[d] | 0 | 16 | 1 | ||
Boston United | 2018–19[44] | National League North | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 371 | 23 | 23 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 427 | 26 | ||
^ abcdefghij Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy
^ Appearances in League Two play-offs
^ Appearances in FA Trophy
^ Appearances in National League North play-offs
Honours
Hereford United
Football League Two third-place promotion: 2007–08[69]
Port Vale
- Football League Two third-place promotion: 2012–13[70]
Macclesfield Town
FA Trophy runner-up: 2016–17[47]
Harrogate Town
National League North play-offs: 2017–18[52]
Individual
Port Vale Player of the Year: 2010–11[28]
References
^ abcd Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 263. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
^ "McCombe ready to stand up to Torquay's heavyweight challenge". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Huddersfield 1-1 Oldham". BBC Sport. 3 May 2003. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
^ ab "Games played by John McCombe in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ ab "Games played by John McCombe in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Boston bring in McCombe on loan". BBC Sport. 15 March 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Confusion over United loan deals". Boston Standard. 21 March 2007. Retrieved 29 May 2008.
^ "Hereford complete triple capture". BBC Sport. 4 July 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Port Vale: Old boy McCombe aiming to terrorise Terriers". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 27 November 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Hereford 2–0 Hartlepool". BBC Sport. 30 November 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Hereford 2–2 Chester". BBC Sport. 5 April 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ ab "Games played by John McCombe in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Hereford release defender McCombe". BBC Sport. 16 May 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Port Vale sign ex-Bulls defender". BBC Sport. 29 May 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "McCombe reveals link with Sinnott". BBC Sport. 4 June 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Port Vale: McCombe told to ditch 'Mr Nice Guy' tag". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 10 April 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Player of the Year – Winners". Port Vale F.C. 27 April 2009. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012.
^ "A Trophy Looms for 'Boom Boom' McCombe!". Port Vale F.C. 7 October 2010. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012.
^ "Adams puts Vale squad up for sale". BBC Sport. 27 September 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "First goal joy for Vale's McCombe". BBC Sport. 12 October 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "McCombe seeking new Vale contract". BBC Sport. 30 October 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ Shaw, Steve (14 December 2009). "Port Vale: McCombe frustrated by rough justice". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ Shaw, Steve (29 January 2010). "Port Vale: McCombe to blame for absence, says Adams". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ Shaw, Steve (3 February 2010). "Port Vale: McCombe up for the fight". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Goalkeeper Joe Anyon released by Port Vale". BBC Sport. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Port Vale deals for Griffith, McCombe, Martin & Taylor". BBC Sport. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ Shaw, Steve (10 December 2010). "Port Vale: Manager award down to players' hard work, says Adams". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ ab "Player of the Year Awards 2011". Port Vale F.C. 9 May 2011. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012.
^ "Port Vale: McCombe working hard to earn Vale recall". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 12 October 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Port Vale 3–0 Northampton". BBC Sport. 14 October 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Vale's John McCombe never considered going out on loan". BBC Sport. 30 December 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ Fielding, Rob (3 May 2012). "Uncomplaining McCombe's my unsung player of the year - onevalefan.co.uk". onevalefan.co.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
^ "John McCombe happy to stay put". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 4 June 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ "Northampton 2–0 Port Vale". BBC Sport. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ Owens, Daniel (28 October 2012). "Cobblers striker Alex Nicholls sustains double fracture of left leg". Northampton Chronicle. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ Johnson, Dave (3 January 2013). "Defender out for at least six weeks and possibly more". Port Vale F.C. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
^ Smith, Pete (31 May 2013). "Centre-back John McCombe leaves Vale Park". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Stags sign experienced defender". Mansfield Town F.C. 1 June 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
^ "Mansfield Town defender leaves League Two club". BBC Sport. 11 January 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "City Sign John McCombe". York City F.C. 12 January 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
^ abc "Games played by John McCombe in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ Flett, Dave (1 February 2016). "John McCombe leaves York City". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
^ "John McCombe: Macclesfield sign former York City defender until end of the season". BBC Sport. 1 March 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
^ abcdefghi "J. McCombe: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
^ "National League: 2015/16: Latest table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
^ "Walsall 0–1 Macclesfield Town". BBC Sport. 5 November 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
^ ab "Macclesfield Town 2–3 York City". BBC Sport. 21 May 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
^ "John McCombe: Chester FC sign Macclesfield Town defender". BBC Sport. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
^ "John McCombe departs the club". Chester F.C. 8 February 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
^ Whitney, Steve (9 February 2018). "Harrogate quick to bring in experienced McCombe". Pitchero Non-League. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
^ "Conference North: 2017/18: Latest table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
^ ab Harrison, John (14 May 2018). "Harrogate Town gain promotion to the National League for the first time in their history, after a 3–0 victory over Brackley". Harrogate Informer. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
^ Howell, Rhys (7 June 2018). "Seven exit CNG Stadium as Town reveal retained list". Harrogate Advertiser. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
^ Singleton, Craig (8 June 2018). "McCombe pens United contract". Boston United F.C. Retrieved 8 June 2018 – via Pitchero.
^ "Name: John McCombe". Port Vale F.C. Archived from the original on 26 June 2012.
^ Shaw, Steve (31 January 2009). "Why big Mac is good for you". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 31 January 2009. [dead link]
^ Shaw, Steve (25 August 2009). "Port Vale: Dodds targets Wednesday start". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Port Vale: McCombe boys prepare for head-to-head clash in Carling Cup". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ ab "Games played by John McCombe in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "Games played by John McCombe in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
^ "McCombe planning to use his experience". The Sentinel. Stoke-on-Trent. 5 March 2011. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
^ Sherwin, Phil; Johnson, Dave (2013), Port Vale This Side Up: 2012–2013 Promotion Celebration, BGL, ISBN 978-0-9926579-0-1
External links
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John McCombe at Soccerbase
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