Mark O'Brien (footballer, born 1992)

Mark O'Brien
Personal information
Full name Mark Leo O'Brien[1]
Date of birth (1992-11-20) 20 November 1992[1]
Place of birth Dublin, Ireland
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Playing position Centre back
Club information
Current team
 Southport
(on loan from Luton Town)
Number 24
Youth career
2000–2008 Cherry Orchard
2008–2010 Derby County
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2015 Derby County 32 (0)
2014–2015 → Motherwell (loan) 19 (0)
2015– Luton Town 6 (0)
2016 → Southport (loan) 7 (1)
2016– → Southport (loan) 5 (0)
National team
Republic of Ireland U17
2010–2011 Republic of Ireland U19 2 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:27, 4 October 2016 (UTC).


Mark Leo O'Brien (born 20 November 1992) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for National League club Southport, on loan from League Two club Luton Town.

Club career

Derby County

O'Brien started his career at Cherry Orchard, before he was spotted by Derby County scouts in the Dublin & District Schoolboy League.[3]

After signing for Derby, O'Brien became a regular in the club's under-18 team in the 2008–09 season,[3] before he made his debut for Derby County as a 64th-minute substitute for Lewin Nyatanga, in a 3–1 defeat away to Watford on 3 May 2009.[4] He was earlier named Derby County Academy Player of the Year at a club awards ceremony.[3] He also won the 2009 Republic of Ireland Under-16 Player of the Year award.[3]

In November 2009, it was announced by Derby County that O'Brien had successfully undergone heart surgery to correct a valve problem, and that he would be able to resume his career following a three to four-month recovery period. The problem had been discovered during a routine medical scan for academy players.[5] The operation was carried out at Leicester's Glenfield Hospital.[3] Following a successful recovery, he was an unused substitute in Derby's final first-team game of the 2009–10 season as they ran out 2–0 winners against Cardiff City at Pride Park.[6]

In the 2010–11 season, O'Brien returned to being a regular in the club's under-18 team[3] and reserve team, and was also part of The Central League Central Division title winning team.[7] O'Brien appeared twice for the first-team, both as late substitutes in league games against Barnsley and Ipswich Town in October and November 2010 respectively.[8]

On 6 August 2011, O'Brien made an appearance in the first game of 2011–12 season in a 2–1 home win over Birmingham City, replacing the injured Russell Anderson in the 35th minute.[9] O'Brien continued to start in subsequent league games against Watford, Blackpool and Doncaster Rovers,[10] as Derby won their opening four league games for the first time since 1905.[11] However, this run was ended against Burnley, as an O'Brien defensive error contributed to a 2–1 defeat.[12] On 13 September 2011, O'Brien signed a new four-year contract, extending his stay at Pride Park until the summer of 2015.[13] He made 21 appearances for the club until he was ruled out for the season in December, after damaging his cruciate ligaments in training.[14] O'Brien won the Contribution to the Community Award at Derby County's 2012 awards night.[3]

On 3 July 2012, O'Brien visited a specialist to see if he would be given the all clear to take part in Derby County's 2012–13 pre-season training.[3] O'Brien was given clearance to take part in pre-season training by the specialist[15] and after the sale of Jason Shackell, Derby manager Nigel Clough stated his faith in O'Brien's ability at Championship level.[16] He returned to full training after Derby arrived back from their summer break at Moor Farm on 12 July 2012.[17] O'Brien made his return in a 1–0 pre-season victory over Burton Albion at the Pirelli Stadium, replacing captain Richard Keogh in the 77th minute.[17] Despite playing in several pre-season friendlies including a start at Northampton Town; O'Brien was unable to feature at the start of season due to swelling on his knee.[18] Nigel Clough said he would be cautious over O'Brien's return to action, initially with the new under-21 team.[18] O'Brien made his return on 1 October 2012, playing 60 minutes for the under-21's against Crewe Alexandra.[19] He made his return to first-team action 10 months after his last appearance on 27 October 2012, as a 72nd-minute substitute in a 3–0 defeat to Peterborough United.[20] O'Brien made his return to the starting lineup for the first time in 13 months in Derby's 2–0 win over Bristol City on 15 December 2012.[21] His "unbelievable character" during the match was praised by manager Nigel Clough as he played 87 minutes in the game and was a key factor in Derby's first clean sheet in seven games.[21] Clough said that "He was tremendous. He was struggling at half-time, so we said 'just get back out for 10 or 15 minutes.' He was then struggling at the 70-minute mark but we told him 'you're going to have to stay on.' He then succumbed to cramp in the end but he showed unbelievable character to play for so long because 13 months since a start is a long, long time at this level."[21] O'Brien kept his place in the team until he picked up an injury in the warm-up in Derby's game at Sheffield Wednesday on 9 February 2013.[22] O'Brien was removed from the starting lineup and was later ruled out for a month due to knee joint injury.[23] In late March, O'Brien was ruled out for a further six months after undergoing knee surgery.[24]

O'Brien, as expected, missed the 2013–14 pre-season training due to his injury, but was on course to return in the autumn.[25]

On 15 August 2014, O'Brien signed for Scottish Premiership club Motherwell on loan until January 2015.[26] He made his debut on 30 August 2014, in Motherwell's 1–0 defeat to St Johnstone.[27] On 5 January 2015, O'Brien's loan was extended until the end of the season.[28] He played a total of 21 games for Motherwell over the course of the 2014–15 season.[29]

In May 2015, Derby announced that O'Brien's contract would not be renewed.[30]

Luton Town

On 9 July 2015, O'Brien signed a two-year contract with League Two club Luton Town.[31] He made his debut for the club in a 3–1 home win over newly promoted Championship club Bristol City in the League Cup first round on 11 August 2015.[32] O'Brien made eight further appearances in the 2015–16 season, the last of which came in a 4–3 home defeat to Carlisle United on 24 November 2015.[33]

On 10 May 2016, Luton announced that O'Brien had been placed on the transfer list.[34][35]

Southport (loan)

On 4 March 2016, O'Brien joined National League club Southport on a one-month loan deal.[36] He made his debut for the club on the following day in a 1–0 home defeat to FC Halifax Town.[37] O'Brien scored his first goal for the club on 12 March 2016, scoring Southport's third goal in a 3–3 draw with Welling United.[38] He made the last appearance of his loan spell on 2 April 2016 in a 2–2 draw with Woking.[39] The following day, O'Brien returned to Luton after his loan deal expired.[40]

On 9 September 2016, O'Brien returned to Southport on a three-month loan deal until 10 December.[41]

International career

O'Brien has been capped youth level for his native Ireland, at under-19 level.[42] O'Brien was called up as standby at under-21 level for a game against Liechtenstein U21 in November 2011.[42] In January 2013, he was called up to the under-21 squad for the first time for a friendly game against Netherlands U21 on 6 February.[42]

Career statistics

As of match played 4 October 2016
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Derby County 2008–09[4] Championship 100000—10
2009–10[43] Championship 000000—00
2010–11[8] Championship 200000—20
2011–12[10] Championship 2000010—210
2012–13[44] Championship 902000—110
2013–14[45] Championship 0000000000
2014–15[29] Championship 000000—00
Total 320201000350
Motherwell (loan) 2014–15[29] Scottish Premiership 1901010—210
Luton Town 2015–16[33] League Two 6000201[lower-alpha 1]090
Southport (loan) 2015–16[46] National League 71———71
2016–17[46] National League 5000—0050
Total 12100—00121
Career total 691304010771
  1. ↑ Appearance in Football League Trophy

Honours

Derby County

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 "Mark O'Brien". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "Mark O'Brien". ESPN FC. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Derby County player Mark O'Brien: Player profile". Derby Telegraph. 3 July 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Rams Academy ace O'Brien has heart surgery". Derby Telegraph. 4 November 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  6. ↑ "Derby 2–0 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 2 May 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Mark O'Brien". Derby County F.C. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
  8. 1 2 "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  9. ↑ "Derby 2–1 Birmingham". BBC Sport. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  10. 1 2 "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  11. ↑ "The History Of Derby County". Derby County F.C. 19 May 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  12. ↑ Rae, Richard (27 August 2011). "Charlie Austin at the double as Burnley beat Derby to claim first win". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  13. ↑ "O'Brien Signs New Derby Deal". Derby County F.C. 13 September 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
  14. ↑ "Derby County defender Mark O'Brien ruled out for the season". BBC Sport. 29 December 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  15. ↑ "Nigel Clough: Young squad raring to go for new Derby County campaign". Derby Telegraph. 11 July 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  16. ↑ "Derby County have sold Jason Shackell to Championship rivals Burnley and are close to new signing". Derby Telegraph. 5 July 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  17. 1 2 "O'Brien Injury Boost". Derby County F.C. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  18. 1 2 "Setback for Derby County defender Mark O'Brien on road to fitness". Derby Telegraph. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  19. ↑ "Derby County U21 4–2 Crewe Alexandra U21". Derby County F.C. 1 October 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  20. ↑ "Peterborough 3–0 Derby". BBC Sport. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  21. 1 2 3 "Mark O'Brien digs deep to play key role in Derby County's victory over Bristol City". Derby Telegraph. 17 December 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  22. ↑ Nicholson, Steve (22 March 2013). "Derby County are sweating on Mark O'Brien's knee injury". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  23. ↑ "Break for O'Brien". Derby County F.C. 14 February 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  24. ↑ "O'Brien Undergoes Knee Surgery". Derby County F.C. 17 March 2013. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  25. ↑ "Defender Mark O'Brien on track for autumn return". Derby Telegraph. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  26. ↑ "'Well take Derby's O'Brien on loan". Motherwell F.C. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
  27. ↑ McGhee, Phil (30 August 2014). "Motherwell 0–1 St Johnstone". Motherwell F.C. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  28. ↑ "Mark O'Brien extends his loan". Motherwell F.C. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  29. 1 2 3 "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  30. ↑ "Derby County Confirm End Of Season Retained List". Derby County F.C. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  31. ↑ "Mark O'Brien: Luton Town sign ex-Derby defender". BBC Sport. 9 July 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  32. ↑ "Luton Town 3–1 Bristol City". Luton Town F.C. 11 August 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  33. 1 2 "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  34. ↑ "Hatters release list published". Luton Town F.C. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  35. ↑ "Luton Town: Jake Howells and Alex Lawless among nine released". BBC Sport. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  36. ↑ "Mark O'Brien: Southport bring in Luton defender on loan". BBC Sport. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  37. ↑ "Southport 0–1 FC Halifax Town". BBC Sport. 5 March 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  38. ↑ "Southport 3–3 Welling United". BBC Sport. 12 March 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  39. ↑ "Southport 2–2 Woking". BBC Sport. 2 April 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  40. ↑ "Mark O'Brien's loan spell concluded with return to Luton Town". Southport F.C. 3 April 2016. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016.
  41. ↑ Simmonds, Mike (9 September 2016). "Hatters defender heads to Southport on loan". Luton Today. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  42. 1 2 3 "Republic of Ireland call-up for Derby County youngster O'Brien". Burton Mail. 22 January 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  43. ↑ "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  44. ↑ "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  45. ↑ "Games played by Mark O'Brien in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
  46. 1 2 "M. O'Brien". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
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