Marcus Trevor Browning (born 22 April 1971) is a football coach and former player who played as a midfielder. Born in England, he made five appearances for the Wales national team.

Marcus Browning
Browning playing for Bath City in 2010
Personal information
Full name Marcus Trevor Browning
Date of birth (1971-04-22) 22 April 1971 (age 52)
Place of birth Bristol, England
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1989–1997 Bristol Rovers 174 (13)
1989Gloucester City (loan)
1990Weymouth (loan)
1991Gloucester City (loan)
1992Hereford United (loan) 7 (5)
1997–1999 Huddersfield Town 33 (0)
1998Gillingham (loan) 1 (0)
1999–2002 Gillingham 77 (3)
2002–2007 AFC Bournemouth 188 (3)
2007–2009 Weymouth 21 (0)
2009–2010 Bath City
2010 Poole Town
International career
1996–1997 Wales 5 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career edit

Browning was born in Bristol and began his career at Bristol Rovers as a striker but was converted to a defensive midfielder by his manager Malcolm Allison.[1] He made over 200 appearances in all competitions for the club before joining Huddersfield Town for £500,000 in February 1997 on a three and a half year contract.[2]

Browning then spent three years at Gillingham, whom he joined for £200,000 in March 1999 following a brief loan spell with the club after falling out of favour at Huddersfield Town under manager Peter Jackson.[3][4] During his time with the Kent side he featured in their most successful ever FA Cup run as they made the quarter-finals before losing to Chelsea 5–0,[5] as well as their promotion via the play-offs to the second tier of English football for the first time in their history.[6]

He then joined AFC Bournemouth on a free transfer in 2002. Within a few months of his Bournemouth career he had to play in goal twice when on both occasions goalkeeper Chris Tardif had to go off injured. The first such occasion was a League Cup tie against Brentford which they went on to lose on penalties,[7] and the second was a league match against Hull City which finished 0–0.[8][9] Browning played the full 90 minutes as Bournemouth defeated Lincoln City 5–2 in the 2003 Football League Third Division play-off final.[10] While still with Bournemouth Browning explored the possibility of becoming a professional referee after his playing career, making his debut as an official in a Bournemouth Sunday League Division Seven fixture in January 2006 and expressing a desire to one day officiate in the Premier League.[11][12] He was released by Bournemouth in May 2007.

International career edit

Browning made five appearances for the Wales national team, for whom he qualified via a Tredegar-born grandmother.[1] He made his debut as a 57th minute substitute in a 3–0 away friendly loss to Italy in January 1996[13] and would go on to feature in three games of Wales' ill-fated qualification campaign for the 1998 World Cup, including two victories over San Marino and a home defeat to the Netherlands.[14][15][16] His last appearance came in a 1–0 friendly victory over Scotland in Kilmarnock in May 1997.[17]

Coaching career edit

In July 2007, Browning joined up with former Bournemouth teammate Jason Tindall as part of the backroom staff at then Conference National team Weymouth.[18] Over two seasons at Weymouth, he played 21 games.

In June 2009, it was agreed in principle that Weymouth would come to a settlement over paying out the year Browning had left on his current contract as new Weymouth manager Matty Hale had brought in his own backroom staff. After leaving Weymouth, he signed for Bath City, making his debut in a 4–3 defeat to Chelmsford City.[19]

On 5 November 2009, it was confirmed that Browning had returned to Dean Court as a youth coach. Browning, who made more than 200 appearances for the club between 2002 and 2007, works with the U18s on a part-time basis, his appointment funded with the help of Brockenhurst College, while continuing playing, initially with Bath City in the Conference South, and from December 2010 with Poole Town.[20] He later took on the role of U18s coach at Poole Town.[21]

Honours edit

Gillingham

AFC Bournemouth

Bath City

References edit

  • Roger Triggs (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.
  1. ^ a b Ley, John (4 October 1996). "Browning untroubled by thought of facing Dutch". The Daily Telegraph. p. 44. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Booth, Melvyn (22 February 1997). "Browning buy good news for old teammate". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 43. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Booth, Melvyn (17 November 1998). "Browning makes Gillingham move". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 16. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Thomson, Doug (26 March 1999). "Browning goes in £200,000 rush job". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. p. 24. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "BBC News | FA CUP | Chelsea crush Gills". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  6. ^ "PLAY-OFF FINAL 2000: SIXTEEN YEARS ON". www.gillinghamfootballclub.com. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  7. ^ "Brentford edge out Cherries". BBC. 9 September 2002. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  8. ^ "Bournemouth 0-0 Hull". BBC. 21 December 2002. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  9. ^ "AFC Bournemouth feature: No one else fancied it so I just put the gloves on and went in". bournemouthecho.co.uk. 14 October 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  10. ^ "Bournemouth win seals promotion". 24 May 2003. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  11. ^ Smith, Martin (21 January 2006). "Pastures new". The Daily Telegraph. p. 146. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ James, Stuart (14 February 2006). "Midfielder likes life in the black". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  13. ^ Linton, Martin (25 January 1996). "Wales are sunk in the rain". The Guardian. p. 26. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Ley, John (3 June 1996). "Wales secure emphatic victory". The Daily Telegraph. p. 33. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Rudd, Alyson (1 September 1996). "Gould watches the tally reach heady heights". The Sunday Telegraph. p. 86. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Moore, Glen (7 October 1996). "Welsh deficiencies cruelly exposed". The Guardian. p. 62. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Ley, John (28 May 1997). "Hartson upsets Scotland plans". The Daily Telegraph. p. 36. Retrieved 4 January 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Coaching chance moved Marcus". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  19. ^ "Chelmsford City 4-3 Bath City". Chelmsford Weekly News. 11 August 2009. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
  20. ^ "Former Cherries star Browning joins Poole Town". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  21. ^ "FA Youth Cup: Poole Town fortunate to have Browning". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 17 June 2020.

External links edit