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Zander Diamond

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by WEHarding (talk | contribs) at 16:12, 15 March 2018 (Minor edits to Stats at Mansfield Town). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Zander Diamond
Diamond in 2014
Personal information
Full name Alexander Kevin Diamond[1]
Date of birth (1985-03-12) 12 March 1985 (age 39)
Place of birth Alexandria, Scotland
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Mansfield Town
Number 6
Youth career
0000–2003 Aberdeen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2011 Aberdeen 205 (16)
2011–2012 Oldham Athletic 23 (2)
2012–2014 Burton Albion 47 (5)
2014 → Northampton Town (loan) 14 (1)
2014–2017 Northampton Town 113 (2)
2017– Mansfield Town 16 (0)
International career
2004–2006 Scotland U21 11 (1)
2004 Scotland B 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:09, 15 March 2018 (UTC)

Alexander Kevin "Zander" Diamond (born 12 March 1985) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Mansfield Town.

He began his career with Scottish Premier League club Aberdeen, before moving to Oldham Athletic in 2011; he has since played for Burton Albion, Northampton Town and Mansfield Town in England. He won eleven caps for Scotland under-21s.

Club career

Aberdeen

Raised in the west of Scotland in Dumbarton,[2] Alexandria-born Diamond graduated from the youth team at Aberdeen in his first full season and made his League debut against Dundee United at Tannadice, coming on as a substitute at half time in 2003–04 season. He made his first start for the club in a Scottish League Cup match v Dumbarton on September 2004. Later in the same season, he scored his first senior goal for the club in a 3–1 win against Kilmarnock at Pittodrie. He won the "Young Player of the Month" award for February.

In the 2005–06 season, Jimmy Calderwood was appointed Aberdeen manager. He quickly tied Diamond down on a long-term contract after his partnership with Aberdeen captain Russell Anderson helped the club narrowly miss out on European qualification.[3][4]

However, in season 2007–08, Aberdeen qualified for the UEFA Cup group section after beating Dnipro on away goals. They were drawn in Group B against Panathanaikos, Lokomotiv Moscow, Atletico Madrid and FC Copenhagen. Diamond scored in the 1–1 draw against Lokomotiv Moscow, Branislav Ivanovic scoring the equaliser.[2] After qualifying from the group, they faced Bayern Munich in the last 32, drawing 2–2 at Pittodrie in the first leg. They went out on aggregate 7–3 after a 5–1 defeat in the Allianz Arena.[5] On 18 January 2009, he achieved the feat of scoring twice against Celtic in an SPL match at Pittodrie which Aberdeen won 4–2.[6][2]

Diamond made 249 appearances for Aberdeen over eight seasons, scoring 19 goals.[5]

Oldham Athletic

Having previously been expected to sign for Hearts before an ankle injury was identified,[2] on 13 July 2011 Diamond signed a one-year contract with Oldham Athletic.[7] His first goal for the club on 30 July 2011 came with a headed goal against Fleetwood Town in a pre–season friendly, which Oldham Athletic won, 1–0.[8] He made his competitive club debut on the first day of the 2011–12 season, starting the Football League match against Sheffield United.[9]

Burton Albion

On 5 June 2012, Diamond signed with League Two club Burton Albion.[10]

He made his debut against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane in the first round of the League Cup, which Burton won on penalties. Diamond scored his first goal for the club in a 6–2 home win against AFC Wimbledon. After finishing 4th, the highest in the clubs history in the Football League, they were beaten in the playoffs by eventual winners Bradford City. On 26 May, Burton called him back to play in their Play-Off Final game against Fleetwood Town. He started on the bench but came on as a sub.[5]

Northampton Town

On 21 February 2014, Diamond joined League Two side Northampton Town on loan for the remainder of the 2013–14 season.[11] On 7 May 2014, Diamond signed a three-year contract for the Cobblers after a successful loan spell with the club. The move became effective at the start of pre-season,[12] at which time he spoke of his positive experiences in English football and the relative anonymity he enjoyed compared with living in Aberdeen.[2]

He made over 100 league appearances for Northampton, experiencing a promotion as winners of League Two in 2016 and maintaining the club's status in League One in the following season. He was named the club's 'Player of the year' for 2017, but despite this he was one of several players allowed to leave when their contracts expired.[13]

Mansfield Town

Diamond joined Mansfield Town of EFL League Two on 12 May 2017.[14]

International career

Having earlier appeared for the Under-19s and Under-20s,[15] Diamond captained the Scottish under-21 international side,[4] winning 11 caps and scoring once, between 2004 and 2006.[16] He also appeared once for the B team in December 2004.[17]

Career statistics

As of match played 10 March 2018
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Aberdeen 2002–03[18] Scottish Premier League 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2003–04[19] Scottish Premier League 19 2 5 0 2 0 0 0 26 2
2004–05[20] Scottish Premier League 29 3 1 0 1 1 0 0 31 4
2005–06[21] Scottish Premier League 33 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 37 0
2006–07[22] Scottish Premier League 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 0
2007–08[23] Scottish Premier League 26 3 6 1 2 0 7 1 41 5
2008–09[24] Scottish Premier League 28 4 3 0 1 0 0 0 32 4
2009–10[25] Scottish Premier League 16 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 18 3
2010–11[26] Scottish Premier League 32 1 5 0 4 0 0 0 41 1
Total 205 16 23 1 13 1 7 1 248 19
Oldham Athletic 2011–12[27] League One 23 2 4 0 1 0 3 0 31 2
Burton Albion 2012–13[28] League Two 37 4 2 1 3 0 2 0 44 5
2013–14[29] League Two 10 1 3 0 0 0 1 0 11 1
Total 47 5 5 1 3 0 3 0 55 6
Northampton Town 2013–14[29] League Two 14 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 1
2014–15[30] League Two 21 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 23 1
2015–16[31] League Two 39 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 42 2
2016–17[32] League One 39 0 1 0 3 0 2 0 45 0
Total 113 3 4 1 6 0 2 0 125 4
Mansfield Town 2017–18[33] League Two 16 3 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0
Career total 404 29 38 3 23 1 13 1 478 34

References

  1. ^ "Professional retain list & free transfers 2012/13" (PDF). The Football League. 18 May 2013. p. 57. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e "Former Aberdeen prodigy Zander Diamond reveals why he was happy to escape Pittodrie pressure cooker for England's third tier". Daily Record. 20 July 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  3. ^ Aberdeen Football Club website Archived 15 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine, afc.co.uk; accessed 14 August 2014.
  4. ^ a b "Diamond shines brightly in captain's role for Scotland". The Independent. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Zander Diamond at Soccerbase
  6. ^ Aberdeen 4-2 Celtic, BBC Sport, 18 January 2009
  7. ^ "Oldham sign up defender Zander Diamond from Aberdeen", 14 July 2011; accessed 14 August 2014.
  8. ^ "Zander Diamond transferred from FC Aberdeen to Oldham Athletic on a free transfer", soccerfame.com; accessed 14 August 2014.
  9. ^ "Oldham v Sheffield United". BBC Sport. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
  10. ^ "Diamond celebration as Albion net Zander". Burton Mail. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
  11. ^ "Zander Diamond Signs with Northampton". Northampton Town F.C. 21 February 2014.
  12. ^ "Northampton Town Sign Zander Diamond". Northampton Town F.C. 7 May 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
  13. ^ "Player of year Diamond and goalkeeper Smith among those released by Cobblers". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 2 May 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  14. ^ "Zander Diamond: Mansfield Town sign ex-Northampton defender". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  15. ^ "Portugal trst for Under 20s". Scottish Football Association. 3 December 2003. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  16. ^ "Scotland U21 profile". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  17. ^ "Scotland B profile". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  18. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  19. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  20. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  21. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  22. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  23. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  24. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  25. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  26. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  27. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  28. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  29. ^ a b "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  30. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  31. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  32. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  33. ^ "Games played by Zander Diamond in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
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