| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen Michael Lord Brooker[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1981-05-21)21 May 1981 (age 44)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Newport Pagnell, England[2] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–1999 | Watford | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1999–2001 | Watford | 1 | (0) |
| 2001 | →Port Vale (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2001–2004 | Port Vale | 129 | (36) |
| 2004–2009 | Bristol City | 101 | (37) |
| 2008 | →Cheltenham Town (loan) | 14 | (5) |
| 2008 | →Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 1 | (1) |
| 2009–2011 | Doncaster Rovers | 13 | (1) |
| 2012 | Buxton | ||
| Total | 261 | (80) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Stephen Michael Lord Brooker (born 21 May 1981) is an English former professionalfootballer who played as aforward. He scored 86 goals from 294 league and cup appearances in a 12-year professional career.
He began his career withWatford in 1999 before moving on toPort Vale in 2001, following a short loan spell. With Vale, he won theFootball League Trophy in2001. Hetransferred toBristol City in 2004, where he would spend the next five years. In 2008, he spent time on loan at bothCheltenham Town andDoncaster Rovers before he joined Doncaster permanently in 2009. He spent two years with the club before he was released due to injury concerns. He signed withBuxton in October 2012.
Brooker came through theyouth system atWatford before joiningPort Vale, initially on loan, in January 2001. He scored his first goal in senior football in his second appearance, a 3–0 home win overNotts County in theFootball League Trophy.[3] He was signed bymanagerBrian Horton on the recommendation ofcoachMartin Foyle (who would succeed Horton as manager in February 2004).[4] He signed permanently two weeks later on a two-and-a-half-year deal for a transfer fee of £15,000.[5] Other clubs were reportedly interested in the player after his impressive loan stint, but Watford managerGraham Taylor stuck to the original transfer terms agreed upon before the loan began.[6] He helped the "Valiants" to lift the2001 Football League Trophy after he scored pastBrentford in the final.[7]
Forced to undergo ahernia operation at the start of the2002–03 season,[8] he recovered to score five goals in thirty games. After he recovered from ahamstring injury that caused him to miss a month at the start of the2003–04 season,[9][10] he went on to finish the campaign with eight goals in 34 games.
He started the2004–05 season in tremendous form, scoring for four successive league games in August, including a brace pastHull City. With hiscontract up in the summer,[11] the next month he was sold toBristol City for a fee of £225,000.[12] This came days after fans were told he was not for sale and would not be moving by Vale chairmanBill Bratt – a statement that convinced City chairmanStephen Lansdown that "we must now look elsewhere."[13] He went on to have a highly successful season with City, scoring 16 goals for the club, despite suffering from abroken toe.[14] This gave him a total of 21 goals for both Vale and City in2004–05, and won him another year on his contract with City.[15] This extended deal quashed rumours of a move toNorwich City.[16]
He was both the club's Player of the Season and top scorer in the2005–06 season with 16 league goals, one of these goals came against former club Port Vale after the player claimed that the boo-boys atVale Park inspired him to find the net.[17] His form helped the club go from the bottom of the league in December,[18] to finish just six points shy of theplay-offs. He was rewarded with a new deal with the club despite having two years remaining on his contract.[19]
He scored three goals in 27 games during City's2006–07promotion-winning campaign. However, on his release from prison in September, he found himself battling a catalogue of injuries,[20] that would go on to plague him for several years. He missed the start of the campaign with hamstring and knee injuries,[21][22] and picked up a further knee injury in April,[23] which caused him to miss the club's pre-season tour ofLatvia.[24][25]
He missed much of the2007–08 season after being forced to undergo two knee operations.[26][27][28][29] In January Brooker was made available for a loan spell to regain fitness, and twenty clubs put in offers.[30] After recovering from illness and a further back injury,[31][32] he joinedKeith Downing'sLeague One sideCheltenham Town on a one-month loan.[33][34] This deal was later extended by another month.[35] Playing 14 games with the "Robins", he scored his five goals for the club in the space of six matches,[36] helping the club to avoidrelegation intoLeague Two. His form persuaded managerGary Johnson to re-call him to Bristol.[37][38] On his return to City he scored an emotional late goal against Norwich to send his club top of the table;[39][40] however, the "Reds" would have to settle with a play-off place. Overall, he played just four games of the club's march to theplay-off final withHull City, and was not named on the teamsheet in the final itself. Cheltenham were hopeful of signing the striker in the summer,[41] but were denied the chance to have him back on loan,[42] despite City having six strikers on the books.[43]
He started the2008–09 season well by coming off the bench to get the late winners atBlackpool,[44]Peterborough United,[45] andCoventry City.[46] However, he was then struck down by anAchilles injury.[47] On the November loan window deadline day, he joinedDoncaster Rovers on a one-month loan with a view to a permanent deal.[48] He came on as asubstitute for his Rovers debut against Watford and scored with his first touch to give his new team a 1–1 draw.[49] However, he suffered atorecalf muscle in training and returned toAshton Gate.[50][51] He returned to Rovers permanently for an undisclosed fee in January 2009, penning a two-and-a-half-year deal despite not being fully fit.[52] He was initially expected to be rested for two weeks,[53] but soon found himself out of action on a long-term basis after requiring an operation to fix an ankle injury.[54]
He missed the entirety of the2009–10 campaign with his injury problems. In the2010–11 campaign he finally made his second appearance for the club, and on 30 April, Brooker scored his second goal for "Donny" when he blasted a 25 half-volley into the net to earn his club a 1–1 draw withLeicester City – the point ensured his club safety from relegation.[55] However, he was still released from the club at the end of the season.[56]
In October 2012, he joinedNorthern Premier League Premier Division sideBuxton after training with the "Bucks" for several weeks trying to build his fitness.[57] The club finished seventh in2012–13.
Brooker was aforward with aggression and strength.[58]
On 1 September 2006, Brooker was sentenced to prison for 28 days for his part in a 2005nightclub brawl,[59] which also saw hisBristol City teammatesBradley Orr andDavid Partridge imprisoned.[60] Two weeks later, he and Orr were released on licence, having served half of their original sentence in custody.[61] The sentence was described by City chairmanStephen Lansdown as 'harsh'.[62]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Watford | 1999–2000[63] | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2000–01[64] | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Port Vale | 2000–01[64] | Second Division | 23 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5[a] | 2[a] | 28 | 11 |
| 2001–02[65] | Second Division | 41 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 1[a] | 48 | 11 | |
| 2002–03[66] | Second Division | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 30 | 5 | |
| 2003–04[67] | Second Division | 32 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 8 | |
| 2004–05[68] | League One | 9 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 11 | 5 | |
| Total | 131 | 36 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 151 | 40 | ||
| Bristol City | 2004–05[68] | League One | 33 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 16 |
| 2005–06[69] | League One | 37 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 16 | |
| 2006–07[70] | League One | 23 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 27 | 3 | |
| 2007–08[71] | Championship | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2008–09[72] | Championship | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 6 | 3 | ||
| Total | 101 | 37 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 110 | 39 | ||
| Cheltenham Town (loan) | 2007–08[71] | League One | 14 | 5 | — | — | — | 14 | 5 | |||
| Doncaster Rovers | 2008–09[72] | Championship | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2009–10[73] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11[74] | Championship | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 16 | 1 | ||
| Total | 14 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 2 | ||
| Career total[b] | 261 | 80 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 13 | 3 | 294 | 86 | ||
Port Vale
Bristol City
Individual
