Conor Sammon

Conor Sammon

Sammon with the Republic of Ireland in 2013
Personal information
Full name Conor Sammon[1]
Date of birth (1986-11-06) 6 November 1986
Place of birth Dublin, Ireland
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
 Heart of Midlothian
Number 18
Youth career
Cherry Orchard
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2007 U.C.D. 69 (13)
2008 Derry City 16 (15)
2008–2011 Kilmarnock 65 (17)
2011–2012 Wigan Athletic 32 (1)
2012–2016 Derby County 84 (10)
2014–2015 → Ipswich Town (loan) 19 (1)
2015 → Rotherham United (loan) 15 (3)
2015–2016 → Sheffield United (loan) 27 (5)
2016– Heart of Midlothian 16 (1)
National team
2007 Republic of Ireland U21 3 (4)
2007 Republic of Ireland U23 1 (0)
2013 Republic of Ireland 9 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 32:12, 30 September 2016 (UTC).


Conor Sammon (born 6 November 1986) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Scottish club Heart of Midlothian.

Sammon started his professional career in the League of Ireland Premier Division with University College Dublin and Derry City. In 2008 he moved to Scottish Premier League club Kilmarnock, and in January 2011, English Premier League side Wigan Athletic signed him for £600,000. In August 2012, he moved to Derby County for £1.2 million. During his time there, he also had loans to Ipswich Town, Rotherham United and Sheffield United, before returning to Scotland by signing for Heart of Midlothian in June 2016.

Formerly an under-21 international, Sammon won 9 international caps for the Republic of Ireland, all in 2013.

Club career

UCD and Derry

Born in Dublin, Sammon started his career with Cherry Orchard.[3] He then signed a scholarship deal with U.C.D. ahead of the 2005 season.[4]

Sammon scored a hat trick in the Harding Cup final in February 2005. On 8 April 2005 he made his League of Ireland debut as a substitute at Turners Cross. His first league goal came exactly one year later when he netted a brace against Bray Wanderers at Belfield Park.

His single goal knocked Derry City out of the 2007 FAI Cup with a deft near post finish at the Brandywell.[5] Sammon was nominated for 2007 PFAI Young Player of the Year, he lost out to Mark Quigley of St Patrick's Athletic.[6]

The club's fans humorously dubbed him Sammon of college, before a number of impressive performances saw him snapped up by fellow League of Ireland side Derry City in December 2007.[7]

Kilmarnock

Sammon in action for Kilmarnock against Morton in August 2009.

After a short trial, Sammon signed a three-year deal with Kilmarnock in July 2008 for an undisclosed fee,[8] and made his debut on 9 August 2008 in a 1–0 win against Hibernian.[9] He scored his first goals for the club on 24 September 2008, scoring a brace in a 4–2 Scottish League Cup win against Aberdeen.[10] Sammon struggled in his first two seasons at the club,[11] scoring just seven times in all competitions.[12] In the 2010–11 season, his record was more prolific, scoring 18 goals in 27 games.[13] In January 2011, Sammon turned down a move to Championship club Scunthorpe United after Kilmarnock had accepted a bid of around £450,000 for him.[12] Derby County were also interested in the player.[14]

Wigan Athletic

On 31 January 2011, Sammon signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Premier League club Wigan Athletic for an undisclosed fee,[13] believed to be worth an initial £600,000,[15] after he turned down a move from Derby County.[16] He made his debut on 5 March in a 1–0 defeat against Manchester City.[17] He scored his first goal for the club in his sixth game – the second in a 3–2 win against West Ham United on 15 May.[18] His first start for the club came in the following game, a 1–0 win at Stoke City on 22 May 2011, a result which ensured Wigan's Premier League status.[19]

In the 2011–12 season, Sammon started nine games and came on as a substitute eighteen times but he failed to score a single goal.[20] On 26 December 2011, in a game at Manchester United Sammon was sent off for catching the face of Michael Carrick with his elbow, a decision which was judged as "harsh" by the BBC.[21] Wigan appealed the decision, with manager Roberto Martínez saying, "Conor did nothing wrong. You need to accept punishment when you do something wrong but this is a normal phase of play."[22] The appeal was successful and the card was rescinded.[22]

In July 2012, Sammon was again linked with a move to Derby County.[23] A fee of £1.2 million was reported to be agreed by both clubs on 12 August 2012.[24] After leaving, Sammon said of his time at Wigan: "I learned a lot from my time in the Premier League. I've got a lot of time for Roberto Martínez and the staff there. They looked after me well and gave me a great opportunity. I look back on my time there with good memories but also some frustration from not playing as much as I would have liked. Ultimately, I've had a great experience in the Premier League. I've taken lots of positives from my time there and I'm looking to use all of those during my time here at Derby."[25]

Derby County

2012–13 season

On 20 August 2012, Sammon joined Derby County on a four-year contract.[26] Derby manager Nigel Clough said of Sammon, "He is going to be a key player for us and when he plays regularly, we know he can score goals. We really like how hard he works too and that means he will fit into our squad comfortably."[26] Sammon made his Derby debut in a 2–0 defeat to Bolton Wanderers on 21 August[27] and scored his first goal for the club in a 5–1 win against Watford on 1 September.[28] After only scoring twice in his opening sixteen games for the club, Sammon was criticised by fans for a lack of goals, however Clough said he was happy with Sammon, stating the his work-rate was keeping him the starting line-up ahead of Nathan Tyson who had a better strike rate.[29] His style of play meant that he frequently held up the ball and provided and assists for teammates. Clough particularly praised his "absolutely superb" performance in the 2–1 win against Ipswich Town on 23 October, where he provided assists for Theo Robinson and Tyson.[30]

Sammon ended his drought with a brace in a 3–2 win against Birmingham City on 24 November and put his improvement of form down to his regaining confidence.[31] Early in the new year, he went on a ten-game goal drought and fans became frustrated with his performances after missing an 87th-minute penalty in Derby's 1–0 home loss to Crystal Palace on 1 March. In the next game however he scored his eighth goal of the season in a 1–1 draw at league leaders Cardiff City, and expressed frustration at his lack of goals but belief in his ability to score more despite the negative chants from the crowd.[32] In Derby's game at Leeds United on 1 April, Sammon had a goal ruled out for offside at 0–0 and missed a penalty on 73 minutes with Derby losing 1–0. He struck the post before Paul Coutts scored on the rebound, Derby eventually winning 2–1.[33] He ended an eleven-match goalless streak (9 for Derby, 2 for Ireland) with an 85th-minute winner against Millwall on the final day of the season.[34] It was only Sammon's third league goal of 2013. However, despite the criticism from supporters, Sammon was named the 61st best player in the 2012–13 Football League Championship by the Actim Index.[35]

2013–14 season and loans

Ahead of the 2013–14 season, Derby signed Chris Martin on a permanent deal after a loan, as well as adding Johnny Russell to the squad.[36] These additions saw Sammon slip down the pecking order and he was restricted to appearances from the substitute appearances in the opening stages of the season, though he did start three League Cup ties, scoring twice in a 5–0 win over Brentford on 27 August.[37] Following the sacking of Clough, Sammon was awarded his first league start of the season against Ipswich, though he was withdrawn at half-time with Derby 4–1 down in a match they eventually drew 4–4.[38] New manager Steve McClaren quickly signed Tottenham Hotspur's Simon Dawkins on loan, meaning Sammon returned to substitute appearances. Between 5 October and the end of the calendar year, Sammon appeared as a second-half substitute eleven times scoring two late winners, in a 3–2 victory at Watford[39] and a 2–1 victory against Middlesbrough on 4 December,[40] and continued in such a role as the team reached the play-offs.

Sammon joined fellow Championship team Ipswich Town on a season-long loan on 15 August 2014, managed by former Ireland national manager Mick McCarthy.[41] He made his debut the following day, replacing David McGoldrick for the final 20 minutes of a 1–0 loss away to Reading. Sammon scored only once in 20 games for the Suffolk-based team, the crucial one in a 2–1 win over former team Wigan on 22 September, after earlier missing an opportunity when set up by McGoldrick.[42]

On 15 January 2015, Sammon's loan at Portman Road was permitted to end by McCarthy, and he moved to another team in the same division, Rotherham United, until the end of the season.[43] Two days later, he made his debut for the Millers, playing the entirety of a 0–2 home loss to high-flying Bournemouth. On 27 January, he scored his first goal in a 4–2 home win over struggling Bolton Wanderers, from close range after Andy Lonergan saved from Matt Derbyshire.[44] He finished his spell at the New York Stadium with 3 goals from 15 appearances.

On 25 July 2015, Sammon joined League One club Sheffield United on loan for the whole season.[45] He scored his first goals in a 3–1 win at Peterborough United on 18 August,[46] and totalled 6 goals from 33 games, being in and out of a team also featuring Billy Sharp, Che Adams and Jose Baxter up front.

Heart of Midlothian

On 15 June 2016, Sammon returned to Scotland for the first time in five-and-a-half years, joining Heart of Midlothian on a three-year-contact after negotiating an early exit from Derby.[47]

He made his debut on 14 July in the first leg of the second qualifying round of the season's UEFA Europa League, away to Birkirkara in Malta. He started the match, having a goal disallowed for offside before later being substituted for Juanma.[48] A week later, he scored his 1st goal for the team, heading Arnaud Djoum's cross as they were eliminated in a 2–1 second-leg loss at Tynecastle.[49]

International career

Sammon in action for the Republic of Ireland against Austria in 2013.

Sammon earned his first call up to the Republic of Ireland under-21s in a qualifying match for the 2009 European Under-21 Championship against Portugal under-21s on 7 September 2007.[50] He played for the under-21s on two more occasions and also represented the under-23s in a match against Slovakia.[7]

In January 2013, Sammon was called up to the senior squad for the first time to play in a friendly against Poland on 6 February.[51][52] A day ahead of the match, Irish coach Giovanni Trapattoni named Sammon in the starting eleven[53] and he played the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 win for Ireland at the Aviva Stadium,[54] which Sammon described as "a very proud moment".[55]

On 22 March 2013, he made his competitive debut in a 0–0 draw away to Sweden in a World Cup qualifier, coming on as a substitute after 87 minutes.[56] He made his first competitive start in the following game on 26 March, playing the full 90 minutes in Ireland's 2–2 draw at home to Austria and playing a part in winning the penalty and corner kick for both of Jonathan Walters goals.[57]

Ahead of Ireland's friendly with Spain on 12 June 2013, Trapattoni suggested that Sammon and his Derby team-mate Jeff Hendrick should be playing in the Premier League: "they play Championship, and I have to ask why when I see the games in the Premier League and the way they play with us. Quality is quality."[58] Derby manager Nigel Clough was annoyed by his comments, saying that: "We don't really think it is his place to be commenting on things like that... We can take it as a backhanded compliment, in some ways."[59]

Career statistics

Club

As of 20 August 2016
Club Season League[A] FA Cup League Cup Other[B] Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
U.C.D. 2005 7000200090
2006 317301100358
2007 3164342003911
Total 69137373008319
Derry City 2008 163202400207
Total 163202400207
Kilmarnock 2008–09[60] 171003200203
2009–10[61] 251212200294
2010–11[62] 23151033002718
Total 65173187007625
Wigan Athletic 2010–11[62] 7100000071
2011–12[20] 250101000270
Total 321101000341
Derby County 2012–13[63] 458210000479
2013–14[64] 382203200434
2014–15[65] 1000000010
Total 84104132009113
Ipswich Town 2014–15[65] 191100000201
Total 191100000201
Rotherham 2014–15[65] 153000000153
Total 153000000153
Sheffield United 2015–16[66] 275311020336
Total 275311020336
Hearts 2016–17[67] 161001041212
Total 161001041212
Career totals 3235319623166137176
A. ^ The "League" column constitutes appearances and goals (including those as a substitute) in the League of Ireland and the Football League.
B. ^ The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals (including those as a substitute) in the play-offs.

International

As of 10 September 2013.
Republic of Ireland national team
YearAppsGoals
201390
Total90

References

  1. ↑ "Professional retain list & free transfers 2012/13" (PDF). The Football League. 18 May 2013. p. 14. Retrieved 16 July 2014.
  2. ↑ "Connor Sammon Bio, Stats, News". Derby County F.C. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  3. ↑ "Dicker eyes national call-up as life gets better by the seaside". Independent.ie. 6 March 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  4. ↑ "UCD Sport". 17 November 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  5. ↑ Derry City 0–1 UCD RTÉ Sport, 21 September 2007
  6. ↑ PFAI and Ford announce nominees for annual awards FAI, 12 November 2007
  7. 1 2 "Sammon delight at joining Derry". BBC Sport. 8 December 2007. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  8. ↑ "Killie pip Accies to sign Sammon". BBC Sport. 28 July 2008. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  9. ↑ "Player Profile: Conor Sammon". Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  10. ↑ "Kilmarnock 4–2 Aberdeen". BBC Sport. 24 September 2008. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  11. ↑ "I wish Conor Sammon was lining up for Accies and not Killie, admits Hamilton stopper David Elebert". The Daily Record. 10 November 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  12. 1 2 "Conor Sammon turns down Scunthorpe move". BBC Sport. 18 January 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  13. 1 2 "Wigan Athletic sign Kilmarnock striker Conor Sammon". BBC Sport. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  14. ↑ "Derby County monitor Kilmarnock striker Conor Sammon". BBC Sport. 28 January 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  15. ↑ McDonnell, Daniel (1 February 2011). "Wigan secure Sammon deal as Reid heads for Blackpool". Independent.ie. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  16. ↑ "Derby County owners remain committed – Tom Glick". BBC Sport. 3 February 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  17. ↑ "Man City 1–0 Wigan". BBC Sport. 5 March 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  18. ↑ BBC Sport (15 May 2011). "Wigan 3 – 2 West Ham". Retrieved 2 September 2011.
  19. ↑ "Stoke 0 – 1 Wigan". BBC Sport. 22 May 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  20. 1 2 Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2011/2012". Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  21. ↑ "Man Utd 5 – 0 Wigan". BBC Sport. 26 December 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  22. 1 2 "Wigan Athletic win appeal over Conor Sammon red card". BBC Sport. 29 December 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  23. ↑ "Potential Derby County catch Conor Sammon: Player profile". Derby Telegraph. 10 June 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  24. ↑ "Con your way, son: Wigan will sell striker Sammon to Derby for £1.2million". Daily Mirror. 12 August 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  25. ↑ BBC Sport (20 August 2012). "Conor Sammon joins Derby County from Wigan Athletic". Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  26. 1 2 dcfc.co.uk (20 August 2012). "Derby Net Sammon". Derby County F.C. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  27. ↑ dcfc.co.uk (21 August 2012). "Bolton Wanderers 2–0 Derby County". Derby County F.C. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  28. ↑ BBC Sport (1 September 2012). "Derby 5 – 1 Watford". BBC News. Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  29. ↑ thisisderbyshire.co.uk (24 November 2012). "Conor Sammon's work-rate keeps him in Derby County's front line". Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  30. ↑ "Ipswich 1 – 2 Derby". BBC Sport. 23 October 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  31. ↑ thisisderbyshire.co.uk (10 December 2012). "Conor Sammon's confidence rising as he finds his feet in good run of starts for Derby County". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  32. ↑ thisisderbyshire.co.uk (8 March 2013). "Striker Conor Sammon is confident he can prove critics in the Derby County crowd wrong". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  33. ↑ BBC Sport (1 April 2013). "Leeds 1 – 2 Derby". Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  34. ↑ BBC Sport (4 May 2013). "Derby 1–0 Millwall". Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  35. ↑ "Rams Six of the Best". dcfc.co.uk. 16 May 2013.
  36. ↑ "Russell arrival gives Rams an extra option as one of strikers with pedigree". Derby Telegraph. 27 July 2013.
  37. ↑ "Derby 5 – 0 Brentford". BBC Sport. 27 August 2013.
  38. ↑ "Derby 4 – 4 Ipswich". BBC Sport. 2 October 2013.
  39. ↑ "Watford 2 – 3 Derby". BBC Sport. 19 October 2013.
  40. ↑ "Derby 2 – 1 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 4 December 2013.
  41. ↑ Watson, Stuart (15 August 2014). "Ipswich Town sign striker Conor Sammon on loan from Derby County". Evening Star. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
  42. ↑ "Wigan Athletic 1-2 Ipswich Town". BBC Sport. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  43. ↑ "Conor Sammon: Rotherham sign Derby County striker on loan". BBC Sport. 15 January 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  44. ↑ "Rotherham 4-2 Bolton". BBC Sport. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  45. ↑ "Sheffield United sign Billy Sharp and Conor Sammon". BBC Sport. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  46. ↑ "Peterborough United 1-3 Sheffield United". BBC Sport. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  47. ↑ McLaughlin, Brian (5 June 2016). "Hearts: Derby County's Conor Sammon agrees to Tynecastle switch". BBC Sport. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  48. ↑ "Birkirkara FC 0-0 Heart of Midlothian". BBC Sport. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  49. ↑ "Heart of Midlothian 1-2 Birkirkara FC". BBC Sport. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  50. ↑ U21 Men Season 2007–2008 Squad Profile 14 September 2007
  51. ↑ "Former Kilmarnock striker Conor Sammon wins first Ireland call-up". Scottish Daily Record. 21 January 2013.
  52. ↑ "Anthony Pilkington gets long-awaited call-up to Ireland squad". Irish Independent. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  53. ↑ "John O'Shea backs Conor Sammon to give Ireland an aerial threat". Sky Sports. 5 February 2013. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  54. ↑ BBC Sport. "R. of Ireland 2 – 0 Poland". Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  55. ↑ BBC Sport (8 February 2013). "Derby's Conor Sammon proud of Republic of Ireland start". Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  56. ↑ "David Forde bolsters Ireland's chances by keeping Sweden out". Guardian. 22 March 2013. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
  57. ↑ "Last-gasp Austria deal blow to edgy Ireland's World Cup aspirations". Guardian. 26 March 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  58. ↑ BBC Sport (9 June 2013). "Republic boss Trapattoni says Spain game is 'McCarthy chance'". Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  59. ↑ BBC Sport (21 June 2013). "Derby County: Trapattoni comments irritate Nigel Clough". Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  60. ↑ Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2008/2009". Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  61. ↑ Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2009/2010". Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  62. 1 2 Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2010/2011". Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  63. ↑ Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2012/2013". Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  64. ↑ Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2013/2014". Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
  65. 1 2 3 Soccerbase. "Games played by Conor Sammon in 2014/2015". Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
  66. ↑
  67. ↑

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