Jason Puncheon

Jason Puncheon

Puncheon playing for Crystal Palace in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Jason David Ian Puncheon [1]
Date of birth	(1986-06-18) 18 June 1986 (age 38) [2]
Place of birth	Croydon, England
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) [2]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Akritas Chlorakas (head coach)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2003–2004	Wimbledon	8	(0)
2004–2006	Milton Keynes Dons	26	(1)
2006	Fisher Athletic	1	(0)
2006	Lewes	1	(0)
2006–2008	Barnet	78	(15)
2008–2010	Plymouth Argyle	6	(0)
2008	→ Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	9	(1)
2009	→ Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	18	(3)
2009–2010	→ Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	24	(7)
2010–2014	Southampton	74	(9)
2010–2011	→ Millwall (loan)	7	(5)
2011	→ Blackpool (loan)	11	(3)
2011	→ Queens Park Rangers (loan)	2	(0)
2013–2014	→ Crystal Palace (loan)	20	(3)
2014–2019	Crystal Palace	133	(12)
2019	→ Huddersfield Town (loan)	6	(0)
2019–2022	Pafos	65	(5)
2022–2023	Anorthosis Famagusta	16	(0)
2024	Kissos Kissonergas
Total		508	(64)
Managerial career
2023–2024	Peyia 2014
2024	AEZ Zakakiou
2024	Ayia Napa
2024–	Akritas Chlorakas
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jason David Ian Puncheon (born 18 June 1986) is an English football manager and former professional footballer. He is currently head coach of Cypriot Second Division club Akritas Chlorakas.

Following his goal against Everton on his Blackpool debut, he has scored in all of the top four divisions of English league football, scoring for Barnet in League Two, Milton Keynes Dons and Southampton in League One, Millwall in the Championship and Blackpool, Southampton and Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

Club career

Early career

Born in Croydon, Greater London, Puncheon began his career with Wimbledon, and moved with the team to Milton Keynes, where the club became Milton Keynes Dons in 2004. He was released in January 2006. He moved to Barnet in June of the same year, after brief spells with Fisher Athletic and Lewes. ^[3] He was named FA Cup Player of the Third Round in 2007 and the following season after scoring a succession of brilliant goals (including a last minute 35-yard free kick versus Bradford) was named in the PFA Team of the Season. ^[4]

Plymouth Argyle

Plymouth Argyle signed Puncheon from Barnet for £250,000 in 2008. He endured an unsuccessful 18-month spell at the club, making six league appearances. He was loaned to former club MK Dons three times in two years, where he scored 12 goals in 61 appearances.

Southampton

On 30 January 2010, Puncheon joined Southampton which then led to his loan deal at MK Dons to be cut short. ^[5] He scored his first goal in a 5–1 victory over Walsall, and scored again a few days later, in a 5–0 victory over Huddersfield. He was unable to contribute to Southampton winning the 2009–10 Football League Trophy as he was cup-tied. ^[6]

At the start of the 2010–11 season, he was a regular in the first team. However, when Alan Pardew lost his job just days after a 4–0 win away to Bristol Rovers, Southampton hired Nigel Adkins as manager. Under Adkins, he stayed in the first team, but found himself under increasing pressure from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for his place. Eventually Adkins lost patience with Puncheon's erratic performances, and dropped him to the bench in favour of 17-year-old Chamberlain, who was later sold to Arsenal for a reported £15m. On 16 November 2010, Puncheon moved on an emergency loan deal to Millwall. ^[7] He scored his first goal on his first game for Millwall in their 1–0 victory over Middlesbrough. ^[8] On 1 January 2011, Puncheon scored a hat-trick in the 3–0 victory over Crystal Palace. ^[9]

On 31 January 2011, Puncheon joined Blackpool on loan until the end of the season. ^[10] He made his debut, scoring a goal, at Everton on 5 February. ^[11] He scored his second goal against Chelsea on 7 March at Bloomfield Road. Puncheon re-joined the Saints after Blackpool's failed attempt to fight off relegation. ^[12] On 31 August 2011, Puncheon joined Queens Park Rangers on loan until 2 January 2012. ^{[13] [14]}

He returned to the Saints after his unsuccessful loan spell at QPR, ^[15] but on 21 January 2012, he publicly criticised executive chairman Nicola Cortese. ^[16] However just days later, it was revealed that Puncheon had apologised to Cortese and would be available for selection in the first team. ^[17] He then started the next two matches: a 1–1 draw in the FA Cup at Millwall ^[18] and a 1–1 draw in the Championship against Cardiff City. ^[19]

He scored his first goal of the 2012–13 season with a 30-yard volley in a league cup win at Stevenage. He scored his first Premier League goal for Southampton in a 4–1 home victory against Aston Villa. His second came when Southampton won 3–1 away to Queens Park Rangers. He scored his third Premier League goal in the 61st minute against Reading to secure Southampton a vital 1–0 victory and move them out of the relegation zone. His fourth was scored to give Southampton a 2–2 draw away to the champions of Europe, Chelsea. On 9 February 2013, he scored his fifth in Southampton's 3–1 home win against 2011–12 champions Manchester City.

On 1 March 2013, Puncheon signed a new contract with Southampton, expiring in 2016. ^[20]

Crystal Palace

On 21 August 2013, Puncheon signed a one-year loan with Crystal Palace. ^[21] He missed a penalty as Palace lost 2–0 away to Tottenham Hotspur on 11 January 2014, ^[22] but made up for his miss by scoring the only goal of their 1–0 win against Stoke City the following weekend. ^[23] On 31 January 2014, Puncheon made his loan spell into a permanent move, for a fee of around £1.75m. ^[24] Puncheon's three goals in January and a further three in back-to-back wins in April that lifted Palace away from the relegation zone, led boss Tony Pulis to issue a 'hands off' warning to other clubs interesting in signing Puncheon. ^[25]

On 16 August 2014, in Palace's first match of the new season away to Arsenal, Puncheon took a corner which was headed in by Brede Hangeland for the first goal of the game. He was sent off for his second booking in the 89th minute, after which Arsenal scored their winning goal. ^[26] On 17 January 2015, Puncheon scored his third goal of the season and second in as many games against Burnley in a 3–2 away win. Crystal Palace had come from 2 goals down to claim victory to boost their survival hopes. Palace manager Alan Pardew praised Puncheon's performance, describing him as "the best player on the pitch by a country mile". ^[27]

On 6 April 2015, Puncheon scored the winning goal for Crystal Palace against Manchester City. Puncheon's goal came from a freekick which went past Manchester City's goalkeeper Joe Hart. ^[28] He opened the scoring in the 2016 FA Cup Final against Manchester United with a goal in the 78th minute, but Palace went on to lose the match 2–1 after extra time. ^[29]

On 18 July 2017, Puncheon replaced Scott Dann as captain. ^[30] In January 2018, manager Roy Hodgson announced that Puncheon would play no further part in the 2017–18 season following a cruciate ligament injury sustained while playing against Manchester City. ^[31]

In May 2019, Crystal Palace issued a statement that Puncheon would leave the club at the end of the 2018–19 season after having made 169 appearances and scored 16 goals. ^[32]

Loan to Huddersfield Town

On 4 January 2019, Puncheon signed for Premier League club Huddersfield Town on loan until the end of the season. ^[33]

Cyprus

In August 2019, Puncheon completed a move to Cypriot football with Cypriot First Division side Pafos. ^[34] After three seasons with the club, he moved to Anorthosis Famagusta, where he spent one season before retiring.

After a year in management, Puncheon returned to playing in the 2024–25 season in Cypriot regional football with Kissos Kissonergas. ^[35]

Managerial career

Peyia 2014

Puncheon was appointed head coach of Cypriot Second Division club Peyia 2014 ahead of the 2023–24 season. ^[36] He left the role at the end of January in his first season.

AEZ Zakakiou

On 10 February 2024, Puncheon was appointed head coach of Cypriot First Division club AEZ Zakakiou. ^[37] He was sacked less than one month later after failing to win any of his first seven games.

Ayia Napa

On 29 October 2024, Puncheon was appointed manager of Ayia Napa on a contract until the end of the season. ^[38] On 19 November, it was announced that Puncheon's contract had been mutually terminated, having won both his games in charge with no goals conceded. ^[39]

Akritas Chlorakas

On 20 November 2024, the day after leaving Ayia Napa, Puncheon was appointed head coach of Akritas Chlorakas. ^[40]

Personal life

Puncheon is of Jamaican descent and is eligible for the Jamaica national football team. ^[41]

In December 2017, Puncheon was arrested and charged with possession of an offensive weapon, common assault, and a public order offence of "causing fear or provocation of violence" after a fight outside a nightclub in Reigate. ^{[42] [43]} On 5 January 2018, Puncheon appeared in court where he denied the charge of assault. The charge of possessing an offensive weapon was withdrawn and he was bailed to appear again in court on 4 June. ^[44] He later changed his plea to guilty and was given a community order requiring him to carry out 210 hours of unpaid work, and pay the doorman involved £250 compensation. ^[45]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition ^{[46] [47] [48]}

Club	Season	League			National cup [a]		League cup [b]		Other [c]		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Wimbledon	2003–04	First Division	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0
Milton Keynes Dons	2004–05	League One	25	1	2	0	2	0	2	0	31	1
	2005–06	League One	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	3	0
	Total		26	1	2	0	3	0	3	0	34	1
Fisher Athletic	2005–06	Isthmian League Premier	1	0	—		—		0	0	1	0
Lewes	2005–06	Conference South	1	0	—		—		0	0	1	0
Barnet	2006–07	League Two	37	5	4	1	2	0	2	0	45	6
	2007–08	League Two	41	10	5	0	1	1	1	0	48	11
	Total		78	15	9	1	3	1	3	0	93	17
Plymouth Argyle	2008–09	Championship	6	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	7	0
Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	2008–09	League One	27	4	0	0	—		2	0	29	4
	2009–10	League One	24	7	3	0	1	0	4	1	32	8
	Total		51	11	3	0	1	0	6	1	61	12
Southampton	2009–10	League One	19	3	—		—		—		19	3
	2010–11	League One	15	0	1	0	2	0	1	0	19	0
	2011–12	Championship	8	0	1	0	0	0	—		9	0
	2012–13	Premier League	32	6	1	0	1	1	—		34	7
	Total		74	9	3	0	3	1	1	0	81	10
Millwall (loan)	2010–11	Championship	7	5	—		—		—		7	5
Blackpool (loan)	2010–11	Premier League	11	3	—		—		—		11	3
Queens Park Rangers (loan)	2011–12	Premier League	2	0	—		—		—		2	0
Crystal Palace (loan)	2013–14	Premier League	20	3	2	0	0	0	—		22	3
Crystal Palace	2013–14	Premier League	14	4	0	0	0	0	—		14	4
	2014–15	Premier League	37	6	2	0	0	0	—		39	6
	2015–16	Premier League	31	2	4	1	0	0	—		35	3
	2016–17	Premier League	36	0	1	0	2	0	—		39	0
	2017–18	Premier League	10	0	0	0	2	0	—		12	0
	2018–19	Premier League	5	0	—		3	0	—		8	0
	Total		153	15	9	1	7	0	0	0	169	16
Huddersfield Town (loan)	2018–19	Premier League	6	0	1	0	—		—		7	0
Pafos	2019–20	Cypriot First Division	16	0	0	0	—		—		16	0
	2020–21	Cypriot First Division	29	4	1	0	—		—		30	4
	2021–22	Cypriot First Division	23	1	1	0	—		—		24	1
	Total		68	5	2	0	0	0	0	0	80	5
Anorthosis	2022–23	Cypriot First Division	16	0	1	0	—		—		17	0
Career total			508	64	30	2	18	2	13	1	569	69

1. Includes FA Cup, Cypriot Cup
2. Includes Football League Cup/EFL Cup
3. Includes appearances in Football League Trophy and the Football League play-offs

Managerial

As of 19 November 2024

Team	From	To	Record
			P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W%
Peyia 2014	1 July 2023	30 January 2024	18	8	3	7	25	18	+7	044.4
AEZ Zakakiou	10 February 2024	7 March 2024	7	0	2	5	4	11	−7	000.0
Ayia Napa FC	29 October 2024	19 November 2024	2	2	0	0	2	0	+2	100.0
Total			27	10	5	12	31	29	+2	037.0

Honours

Southampton

• Football League One runner-up: 2010–11 ^[49]

Crystal Palace

• FA Cup runner-up: 2015–16 ^[50]

Individual

• PFA Team of the Year: 2007–08 League Two, ^[51] 2009–10 League One ^[52]

References

1. "Updated squads for 2017/18 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
2. "Crystal Palace player profiles: Jason Puncheon". Crystal Palace F.C. Archived from the original on 14 May 2017. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
3. Hugman, Barry (2007). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2007–08. Mainstream Publishing. p. 332. ISBN   978-1-84596-246-3.
4. "Puncheon nets FA Cup player award". BBC Sport. 17 January 2007. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
5. "Puncheon joins Saints". Southampton F.C. 30 January 2010. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
6. "Lallana fit for Sunday's JPT final". football365.com. 24 August 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
7. "Jason To Join Lions". Southampton F.C. 16 November 2010. Archived from the original on 19 November 2010. Retrieved 17 November 2010.
8. "Middlesbrough 0–1 Millwall". BBC Sport. 20 November 2010. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
9. "Millwall 3–0 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. 1 January 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
10. "Holloway pounces for Puncheon". Sky Sports. 31 January 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
11. Phillips, Owen (5 February 2011). "Everton 5–3 Blackpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
12. "Relegated Puncheon back with Saints". Daily Echo. 24 May 2011. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
13. "Punch Off". Southampton F.C. 1 September 2011. Archived from the original on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
14. "QPR sign Southampton forward Jason Puncheon on loan". BBC Sport. 1 September 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
15. Hassan, Nabil (10 January 2012). "Southampton do not want to keep Jason Puncheon, says agent". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
16. "Jason Puncheon criticises Southampton chairman Nicola Cortese". BBC Sport. 23 January 2011. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
17. "Jason Puncheon settles Twitter row with Southampton. chairman". BBC Sport. 25 January 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
18. "Millwall vs Southampton". Southampton F.C. 28 January 2012. Archived from the original on 31 January 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
19. "Southampton vs Cardiff City". Southampton F.C. 31 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
20. "Jason Puncheon signs new contract at Southampton". BBC Sport. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
21. "Palace sign Puncheon on loan". Crystal Palace F.C. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
22. Abraham, Timothy (11 January 2014). "Tottenham 2–0 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
23. Chase, Graham (18 January 2014). "Crystal Palace 1–0 Stoke". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
24. "Puncheon pens permanent deal". Crystal Palace F.C. 31 January 2014.
25. "Jason Puncheon is not going anywhere warns Crystal Palace boss Pulis". London Evening Standard. 10 April 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
26. Chowdhury, Saj (16 August 2014). "Arsenal 2–1 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
27. McMath, James (17 January 2015). "Burnley 2–3 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
28. "Jason Puncheon free kick helps Crystal Palace defeat Man City". LockerDome. 6 April 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
29. Taylor, Daniel (21 May 2016). "Manchester United win FA Cup as Jesse Lingard sinks Crystal Palace". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
30. "Puncheon confirmed as Palace captain". Crystal Palace F.C. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
31. "Scott Dann and Jason Puncheon: Crystal Palace duo out for rest of season". BBC Sport. 3 January 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
32. "Jason Puncheon to depart Crystal Palace". cpfc.co.uk. 10 May 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
33. "Jason Puncheon: Huddersfield sign Crystal Palace winger on loan for rest of season". BBC Sport. 4 January 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
34. "Jason Puncheon: Ολοκλήρωσε τον ΜΠΑΜ με Jason Puncheon". Sigmalive. 6 August 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2019.
35. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/5Zsf87DuqFcBas83/
36. "Former Crystal Palace and Millwall midfielder announces retirement". South London Press. 18 June 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
37. https://www.facebook.com/100076118103857/posts/407061075174493/ ^{[ bare URL ]}
38. Conrad, Alex (29 October 2024). "Premier League cult hero becomes manager of club based in popular party town Ayia Napa". TalkSport.com. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
39. Calcutt, Robert (19 November 2024). "Premier League cult hero leaves Ayia Napa after just TWO games and 21 days – but he boasts 100 per cent winning record". TalkSport.com. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
40. "💚⚽ Welcome, Jason Puncheon! ⚽💚". akritasfc.com. 20 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
41. Collomosse, Tom (10 March 2015). "Jamaica hoping to poach Liverpool's Andre Wisdom, Tottenham's Danny Rose and Crystal Palace's Jason Puncheon for Copa America". The Independent. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
42. Aarons, Ed (18 December 2017). "Crystal Palace's Jason Puncheon charged with assault and possession of weapon". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
43. "Crystal Palace's Jason Puncheon on weapon charge". BBC News. 18 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
44. "Crystal Palace footballer Jason Puncheon denies assault". BBC News. 4 February 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
45. "Crystal Palace's Jason Puncheon admits bouncer belt attack". BBC News. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
46. "Jason Puncheon". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
47. Jason Puncheon at Soccerway. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
48. "Player details: Season 2005–2006: Jason Puncheon". SoccerFactsUK. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
49. Rollin, Glenda; Rollin, Jack, eds. (2011). Sky Sports Football Yearbook 2011–2012. London: Headline Publishing Group. pp. 39, 346–347. ISBN   978-0-7553-6231-8.
50. McNulty, Phil (21 May 2016). "Crystal Palace 1–2 Manchester United". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 May 2019.
51. "Ronaldo named player of the year". BBC Sport. 27 April 2008. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
52. "Rooney is PFA player of the year". BBC Sport. 25 April 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2018.

External links

• Jason Puncheon at Soccerbase