Sean Brian McAllister (born 15 August 1987) 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 ...

who played as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. Primarily as a central midfielder, he has good vision and passing ability. He began his professional career at

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

in 2006, and had spells on

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they play in a blue and ...

and Bury, before establishing himself in the Wednesday first team in the 2008–09 season. He was allowed to join

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 ...

in July 2010, and helped them to win promotion out of League Two in 2011–12. He joined

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...

on a short-term contract in November 2012, and then signed with

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 189 ...

in March 2013, before joining Scunthorpe United four months later. He helped Scunthorpe to win promotion out of League Two in 2013–14. He signed 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 ...

in June 2016 and had a loan spell with

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...

from December 2017 to January 2018. He joined Chester in January 2019 and then moved on to Newtown eight months later. He retired in July 2021.

Career

Early career

McAllister was born in

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...

, Greater Manchester. He started playing at Deans Sports in Swinton before going on a successful trial at Manchester United at the age of nine. He spent three years as a schoolboy at Old Trafford before joining Bolton Wanderers, where he stayed for four years.

Sheffield Wednesday

He switched to the Sheffield Wednesday Academy in 2003. Having previously been an unused substitute in the

Steel City derby The Steel City Derby (also known as the Sheffield Derby) is a local derby that takes place between Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday, the two professional football league teams based in the city of Sheffield, England. It is widely consi ...

at Hillsborough, McAllister made his first-team debut for

in 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 ...

the following week on 25 February 2006, coming on as a substitute after 56 minutes when Wednesday were already 3–0 down to

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

at St Mary's. He did not appear in the first team again until the end-of-season, when he played all 90 minutes of a 2–0 victory against

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

Pride Park Pride Park is a business park on the outskirts of the city centre of Derby, England. Developed in the 1990s, It covers 80 hectares of former industrial land between the River Derwent and railway lines. Pride Park Stadium and Derby Arena are bot ...

. He was named as the club's Young Player of the Year for the 2005–06 season. On 19 August 2006, McAllister scored his first senior goal to inspire a Wednesday comeback, as they went on to beat Plymouth Argyle 2–1 at

Home Park Home Park is a football stadium in Plymouth, England. The ground has been the home of Football League One club Plymouth Argyle since 1901.Burton O'Brien's cross and shot into the top corner of the goal. He would rarely feature in the rest of the 2006–07 season, only making one substitute appearance under

Paul Sturrock Paul Whitehead Sturrock (born 10 October 1956) is a Scottish former football coach and former player. As a player, Sturrock spent his entire senior career with Dundee United, making more than five hundred appearances between 1974 and 1989. He w ...

's successor

Brian Laws Brian Laws (born 14 October 1961) is an English former professional footballer and manager. Playing as a defender, Laws made over 100 appearances for each of Burnley, Middlesbrough, and Nottingham Forest. In 1994, Laws became player-manager of ...

. Despite this, he signed a new contract in May 2007. After failing to feature for the first team during the start of the 2007–08 season, he was sent out on a one-month

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

in September 2007. He made four league starts, and manager

Bill Dearden William Dearden (born 11 February 1944) is an English former footballer and manager who is now chief scout at Sheffield United. As a player, he scored 101 goals in 404 league games in a 16-year career in the English Football League. A striker ...

had the loan deal extended to cover a second month. However, he then lost his first-team place at

Field Mill Field Mill, currently known as One Call Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football ground in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England, and the home of Mansfield Town Football Club. It is the oldest ground in the Football League, hosting footb ...

, and returned to Wednesday. He then joined

Chris Casper Christopher Martin Casper (born 28 April 1975) is an English football manager and former player who is now the director of football at League Two side Salford City. As a player he was a defender who played in the Premier League for Manches ...

's Bury on loan in November 2007, and remained at

Gigg Lane Gigg Lane is a football ground in Bury, Greater Manchester, England, built for Bury F.C. in 1885. The first match was played on 12 September 1885 between Bury and a team from Wigan. One of the world's oldest professional football stadiums, G ...

for two months without making a first-team appearance. He was recalled by Wednesday as a back-up early into his second month with Bury. He went on to break into the first team again in February 2008, but missed the end-of-season run-in with a calf injury. He signed a two-year contract extension in May 2008. He became a first-team regular in the 2008–09 season, making 42 appearances and claiming three league goals against Preston North End,

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 ...

, and

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

. However, he lost his first-team spot in September 2009, and later struggled with a stomach injury. He was released by new manager Alan Irvine at the end of the 2009–10 season, after he was limited to 14 appearances throughout the season.

Shrewsbury Town

McAllister signed a two-year contract with

in July 2010. Manager

Graham Turner Graham John Turner (born 5 October 1947) is an English former footballer who became a manager. His son Mark was also a professional footballer. He is third behind only Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger in terms of most games managed. After a ...

stated that "McAllister's an attacking, exciting player and I'm a bit surprised he was still on the market. We were a little short in midfield and with his Championship experience he could be a real gain for us." He made his first appearance at the

New Meadow New Meadow, also known as Montgomery Waters Meadow for sponsorship purposes, is a stadium situated on the southern outskirts of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, between the districts of Meole Brace and Sutton Farm, and close to the A5. It serves the ho ...

as a 77th-minute substitute in a 3–1 victory over

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. ...

on 7 August 2010. He was named as Shrewsbury's Player of the Month for August 2010, but found first-team opportunities harder to come by in the second half of the season due to a hernia injury and the arrival of new signings Nicky Wroe and David Davies. He had an operation to correct the hernia injury in February 2011. McAllister made a return to fitness during the 2011–12 pre-season, scoring against a Manchester United XI in a 2–1 home victory in July 2011. He scored his first competitive goal for Shrewsbury when he was recalled to the starting line-up in a 2–0 win over

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 ...

on 20 August. His goal came in the 23rd minute with a glancing header from Lionel Ainsworth's cross. However, the form of Matt Richards and loan signing

David McAllister David James McAllister (born 12 January 1971) is a German politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Union, part of the European People's Party. He is the current Vice Pre ...

again left him sitting on the sidelines for much of the season. Shrewsbury won promotion to

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

as runners-up of League Two, although McAllister was not offered a new contract. He said that "Hopefully my experience at a higher level, and the fact that I've got a promotion under my belt, will help my cause. I'm disappointed, I thought I was worth a new deal, but I've had two good years at Shrewsbury."

Port Vale

McAllister failed to find a club before the start of the 2012–13 season, despite a trial 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 October 2012, he went on trial at

, after personally ringing manager

Micky Adams Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a nineteen-year professional career in the English ...

to enquire about a vacancy in midfield created when Doug Loft picked up an injury. He signed an eight-week contract with Vale on 9 November. The League Two club were in

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...

, and applied for special permission to sign McAllister after asking

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

for leniency after they underwent a shortage of available midfielders. He made his debut from the bench at

Vale Park Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950. The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...

on 17 November, replacing Rob Taylor 74 minutes into a 2–2 draw with

. However, he would only feature twice more for Vale, and left the club on 8 January 2013, with Adams saying "it's unfortunate we weren't able to offer Sean more first-team opportunities, but that underlines the competition for places we have among the squad, but he's a great kid, a model professional and I'd recommend him anywhere."

Cowdenbeath

McAllister joined

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...

club

in March 2013. He made nine appearances at the end of the 2012–13 season, helping the club to avoid relegation.

Scunthorpe United

On 19 July 2013, McAllister made a return to League Two when he signed a one-year contract with Scunthorpe United. He made 43 appearances in the 2013–14 season as Scunthorpe won promotion as divisional runners-up, and was also crowned the club's Player of the Year for his "high energy and consistent performances". He signed a new two-year contract in May 2014. However, after

Mark Robins Mark Gordon Robins (born 22 December 1969) is an English football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Coventry City in the EFL Championship. As a player, he was a striker and is best known for his time in the Premier Leagu ...

replaced Russ Wilcox as manager, McAllister found first-team football hard to come by in the second half of the 2014–15 season. He made 15 appearances across the 2015–16 season, and was released at the end of the season.

Grimsby Town

On 23 June 2016, McAllister signed a two-year contract with newly promoted League Two club

on a free transfer. However, he played just four matches throughout the 2016–17 season as he struggled with what was said to be a recurring groin injury. However he later discovered that he had been misdiagnosed, and was in fact suffering with an ankle related problem. McAllister joined

National League 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 York City on 8 December 2017 on a one-month loan. He made his debut on 16 December 2017, when starting in a 2–1 away defeat to Kidderminster Harriers in the FA Trophy first round. He finished the loan with four appearances. He was released by Grimsby at the end of the 2017–18 season after making just six appearances in two years.

Chester

On 11 January 2019, McAllister joined National League North side Chester. He was signed to form a central midfield partnership with Gary Roberts as Gary Stopforth was ruled out with injury. Manager Bernard Morley praised McAllister for an assured performance in his "Seals" debut appearance against

Guiseley Guiseley ( ) is a town in metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated south of Otley and Menston and is now a north-western suburb of Leeds. It sits in th ...

Newtown

On 9 August 2019, McAllister joined

Cymru Premier The Cymru Premier, known as the JD Cymru Premier for sponsorship reasons, is the national football league of Wales. It has both professional and semi-professional status clubs and is at the top of the Welsh football league system. Prior to 200 ...

side Newtown. He made 26 appearances in the 2019–20 campaign, which was curtailed early due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Wales The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Wales on 28 February 2020, with a case being reported in the Swansea area; this first known case was a person who had recently returned from Italy. The first known case of community transm ...

, and signed a new contract in June. He featured 26 times in the 2020–21 campaign and was an unused substitute as Newtown beat

Caernarfon Town Caernarfon Town Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl Droed Tref Caernarfon) is a semi-professional Welsh football club based in Caernarfon, Gwynedd. The club is nicknamed "the Canaries" because of its yellow and green strip, a nickname that dates from ...

in the play-off final to secure qualification into the newly created

UEFA Europa Conference League The UEFA Europa Conference League (abbreviated as UECL) is an annual football club competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. Clubs qualify for the competition based on thei ...

. He announced his retirement in July 2021.

Style of play

In describing his playing style, McAllister said that "I work hard and I read the game well... ndI like to get forward". Port Vale assistant manager

Mark Grew Mark Stuart Grew (born 15 February 1958) is an English former football player and coach who played as a goalkeeper. His career started in 1976 with West Bromwich Albion, where he spent seven seasons as a back-up keeper before moving on to Lei ...

said that "he's a good passer, he has excellent vision and great energy".

Career statistics

Honours

Shrewsbury Town *

Football 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 ...

second-place promotion: 2011–12 Scunthorpe United *Football League Two second-place promotion: 2013–14 Individual *

Young Player of the Year: 2005–06 * Scunthorpe United Player of the Year: 2013–14

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McAllister, Sean 1987 births Living people Footballers from Bolton English footballers English expatriate footballers Association football midfielders Manchester United F.C. players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Bury F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Cowdenbeath F.C. players Scunthorpe United F.C. players Grimsby Town F.C. players York City F.C. players Newtown A.F.C. players Chester F.C. players English Football League players Scottish Football League players National League (English football) players Cymru Premier players