John Rankin (footballer)

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John Rankin
Personal information
Full name John Rankin
Date of birth (1983-06-27) 27 June 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth Bellshill, Scotland
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Position(s) Central Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Dundee United
Number 8
Youth career
2000–2003 Manchester United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2006 Ross County 101 (17)
2006–2008 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 49 (9)
2008–2011 Hibernian 100 (6)
2011– Dundee United 148 (12)
International career‡
2006 Scotland B 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:13, 31 October 2015 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 30 June 2011

John Rankin (born 27 June 1983 in Bellshill, Scotland) is a Scottish footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Scottish Premiership club Dundee United. Rankin has previously played for Ross County, Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Hibernian. He represented Scotland B once, in 2006.

Club career

Early career

Rankin began his career with English Premier League club Manchester United, but did not make any first team appearances.[1] While at Manchester United, Rankin was sent to Corinthians, along with Ben Muirhead, by Alex Ferguson, to gain experience at Manchester United in the near future. However, his time there was a disaster, as he spoke about how both players struggled for food while they were there:

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We got up one day and had our breakfast but then ate no lunch and no dinner. The day after we had NOTHING to eat. Our next meal was lunch the following day. We hadn’t eaten for two days and had been at six training sessions so it was a struggle. The other players knew where to go for food but we couldn’t communicate with anyone.

He also spoke about the poverty he had seen in his time in Brazil:

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One of my main memories is the poverty in the place. I saw people living in wooden sheds and kids begging. The children hunted in packs for food. The kids hung lollipops over your wing mirror if you stopped at traffic lights and if you took them off they’d ask for money. That’s how bad it was. I’ve young children myself now and it’s not right for a boy of eight to have to beg. It was a reality check. I was only 18 and it was heart breaking. It really opened my eyes.[2]

After unsuccessful trials with a number of Scottish Premier League sides,[3] he joined Scottish First Division side Ross County in 2003, going on to make over 100 league appearances for the Dingwall club and receiving two league Player of the Year awards.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle

He moved to Highland derby rivals Inverness Caledonian Thistle for a reported fee of £65,000 in 2006, making him one of several players to have played for both Highland clubs. He made 55 appearances and scored nine goals, including a stunning last minute winner against Rangers on 27 December 2006.[4]

Hibernian

In January 2008, Rankin moved to Hibernian for a fee of £110,000.[1] Rankin scored the opening goal in a 2–0 win for Hibs against Celtic on 7 December 2008.[5] The goal was notable because it was scored from a yard in front of the centre circle, approximately 45 yards from the goal.[5] The shot dipped and deceived the Celtic goalkeeper, Polish international Artur Boruc.[5] After the game, Rankin described the shot as a "squiggler".[5]

Rankin was a candidate for the Hibs captaincy after Rob Jones left for Scunthorpe United in the summer of 2009.[6] New manager John Hughes decided to give the armband to Chris Hogg, however, with Ian Murray to serve as Hogg's vice captain.[7] Rankin fell out of favour under Colin Calderwood and was told in March 2011 that his contract would not be renewed.[8][9]

Dundee United

Rankin signed a two-year deal with Dundee United on 17 May 2011.[10] Rankin scored five goals for United as the team finished fourth in the 2011–12 Scottish Premier League season and qualified for the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League.[11] In June 2012, Rankin agreed an extended contract with United.[11] Rankin was appointed chairman of PFA Scotland in February 2013, replacing Jack Ross.[12] On 26 February 2014, Rankin agreed a two-year contract extension.[13]

International career

Rankin represented Scotland B once, in a match against Turkey B in 2006, while he was a Ross County player.[14]

Awards

Career statistics

As of 2 May 2015[15][16]
Club Season League Cup League Cup Other Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Ross County 2003–04 35 5 1 0 2 0 2 1 40 6
2004–05 30 0 3 1 2 0 3 0 38 1
2005–06 36 12 3 0 2 0 2 1 43 13
Total 101 17 7 1 6 0 7 2 121 20
Inverness CT 2006–07 34 6 3 0 0 0 0 0 37 6
2007–08 15 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 18 3
Total 49 9 3 0 3 0 0 0 55 9
Hibernian 2007–08 17 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 19 2
2008–09 33 3 1 0 1 0 2 0 37 3
2009–10 33 0 3 0 2 0 0 0 38 0
2010–11 17 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 20 1
Total 100 6 7 0 4 0 3 0 114 6
Dundee United 2011–12 38 4 3 1 2 0 2 0 45 5
2012–13 35 2 4 0 2 0 2 0 43 2
2013–14 35 2 5 0 3 0 0 0 43 2
2014–15 26 1 2 0 3 0 0 0 31 1
Total 134 9 14 1 10 0 4 0 162 10
Career total 384 41 31 2 23 0 14 2 452 45

References

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