Jason Lee (footballer)

Football player infobox
playername = Jason Lee


fullname = Jason Benedict Lee
height = height|ft=6|in=3
nickname = Pineapple Head
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1971|5|9|df=y
cityofbirth = Forest Gate
countryofbirth = England
currentclub =Mansfield Town
clubnumber = 10
position = Striker
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 1989–1991
1991
1991–1993
1993–1994
1994–1997
1997
1997
1997–1998
1998–2000
2000
2000–2003
2003–2004
2004–2006
2006
2006–2008
2008–
clubs = Charlton Athletic
→ Stockport County (loan)
Lincoln City
Southend United
Nottingham Forest
→ Charlton Athletic (loan)
→ Grimsby Town (loan)
Watford
Chesterfield
→ Peterborough United (loan)
Peterborough United
Falkirk
Boston United
Northampton Town
Notts County
Mansfield Town
caps(goals) = 01 0(0)
02 0(0)
93 (21)
24 0(3)
76 (14)
08 0(3)
07 0(2)
37 (11)
28 0(1)
13 0(5)
65 (11)
29 0(8)
56 (12)
11 0(1)
69 (16)
05 0(2)
nationalyears =
nationalteam =
nationalcaps(goals) =
pcupdate = 1 August 2008
ntupdate =

Jason Lee (born 9 May 1971 in Forest Gate) is an English footballer. He enjoyed a brief period of notoriety in the mid-1990s while he played for Nottingham Forest, where he was best remembered for his haircut earning him the nickname "Pineapple Head". At present he plays for Mansfield Town.

Playing career

Lee began his career at Lincoln City and later moved to Southend United. He moved to Nottingham Forest in 1994. Initially Lee failed to crack his way into Forest's first team. However the departure of Stan Collymore to Liverpool saw him feature for the first team. In the 1994–95 season he scored eight league goals in 28 games.

Lee was transferred to Watford in 1997 for £200,000 - the same fee paid by Forest three years earlier - and played in their 1997–98 Second Division championship-winning side, scoring ten goals. However, Lee's refusal to up-root his family from Nottingham caused tension with manager Graham Taylor, who sold him to Chesterfield early in the 1998–99 season for £250,000.

Since then, he has played for Peterborough (2000-2003), Falkirk (2003-2004), Boston (2004-2006). In January 2006 Lee joined Northampton Town on a free transfer. [cite news
date=2006-01-09
url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/n/northampton_town/4580716.stm
title=Northampton recruit striker Lee
publisher=BBC Sport
accessdate=2007-08-29] . He was part of the Northampton side that won promotion from League Two, appearing 11 times for the Cobblers and scoring one goal. However he was released at the end of the season and subsequently joined Aldershot. His stay at the Shots was a brief one, and in June 2006 he moved to Notts County, and was Team Captain for the 2007–08 season. It was announced on BBC East Midlands Today, during a feature presented by the player, that he will not be retained by the club for the 2008/09 campaign. [cite news
date=2008-05-08
url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/notts_county/7389460.stm
title= Lee heads Notts County exit list
publisher=BBC Sport
accessdate=2008-05-08]

Following his release from the Magpies, signed for Mansfield Town on 1 August 2008.

Fantasy Football

Lee's fame however did not derive so much from his talent as the decision of Frank Skinner and David Baddiel to lampoon him, obsessively taking shots at his "pineapple" haircut on their laddish football chat show "Fantasy Football League". Following repeated ridicule on the programme, Lee suffered a torrent of chants and abuse from the terraces, including the chant "He's got a pineapple, on his head, he's got a pineapple, on his head!" (to the tune of "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands" by Laurie London) made famous by Skinner and Baddiel. The main focus of Skinner and Baddiel's ridicule however was his perceived inability to hit the target despite being a centre forward, the show regularly featuring clips of him spurning seemingly easy chances. The joke was extended to include dramatisations of Lee's suggested ineptitude in accomplishing targets, such as failing to drop sugarcubes into a cup of tea and similar.

References

External links

*soccerbase|id=4462|name=Jason Lee
* [http://www.uptheposh.com/people/845/ Profile] at [http://www.uptheposh.com/ UpThePosh! The Peterborough United Database]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/notts_county/6356963.stm The Life and Times of Jason Lee]

Persondata
NAME = Jason Lee
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Footballer
DATE OF BIRTH = 9 May 1971
PLACE OF BIRTH = Forest Gate, England
DATE OF DEATH =
PLACE OF DEATH =