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Chris Brunt
Personal information
Full name	Christopher Brunt
Date of birth	14 December 1984 (1984-12-14) (age 25)
Place of birth	Belfast, Northern Ireland
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position	Winger
Club information
Current club	West Bromwich Albion
Number	11
Senior career1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
2002–2004 2004 2004–2007 2007–	Middlesbrough → Sheffield Wednesday (loan) Sheffield Wednesday West Bromwich Albion	000 0(0) 006 0(2) 134 (21) 081 (19)
National team2
2005–2006 2004–	Northern Ireland U21 Northern Ireland	002 0(1) 025 0(1)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16:58, 30 November 2009 (UTC). 2 National team caps and goals correct as of 18:37, 16 October 2009 (UTC). * Appearances (Goals)

Christopher "Chris" Brunt (born 14 December 1984 in Belfast) is a Northern Irish association footballer who plays for Football League Championship side West Bromwich Albion.

Early life

Chris grew up in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where he attended Newtownbreda Primary School. He then went on to study at Wellington College, a grammar school in Belfast. He began his career playing for St. Andrews FC youth football team.

Club career

Middlesbrough

Chris Brunt had trials with both English professional teams Manchester United and Middlesbrough, eventually signing for Middlesbrough, but he failed to break into the first team.

Sheffield Wednesday

He moved to Sheffield Wednesday in March 2004 on an initial short-term deal. He said his reason for the move was that his favourite day of the week was Wednesday and he believed it to be destiny. A permanent free transfer followed soon after as Brunt signed a two-year contract at Wednesday.^[1] In 2004-05, his first full season at the club, Brunt helped Wednesday achieve promotion to the Championship by scoring 5 goals. In July 2005 he agreed a one-year extension to his existing contract.^[2]

He went on to hit seven goals the following season, finishing the campaign as the club's top goalscorer. During the 2006-07 campaign Brunt passed the 100 appearance mark for Wednesday, making him the club's most experienced player at the time. His impressive displays during the 2006-07 season Brunt linked with a move away from Hillsborough. With only one year remaining on his contract, negotiations between Brunt and Wednesday broke down in July 2007, due to what the club described as 'excessive wage demands'.^[3]

West Bromwich Albion

West Bromwich Albion had a bid accepted for Brunt on 14 August 2007.^[4] They completed the signing the next day, in a £3 million four-year deal, which includes £500,000 of performance-related add-ons.^[5] Brunt made his Albion debut as a second-half substitute in a 2–0 home win over Barnsley on September 1, 2007.^[6] He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 victory away at Scunthorpe United on 22 September, 2007.^[7] Brunt's performance in the 3–0 home win against Plymouth Argyle on 1 March 2008 saw him named in the Championship Team of the Week.^[8] On 28 April 2008 Brunt scored a late equalizing goal against Southampton in a 1–1 draw; this effectively secured Albion's promotion to the Premier League because of their superior goal difference.^[9] He went on to score the free kick in West Brom's 2–0 win over QPR that sealed automatic promotion.^[10] Brunt was the clubs top scorer in the 2008/09 season, bagging 8 goals. Following the club's relegation, Brunt then signed a new three-year deal at the club. He scored his first goal of the 2009/2010 season with a goal against Peterbrough, 18 August 2009. Brunt then bagged a brace for West Brom in their 5-0 away win at Middlesbrough, one being a stunning 40 yard strike, 19 September 2009. He scored his 5th on the campaign in the 4-1 defeat of Bristol City, rounding the keeper and slotting home.

International career

Brunt has won more than 20 caps for the Northern Ireland national team. He scored his first goal for his country in February 2009, when his free-kick helped Northern Ireland to a 3–0 victory over San Marino.^[11]

Honours

Sheffield Wednesday

• Football League One play-off winners: 2004–05

West Bromwich Albion

• Football League Championship winners: 2007–08

Personal life

Brunt became a father for the first time on 1 May 2008, when his partner Cathy gave birth to a baby boy named Charlie.^[12][13] Brunt drives a Nissan Micra.^[14]

References

External links

• Chris Brunt player profile at wba.co.uk
• Chris Brunt player profile at swfc.co.uk
• Chris Brunt career stats at Soccerbase
• Chris Brunt profile on the Irish FA website