Justin Whittle

Football player infobox
playername = Justin Whittle
fullname = Justin Whittle
nickname = Sarge, Judder
height = height|ft=6|in=1
dateofbirth = Birth date and age|1971|3|18|mf=y
cityofbirth = Derby
countryofbirth = England
currentclub = Harrogate Town
clubnumber = TBA
position = Centre Back
years = 1993-1994
1994
1994-1998
1998-2004
2004-2008
2008-
clubs = Army
Celtic
Stoke City
Hull City
Grimsby Town
Harrogate Town
caps(goals) = 00? (?) 000 (0) 079 (1) 193 (2) 131 (3)
007 (1)
pcupdate =20:10, 17 July 2008 (UTC) |

Justin Whittle is a professional football player currently playing for Harrogate Town and is a former member of the Royal Army Pay Corps in the British Army. He has captained both Hull City and Grimsby Town.

Hull City

Justin spent six seasons at Hull City and was a firm fans' favourite there. [ [http://www.hullcityafc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10338~640167,00.html The Top 100 Tigers | Hull City | News | News | News ] ] He was recruited by Warren Joyce in 1998 while City were battling relegation from the Football League and became an integral part of the team. He left after captaining the promotion-winning 2003-04 side - he was offered a new contract at Hull, but with no guarantee of first-team football he chose to accept an offer from Grimsby Town instead. Due to his cult status at Hull, his departure led to widespread criticism of manager Peter Taylor from the fans. Taylor however delivered a second promotion the following season, but many fans still wished that Whittle had still been there to be a part of this success. Fact|date=June 2008

Grimsby Town

Whittle joined Grimsby in time for the start of the 2004-05 season after it became apparent that first team opportunities would be limited at Hull due to an influx of new players and that he would lose the captaincy as a result. After an average first season with Grimsby, Whittle went from strength to strength, and provided a commanding force at the back for his club. His efforts in the 2005-06 season saw the club make an appearance at the Millennium Stadium in the play-offs, and go on an impressive run in the Carling Cup where the club defeated Derby County and Tottenham Hotspur before making an exit at the hands of Newcastle United. After playing in the heart of defence with many different players at the club it was surprisingly his partnership with Nick Fenton in the 2006-07 season that caught the eyes of the club's supporters. Despite the club struggling in the league, Whittle was voted "Player of The Season" for his efforts and earned himself a 1 year contract extension. It was apparent from the start of the following season that Whittle was to play a smaller or less important role in the club's affairs. The number 6 shirt he had held since he arrived was stripped of him and he was listed as number 15 in the squad. Fitness and injury worries plagued Whittle and when fit, he was often named as a substitute playing second fiddle to the likes of Nick Fenton, Ryan Bennett and Rob Atkinson. As well as this Whittle was not used in the club's Wembley appearance in the Johnstones Paint Trophy final in March. In April 2008 it was decided by the club that they would not offer Justin Whittle an extension to his contract and he left on good terms in May after playing some of his best football with the Mariners.

The Alan Shearer Incident

During a Carling Cup tie on 26 October 2005 in a game against Newcastle United game that was broadcast live on Sky television, Whittle was involved in a series of incidents with former England captain Alan Shearer. Whittle was caught by Shearer's elbow when both were competing for a high ball and the opposite happened a few minutes later after Whittle seemingly sought revenge. Angry words were exchanged after the final whistle. Neither incident was deemed worthy of a caution from the referee. Not surprisingly, both sets of fans saw it differently with Newcastle fans backing Shearer [ [http://www.nufc.com/2005-06html/2005-10-26grimsby-a.html nufc.com match report] ] and Grimsby fans backing Whittle. [ [http://www.codalmighty.com/site/ca.php?page=0506/newcastle-h-lc/report&return_to_0506=0506/newcastle-h-lc codalmighty.com match report] ] Although initially threatened by Newcastle, no action was taken after the game. British newspapers like The Guardian [ [http://football.guardian.co.uk/Match_Report/0,,-58177,00.html Guardian match report] ] and The Times [ [http://football.guardian.co.uk/Match_Report/0,,-58177,00.html Times match report] ] seem to favour Shearer because he appeared to offer an apology after he hurt Whittle, though they do not report that while appearing to give this apology he allegedly told Whittle "There's plenty more where that came from".

First-team chances have become increasingly limited for Whittle in 2007-08, and consequently his contract with Grimsby will not be renewed and he will be free to leave the club at the end of the season. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/g/grimsby_town/7344368.stm BBC SPORT | Football | My Club | Grimsby Town | Mariners release defender Whittle ] ]

Harrogate Town

In the summer of 2008 Whittle signed for Blue Square North side Harrogate Town. [cite web|url=http://www.harrogatetown.com/cgi-script/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=Latest%20News%2edb&command=viewone&id=493&op=t|title=Whittle Signs Up!|date=2008-06-24|publisher=Harrogate Town OWS|accessdate=2008-06-25]

Honours

Hull City
*Nationwide Division Three runner-up: 2003–04

Grimsby Town
*Supporters Player of the Year Title winner: 2006–07

References and notes

External links

*soccerbase|id=8482|name=Justin Whittle
* [http://www.ambernectar.org/herowhittle.shtml Justin Whittle article] at Amber Nectar
* [http://www.codalmighty.com/site/ca.php?page=0708/profiles/justin_whittle Profile of Justin Whittle] at codalmighty.com