clements_john
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| Name: John Ernest Clements |
Nationality: England |
| Position: left-back |
Signing Information: Transferred from: Notts County, 10/1890, £ |
| Birthdate: 03-11-1867 |
Years at Club: 1890-1894 |
| Age: (157) |
Debut: 03/10/1891 v Manchester City (North Road) 5-1 (FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round) |
| Birthplace: Marnham, Nottinghamshire, England |
Previous clubs: Notts County |
| Height: 5' 11" (1.80m) |
Farewell to Manchester United: Transferred to Rotherham Town, 02/1894, £ |
| Weight: 12st 2lbs (77.11kg) |
Passed Away: PA |
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Born in the Nottinghamshire town of Marnham, John Clements served several of the area's clubs at the outset of his career. He started out with Nottingham St. Saviour's as a tough, verging on the violent, left-back who was as likely to be cautioned as sent off by referees.
Towards the end of 1887-88, Clements was traced at Nottingham Forest, coming in second in one of the club's Athletic Sports races. He continued to represent Forest at the start of 1888-89 as the club played mostly friendly matches but, in late October, he joined neighbours Notts County, members of the newly formed Football League.
He could not have had a better debut: 6-1 win over Burnley! Clements played in 12 of the remaining 16 league matches that season but was only called on twice in 1889-90. Thus, he decided to join Newton Heath in October 1890. Over the next 3 to 4 years, John was Heath's undisputed left-back, rarely missing a game. He appeared in the Football Alliance in 1890-91 and 1891-92, and in the Football League in 1892-93 and 1893-94, being involved in the club's inaugural League fixture.
Clements' overly physical approach finally got him in serious trouble in October 1893 when he earned a suspension for violent play in a match against Derby. Left-half Fred Erentz was converted to left-back where he stayed for years, thus causing John to lose his first-team spot. Accordingly, he moved to Bacup for the remainder of 1893-94 where he popped up in the news... for a stern talking to from the ref!
He eventually hooked up with Second Division Rotherham Town for 1894-95, playing 27 games and finally getting on the scoresheet with a couple of goals.
In the summer of 1895, John was transferred to Newcastle United but, unfortunately, he was unable to make a single competitive appearance for them. Several injuries kept him out until he permanently damaged his knee ligaments in a comeback attempt with the reserves in February 1896. However, this did not curtail his other athletic activities, for Clements was a talented all-round sportsman. When only eight years old, he finished second in the schoolboys race at Nottingham Forest then won prizes in other races as well as an oarsman on the River Trent.
Cricket? He played that too, and also proved himself a capital shot with the rifle. John also did some referring post his footballing career, though he truly excelled at swimming. Having begun competing at the age of seven, he accumulated over 80 prizes over the years, including a few at water polo. Oh, and Clements was a medallion holder of the Royal Life-saving Society too! Biography kindly provided by Charbel Boujaoude. |
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| League |
League Cup |
FA Cup |
Charity Shield |
European Cup |
Europa League |
Super Cup |
Cup Winners Cup |
Inter-Continental Cup |
World Clubs Cup |
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| No |
Season |
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Season
Goals |
Season
Apps |
| 1 |
1891-1892 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
| 2 |
1892-1893 |
0 |
26 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
27 |
| 3 |
1893-1894 |
0 |
12 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
12 |
| TOTALS |
0 |
38 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
42 |
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