John Anthony Carlton Grant (born 9 August 1981) is a former English
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 ...
who last played for
Droylsden
Droylsden is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, east of Manchester city centre and west of Ashton-under-Lyne, with a population at the 2011 Census of 22,689.
Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, in the ...
as a striker and previously played for a variety of other English football clubs.
Club career
Crewe Alexandra
Born in
Manchester
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 t ...
,
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...
, Grant started his career at
Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
who were at the time playing in the Division One. He said his brother Daniel Grant, a former schoolboy player at Manchester United, inspired him to play football so he signed in July 1999 and made his debut against
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
on the opening day of the 1999–2000 season. He was also a promising basketball player and trialed with
Manchester Giants
The Manchester Giants are a British professional basketball team based in Manchester, England. The franchise was established in 2011, and admitted to the top-tier British Basketball League in 2012. The team's formation was led by a consortium ...
He was later loaned to
Hyde United
Hyde United Football Club is a semi-professional football club in Hyde, Greater Manchester, England. Formed in 1919, they were renamed Hyde F.C. between 2010 and 2015 as part of a sponsorship deal with Manchester City.Northwich Victoria.
2002 to 2005
In the 2002 close season, Grant signed for
Hereford United
Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...
, before going on to join the now defunct Telford United in July 2003. In the summer of 2004, Grant then signed for
Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...
, who had just beaten
Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spring ...
Grant was on the move again in March 2005, when he joined
Halifax Town
FC Halifax Town is a professional association football club based in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. They currently compete in and play at the Shay. They replaced Halifax Town A.F.C., which went into administration in the 2007–08 season. ...
Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, 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 lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
's
Walkers Stadium
King Power Stadium (also known as the Leicester City Stadium due to UEFA sponsorship regulations and formerly known as the Walkers Stadium) is a football stadium in Leicester, England. It has been the home of Premier League club Leicester City ...
, against his former club Hereford United. Halifax Town lost the final. That season Grant finished as Halifax Town's top scorer with 14 goals. Despite being offered a new contract by Halifax Town, he decided to join Aldershot Town in the summer of 2006.
Aldershot Town
In July 2006, Grant signed for
Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spring ...
. He scored twice on his debut against Gravesend & Northfleet, on the opening day of the 2006–07 season. At the end of the season, Grant was Aldershot Town's top scorer with 23 goals and he was voted the fans 'Player of the Year'.
In December 2007, Grant scored his first and only senior
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
against Salisbury City. In February 2008, he committed himself to the club until the end of the 2009–10 season. Grant ended the 2007–08 season as top-scorer with 25 goals, as Aldershot Town won the Conference National title and the
Conference League Cup
The Conference League Cup (formerly known as the Setanta Shield for sponsorship reasons, and before that the Bob Lord Trophy) was a football competition open to clubs playing in the Football Conference.
History
The competition was formed for t ...
. He was also one of five Aldershot Town players that were named in the Conference Team of the Year.
Grant made his 100th appearance for Aldershot Town against
Notts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 25 November 1862, it is the ...
in September 2008 and he scored his 50th goal for Aldershot Town against
Rotherham United
Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...
in November 2008. In February 2010, he joined
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 ...
on loan until the end of the 2009–10 season.
Barrow
Grant was released by Aldershot at the end of the 2009–10 season. Subsequently, he joined Conference National club Barrow on 19 November 2010. He made his debut the following day as a substitute in a 1–1 draw with
Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...
. Grant left Barrow by mutual consent on 31 January 2011.
Macclesfield
On 5 August 2011 Grant signed for
Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was wound-up after a High Court ruling on 16 September 2020.
Initially known as Macclesfield F.C., the club was formed in 1874 ...
on a non-contract basis after training with the team during the pre-season. He made four appearances during the 2011–12 season, the last in a 0–2 home defeat to
Southend United
Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...
on 29 October 2011.
Droylsden
Having been without a club since his release from Macclesfield halfway through the 2011–12 season, Grant signed for struggling
Conference North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Syst ...
club
Droylsden
Droylsden is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, east of Manchester city centre and west of Ashton-under-Lyne, with a population at the 2011 Census of 22,689.
Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, in the ...
in March 2013, making his debut in a 4–0 defeat at Gloucester City on 12 March 2013. He made a further eight appearances during the 2012–13 season, failing to score.
England National Game XI
He also made his England National Game XI debut in May 2007 against the Republic of Ireland. Grant was in the squad that won that year's Four Nations Tournament and scored against Scotland on his full debut in the 3–0 victory on 25 May 2007.
Honours
Aldershot Town
*
Conference Premier
The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-professi ...
: 2008
*
Conference League Cup
The Conference League Cup (formerly known as the Setanta Shield for sponsorship reasons, and before that the Bob Lord Trophy) was a football competition open to clubs playing in the Football Conference.
History
The competition was formed for t ...