| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jack Richard Grimmer[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1994-01-25)25 January 1994 (age 31) | ||
| Place of birth | Aberdeen, Scotland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Wycombe Wanderers | ||
| Number | 2 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Aberdeen | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2012 | Aberdeen | 4 | (0) |
| 2012–2017 | Fulham | 13 | (0) |
| 2014 | →Port Vale (loan) | 13 | (1) |
| 2014 | →Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2016 | →Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 21 | (1) |
| 2016–2017 | →Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 24 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Coventry City | 53 | (1) |
| 2019– | Wycombe Wanderers | 164 | (4) |
| International career | |||
| 2009 | Scotland U15 | 2 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | Scotland U16 | 8 | (2) |
| 2009–2010 | Scotland U17 | 10 | (0) |
| 2012 | Scotland U18 | 2 | (0) |
| 2011–2013 | Scotland U19 | 15 | (0) |
| 2014 | Scotland U21 | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 04:52, 15 November 2024 (UTC) | |||
Jack Richard Grimmer (born 25 January 1994) is a Scottish professionalfootballer who plays as adefender forEFL League One clubWycombe Wanderers, where he is also clubcaptain.
AScotland under-21 international, he began his career atAberdeen, becoming the club's youngest-ever player at the age of 16. He was sold toFulham in January 2012 and has since beenloaned out toPort Vale andShrewsbury Town (in three separate spells). He signed withCoventry City in July 2017 and went on to be named in theEFL League TwoPFA Team of the Year for the2017–18 season as Coventry wonpromotion viathe play-offs. He signed with Wycombe Wanderers in July 2019 and 12 months later helped the club to win promotion out ofLeague One via the play-offs.
Grimmer made his debut forAberdeen underMark McGhee on 7 April 2010, becoming the youngest ever Aberdeen player when he came on as asubstitute forSteven MacLean in a 3–1 defeat toRangers atIbrox at the age of 16 years, 2 months and 13 days.[3][4] Four days later he made hisPittodrie debut in a 3–1 defeat toSt Johnstone.[5]
His next taste of first-team football came in the last twoSPL games of the2010–11 season, which included his first start in professional football in a 1–0 home defeat toSt Mirren on 10 May.[6]
In January 2012, AberdeenmanagerCraig Brown confirmed that EnglishPremier League clubFulham had expressed interest in signing Grimmer.[7] Brown also stated his belief that Grimmer would best develop his career by staying with the "Dons".[7] Despite this, Grimmer agreed to join Fulham on 18 January, with Aberdeen receiving a £200,000 fee plus incentives.[8] Following his move to Fulham, Aberdeen chief executive Duncan Fraserclaimed Grimmer's decision to quit Pittodrie for Fulham showed how young Scottish talent was being lured south of the border by wealthy English clubs and was, therefore a bad indication for the future of Scottish football.[9]
"It did get quite personal. When people say certain things you have to try and take it in your stride. But because it was my hometown team, it was harder to take. I'd been one of them when I was younger sitting in the stands with my season-ticket. But I just had to get on with it. There were fans who agreed with my decision and others who didn't but supported me anyway, knowing I was just a young player making a tough choice. Like everyone who is criticised, I want to go out and try to prove the doubters wrong."
Grimmer signed a three-yearcontract withFulham and initially joined the club'sAcademy team.[8][11] On 7 January 2014, he joinedLeague One sidePort Vale on a one-monthloan.[12] ManagerMicky Adams stated that: "We have a lot of experienced defenders making mistakes and we have been looking to strengthen in that area for a while."[13] Four days later and an injury crisis meant that he started in an inexperienced centre-back partnership with 20-year-oldJoe Davis as Vale lost 2–0 to league leadersBrentford atGriffin Park.[14] He was publicly praised by Adams for his performance in the match.[15] He scored his first professional goal with aheader in a 1–0 win overOldham Athletic atVale Park on 18 January and was named on the Football League team of the week.[16][17] He impressed in his first four appearances for the "Valiants", and his loan deal was extended until the end ofthe season.[18] Fulham recalled Grimmer on 27 March 2014 by exercising a clause in the loan agreement, as managerFelix Magath wanted to cover for some defensive injuries.[19][20]
He joinedLeague Two clubShrewsbury Town on a one-month loan on 18 October 2014.[21] He was persuaded to join the "Shrews" after hearing good things about the club from his friendFraser Fyvie and being told by managerMicky Mellon that he would fit in with the style of football atNew Meadow.[22] Grimmer played seven matches for Shrewsbury, including five consecutive league victories and their 2–1 defeat toChelsea in theLeague Cup. Although the loan had been extended to 3 January 2015, he was recalled to Fulham on 24 November[23] and made his Fulham league debut on 29 November againstBrighton & Hove Albion at theFalmer Stadium.[24] He made a total of 17 appearances forKit Symons's "Cottagers" during the2014–15 campaign. He signed a new two-and-a-half-year contract in March.[25]
On 5 January 2016, Grimmer returned to Shrewsbury on loan until the end of the season.[26] He made his second debut for the club five days later, as he helped Shrewsbury to keep aclean sheet as they beatCardiff City 1–0 in the FA Cup third round.[27] On 30 January, in the next round at home toSheffield Wednesday, heheaded an added-time winner in a 3–2 victory, after Shrewsbury had trailed 2–1 with five minutes remaining.[28] He was ever-present for the duration of his second loan spell at the club, helping them avoidrelegation with a 20th-placed finish in their first season back in League One.[29] On 31 August 2016, he returned to Shrewsbury Town on a loan deal to run until the end of the2016–17 season.[30] He was in and out of thefirst XI under new managerPaul Hurst, and ended the campaign with 27 appearances to his name.[31] He was released by Fulham in July 2017.[32]
Grimmer signed a two-year contract with newly relegated League Two sideCoventry City in July 2017.[33] He was named as the division'sPlayer of the Month for September.[34] On 6 January 2018, he scored the winning goal from long-range in Coventry's 2–1 victory over Premier League sideStoke City in the Third Round of theFA Cup.[35] He went on to be named on thePFA Team of the Year for the2017–18 campaign as he helpedMark Robins's "Sky Blues" qualify for theplay-offs.[36] Coventry then eliminatedNotts County in the play-off semi-finals, before Grimmer scored the third goal in a 3–1 victory overExeter City in theplay-off final atWembley Stadium.[37] However, he was limited to just 13 appearances in the2018–19 season and admitted that "Last season was a dream, but the difference between that and this season has been like night and day."[38] He was released from theRicoh Arena on 9 May.[39]
On 22 July 2019, Grimmer signed a two-year contract with League One clubWycombe Wanderers after impressing managerGareth Ainsworth on trial.[40][41] He later said it was an unpleasant experience to spend over two months as afree agent, but that "holding off for the right club was absolutely the right decision for my happiness and my enjoyment of the game" and he was "very, very thankful that I am where I am now".[42] He was limited to 18 league appearances during the2019–20 season, which was settled on points per game (PPG) due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in England; Wycombe finished third on PPG. He went on to start all three play-off games, as Wycombe secured a place in theChampionship after beatingOxford United in thebehind closed doorsWembley final.[41] His fiancée, Sammy, speaking two weeks later, said that "I'm so proud of him and Jack won't let his winner's medal out of his sight – he even took it on holiday with us and we had to keep it in the safe at the hotel".[43]
He signed a new three-year deal with Wycombe in August 2020.[44] Wanderers took their battle against relegation to the last day of the2020–21 Championship season, but ultimately occupied the final relegation spot. Grimmer finished third in the Supporters' Player of the Year award nominations, as voted for by fans online.[45] He scored his first goal for the "Chairboys" on 11 January 2022, joking after the game that it was "quality over quantity" as his curved strike secured a 2–0 win atBolton Wanderers.[46] He played 30 games in the2021–22 season and hoped to win his third play-off final.[47][48] However, he was an unused substitute as Wycombe were beaten 2–0 bySunderland.[49] He featured 42 times in the2022–23 season, though sufferedconcussion injuries in February and April.[50][51] He signed a new one-year contract in April 2023.[52]
Grimmer played in the2024 EFL Trophy final at Wembley, which ended in a 2–1 defeat toPeterborough United.[53] He featured a total of 35 times during the2023–24 season.[54]
In July 2024, and by now the club's longest-serving player, managerMatt Bloomfield named Grimmer as the Wycombeclub captain following the departure ofJoe Jacobson.[55]
Grimmer was a key player for Scotland youth teams as a teenager, winningcaps for the under-15,under-16,under-17, under-18, andunder-19s. He was called up to theScotland under-21 side for the first time in August 2013 for aqualifier for the2013 UEFA U-21 Championship.[56] He did not play a game before he withdrew from the squad due to injury.[57] His cap for the under-21s came in a 2–2 draw withHungary atTannadice Park on 5 March 2014.[58]
Grimmer was described as "tenacious, aggressive, intelligent, accomplished on the ball and rarely makes a mistake" by theStaffordshire Sentinel in February 2014.[59] Due to his strengths going forward he plays as an attackingfull-back, though remains a "solid and dependable" defender and can also play as a wing-back.[60]
Grimmer is aManchester United supporter.[61]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Aberdeen | 2009–10[62] | SPL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2010–11[63] | SPL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2011–12[64] | SPL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Fulham | 2012–13[65] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013–14[66] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014–15[67] | Championship | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | |
| 2015–16[68] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016–17[69] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | ||
| Port Vale (loan) | 2013–14[66] | League One | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| Shrewsbury Town (loans) | 2014–15[67] | League Two | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2015–16[68] | League One | 21 | 1 | 3 | 1 | − | 0 | 0 | 24 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17[69] | League One | 24 | 0 | 1 | 1 | − | 2[a] | 0 | 27 | 1 | ||
| Total | 51 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 58 | 3 | ||
| Coventry City | 2017–18[70] | League Two | 42 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5[b] | 1 | 53 | 3 |
| 2018–19[71] | League One | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| Total | 53 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 66 | 3 | ||
| Wycombe Wanderers | 2019–20[72] | League One | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4[c] | 0 | 24 | 0 |
| 2020–21[73] | Championship | 40 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 0 | |
| 2021–22[47] | League One | 26 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | 30 | 2 | |
| 2022–23[50] | League One | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 42 | 0 | |
| 2023–24[54] | League One | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6[a] | 0 | 35 | 2 | |
| 2024–25[74] | League One | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 16 | 0 | |
| Total | 164 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 185 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 298 | 7 | 18 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 23 | 1 | 346 | 11 | ||
Coventry City
Wycombe Wanderers
Individual
