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David Barry Kitson (born 21 January 1980) is an English former professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who played as a
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...
. He made 420 appearances in the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
and
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
, including 135 for
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
. Kitson began his career with non-League
Hitchin Town Hitchin Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. They are currently members of the . Founded in 1865 and known as 'The Canaries', Hitchin Town have been based at Top Field since their fou ...
and
Arlesey Town Arlesey Town Football Club is a football club based in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated to the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Hitchin Road. History The club was established ...
before he joined
Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on N ...
in 2001 and became one of the brightest prospects in the Third Division which led to him being signed by
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
in 2003 for a fee of £150,000. He enjoyed great success with the "Royals", forming a formidable partnership with
Kevin Doyle Kevin Edward Doyle (born 18 September 1983) is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a forward. He played for Wexford F.C. (formerly Wexford Youths), St Patrick's Athletic, and Cork City in his homeland before he moved to Engl ...
as Reading gained promotion to the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
in 2006. After two seasons in the top flight Reading were relegated and Kitson signed for newcomers
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
for a club record fee of £5.5 million. However, his career soon started to become sour and, after failing to score a single goal, he was loaned back to Reading. He began the 2009–10 season better, scoring twice, but was then loaned out again this time to
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...
. He returned to Stoke in January 2010 but continued to struggle and, after manager
Tony Pulis Anthony Richard Pulis (; born 16 January 1958) is a Welsh football manager and former footballer who last managed Sheffield Wednesday. Pulis obtained his FA coaching badge at age 19, followed by his UEFA 'A' licence aged 21 – making him one ...
branded him 'petulant', he was allowed to join
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
as part of a swap deal for Marc Wilson. He spent two seasons at
Fratton Park Fratton Park is a football ground in Portsmouth, England, which is the home of Portsmouth F.C. Fratton Park remains as the only home football ground in Portsmouth FC's entire history. The early Fratton Park was designed by local architect A ...
but agreed to cancel his contract with Portsmouth in August 2012 with the club in danger of being
liquidated Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end in Canada, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and many other countries. The assets and property of the company are redistrib ...
, and subsequently joined
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
on a short-term deal, before signing a two-year contract at
Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and t ...
in June 2013.


Early life

Born in
Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...
,
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
, Kitson spent his early career in non-League football with
Hitchin Town Hitchin Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. They are currently members of the . Founded in 1865 and known as 'The Canaries', Hitchin Town have been based at Top Field since their fou ...
and
Arlesey Town Arlesey Town Football Club is a football club based in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated to the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Hitchin Road. History The club was established ...
. His day job was working at national supermarket chain
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company wa ...
as a frozen food stacker.


Club career


Cambridge United

Kitson joined Cambridge United, then in Division Two, in 2001 after being recommended by agent
Barry Silkman Barry Silkman (born 29 June 1952) is a football agent and former player, who played in midfield for 11 clubs including at Manchester City in 1979 and at Leyton Orient from 1981 to 1985. He competed for 16 years. In total, he made 340 professio ...
to U's manager John Beck. He made his debut in 3–2 victory away over
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
on 17 March 2001. On the final day of the same season, Kitson notched his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw at Swansea City. The following season saw the club relegated from League One but Kitson scored 10 goals, finishing as the club's second-top goalscorer, one behind
Tom Youngs Thomas Nicholas Youngs (born 28 January 1987) is a retired rugby union player who played as a hooker for Leicester Tigers and England. Between 2012–2015 he won 28 caps for , including selection for the 2015 Rugby World Cup and was select ...
. It was in the 2002–03 campaign that Kitson really found his feet. He scored 25 goals in a prolific campaign which saw him hot on the heels of
David Crown David Ian Crown (born 16 February 1958) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a forward in the Football League, most notably for Cambridge United and Southend United. He also played for Reading, Gillingham, Brentford, P ...
's club record of 27 goals in a season. After 11 goals in 19 appearances at the start of the 2003–04 season, Kitson left Cambridge to join second-tier outfit Reading. His return of 47 goals in 123 appearances in all competitions ensured Kitson's place among the club's all-time legends.


Reading

Kitson was sold to
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on 26 December 2003, for a
fee A fee is the price one pays as remuneration for rights or services. Fees usually allow for overhead, wages, costs, and markup. Traditionally, professionals in the United Kingdom (and previously the Republic of Ireland) receive a fee in contra ...
of £150,000. At Reading, he scored five goals in 10 starts in his first season. In the 2005–06 season, despite injury he went on to record an impressive goals-to-game ratio, and continued to do so as Reading won the
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
title. Following promotion with Reading, Kitson scored the club's first Premier League goal in their 3–2 home win against
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...
on the opening day of the 2006–07 season, but was then badly injured later in the same match. The injury kept him out of the game until Reading's
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
victory over
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
on 27 January 2007. On 27 March, he committed his future to Reading, signing a new deal that would expire in June 2010. At the start of 2007–08, he was sent off less than a minute after coming on as a substitute for Reading against
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, for a late challenge on
Patrice Evra Patrice Latyr Evra (; born 15 May 1981) is a French football coach and former professional player. Originally a forward, he primarily played as a left-back. Evra served as captain for both Manchester United and the France national team. His ...
. In January 2008 he made some controversial comments regarding the FA Cup, saying "We are not going to win the FA Cup and I do not care less about it, to be honest."


Stoke City

On 18 July 2008, Kitson moved in a £5.5m move from Reading to
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
, breaking Stoke's record transfer fee. However, before long speculation arose as to whether Kitson was settled or not as he struggled to adapt to Stoke's style of play after being played out of position by manager
Tony Pulis Anthony Richard Pulis (; born 16 January 1958) is a Welsh football manager and former footballer who last managed Sheffield Wednesday. Pulis obtained his FA coaching badge at age 19, followed by his UEFA 'A' licence aged 21 – making him one ...
. As a result, he failed to score any goals in any of the 18 competitive games he played for Stoke City in the 2008–09 season. Chairman Peter Coates and Pulis both denied any rumour that he might be leaving the
Britannia Stadium The Bet365 Stadium (stylised as ''bet365 Stadium'') is an all-seater football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England and the home of EFL Championship club Stoke City. The stadium was previously called the Britannia Stadium but ...
. The Stoke City board reacted to this growing disquiet, and he rejoined Reading on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season on 10 March 2009. Kitson later revealed that he made the "wrong decision" in joining Stoke, adding that he and his family were happy at Reading and that "I threw all of that away for what I thought was going to be a new challenge... I hold my hands up – it was my fault. I made the decision to go to Stoke, I didn't have to, no-one forced me to go, and it was a bad decision." With regards to his failure to score for Stoke, he said "I'd been bought for a lot of money but I wasn't sure I was being utilised in the way I thought I was going to be... You do have some days at training when you go back in and wonder what you're doing there." However, Reading failed to gain promotion, meaning that Kitson returned to Stoke. Kitson stated that he would "start his Stoke career again". His first competitive goal for Stoke came in a 1–0
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
win at
Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
on 26 August 2009. He scored his first league goal for Stoke on 29 August 2009, which proved to be the winning goal against
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
and then scored again with a goal against
Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
. However Kitson lost his place to James Beattie and joined
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...
on a two-month loan. He scored his first goals for Middlesbrough when he scored a brace against Peterborough United on 28 November 2009. He returned to Stoke on 1 January 2010. He scored in the FA Cup against
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
and against Bolton. However, after a poor performance against
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
he never played for Stoke again and was branded as 'petulant' by manager Pulis.


Portsmouth

Kitson was announced as a
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
player alongside
Liam Lawrence Liam Lawrence (born 14 December 1981) is a former professional footballer who played as a winger or central midfielder. Lawrence started his career at his local club Mansfield Town, after impressing at the Field Mill he signed for Sunderland ...
on deadline day as part of a deal which took Marc Wilson to Stoke City. Kitson made his Portsmouth debut on 11 September 2010 in a 0–0 draw with
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
at
Fratton Park Fratton Park is a football ground in Portsmouth, England, which is the home of Portsmouth F.C. Fratton Park remains as the only home football ground in Portsmouth FC's entire history. The early Fratton Park was designed by local architect A ...
. He scored his first goal for the club in a 4–1 defeat at Crystal Palace on 14 September 2010 and a further 2 goals in a 6–1 win over
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...
at Fratton Park on 24 September 2010. In his first season, Kitson made 39 appearances and scored 8 goals. In his second season, along with
Rocha Rocha may refer to: * Rocha (surname), a Portuguese surname * Rocha, Moca, Puerto Rico, a barrio in the municipality of Moca, Puerto Rico * Rocha, Rio de Janeiro, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil * Rocha, Uruguay, capital city of the Rocha ...
, Kitson was frequently omitted from the squad before manager
Steve Cotterill Stephen John Cotterill (born 20 July 1964) is an English former footballer who played as a striker. He is currently the manager of side Shrewsbury Town. Cotterill had a nine-year career as a footballer playing for Burton Albion, Wimbledon, ...
left to become manager of
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
. Kitson claimed "the team are more united" after Cotterill's departure. Kitson experienced a dip in form and was dropped to the bench by Cotterill's successor,
Michael Appleton Michael Antony Appleton (born 4 December 1975) is an English professional football manager and former player. He is currently the head coach of Blackpool. As a player, he operated as a midfielder, in a nine-year career that began in 1994 and e ...
. After some criticism by the fans and media Kitson scored his first Pompey goal since October 2011 when he scored away at
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...
in the 90th minute with his hands to equalise; Márkó Futács scored minutes later to win the game for Pompey 4–3. This defeat kept Portsmouth in the division for another week at least and sent Doncaster down. Kitson agreed to leave the club in August 2012.


Sheffield United

On 31 August 2012, Kitson joined Sheffield United on a short-term deal, due to run until the end of December. He made his debut on 15 September 2012, coming on as a second-half substitute in the 1–1 draw with
Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...
. His first goal for the Blades came in a 1–1 draw against
Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...
at
Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramal ...
on 29 September 2012. On 16 November 2012 Kitson extended his contract until the end of the season, stating that "It wouldn't have sat comfortably with me to leave a job half done after integrating myself into a great squad... I still would like to go to America but we will revisit that at a later date because the aim is to have a good crack at winning promotion here." Kitson played regularly for the remainder of the season, making 37 appearances in total and scoring eleven goals, but with the Blades failing to gain promotion he was released when his contract expired in June 2013.


Oxford United

On 27 June 2013, Kitson joined
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
club
Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and t ...
, signing a two-year contract. He scored four league goals in his only season at the club. On 22 July 2014 Kitson announced his decision to retire from playing professional football.


Return to Arlesey Town

On 15 December 2014, Kitson was appointed player-assistant manager to new boss Nick Ironton at
Arlesey Town Arlesey Town Football Club is a football club based in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated to the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Hitchin Road. History The club was established ...
, the club he played for between 2000 and 2001. However, Kitson departed the club in February 2015, after the departure of Ironton.


Personal life

On 9 January 2008, Kitson was stopped by police whilst driving late at night near his home in
Shinfield Shinfield is a village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, just south of Reading. It contains and is administered by the unitary authority of Wokingham District. Shinfield Park is the northern part of the parish, becoming p ...
,
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
and was charged with failing to provide a breath sample. He appeared at Reading Magistrates' Court on 18 January 2008, and received an 18-month driving ban, a £1000 fine and was ordered to pay £60 costs. In December 2018, Kitson caused controversy for comments he made on Talksport radio, where he claimed that the reason
Raheem Sterling Raheem Shaquille Sterling (born 8 December 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for club Chelsea. Born in Jamaica, he represents the England national team. Born in Jamaica to Jamaican parents, St ...
had been subjected to racial abuse was because he had incited "jealousy" with his "luxury lifestyle". Kitson received widespread criticism for these views, including live on air from the show's host, and
AFC Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth () is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest division of English club football. Formed in 1899 as B ...
defender
Tyrone Mings Tyrone Deon Mings (born 13 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Aston Villa and the England national team. Mings started his career playing non-League football with Yate Town, having previou ...
who was due to go on air pulled out as a result.


Career statistics


Honours

Reading *
Football League Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...
: 2005–06 Individual *
PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...
: 2002–03 Third Division


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kitson, Dave 1980 births Living people Sportspeople from Hitchin People educated at Fearnhill School English footballers Association football forwards Hitchin Town F.C. players Arlesey Town F.C. players Cambridge United F.C. players Reading F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Oxford United F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players Isthmian League players