John Thorrington
Encyclopedia
John Thorrington is a South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 soccer player who currently plays for Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...

.

Although raised in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Thorrington started his career as a youth team player in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 with Premier League side Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

. In 1999 he moved to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 and signed with Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen is a German football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the most well-known department of TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a sports club whose members also participate in athletics, gymnastics, basketball and other sports.-Origins and early years:On 27 November...

, however he failed to make the first team with either club and returned to England where he signed for Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...

. He went on to feature for Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

 as well before moving to the states where he signed with Chicago Fire in 2005.

Early career

Thorrington attended the Chadwick School
Chadwick School
Chadwick School is a nonsectarian independent K-12 day school located on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles County, California.-History:...

 in Palos Verdes Peninsula, California. Thorrington was the CIF-SS Division V Player of the Year in 1996 and 1997. After his junior year of high school and at the age of 17, Thorrington signed with Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

 in 1997. Later, he moved to Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen is a German football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the most well-known department of TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a sports club whose members also participate in athletics, gymnastics, basketball and other sports.-Origins and early years:On 27 November...

. After his time in Germany, he spent a short spell on trial with Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....

 in the 2000–2001 season.

Huddersfield Town

After failing to make a first-time appearance with Manchester United and Leverkusen, Thorrington signed with Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...

 in the summer of 2001 on a free transfer. Huddersfield had recently suffered relegation to the third tier of English football and managed by former Manchester United player Lou Macari
Lou Macari
Luigi "Lou" Macari is a Scottish former footballer and football manager of Italian descent.-Playing career:...

 handed Thorrington his full professional debut on 11 August 2001 in a 1-0 league victory over A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth is an English football club currently playing in Football League One. The club plays at Dean Court in Kings Park, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset and have been in existence since 1899....

. He scored his first Town goal 2 September 2001 in a 2-1 victory over Wycombe Wanderers
Wycombe Wanderers F.C.
Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional football team from High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, which has been promoted to Football League One after finishing third in Football League Two in the season 2010–11. The club's nicknames are "The Chairboys" and "The Blues", and they play...

. At the end of a promising first season there, he developed a hamstring injury, which led to chronic leg troubles. Thorrington said that he considers his debut with Huddersfield Town as one of his favorite moments professionally along with his debuts with the U.S. National Team and the Chicago Fire. Thorrington made 97 appearances and scoring seven time during a three-year spell with the Yorkshire club. During the 2002-2003 season Huddersfield were yet again relegated to the Third Division
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....

.

Grimsby Town

On transfer deadline day in March 2003 Thorrington signed with Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

 on a free transfer until the end of the season. He was brought to the club by Town's newly appointed manager Nicky Law
Nicky Law
Nicholas "Nicky" Law Snr is an English football manager and former player. He is the manager of Alfreton Town, and father of footballers Nicky Jr. and Josh.-Playing career:...

 along with veterans Alan Fettis and Paul Warhurst
Paul Warhurst
Paul Warhurst is an English former football player. He was primarily as a defender, but has also played in midfield or as a striker at various points in his career...

. He made his Mariners debut on 13 March 2004 in a 1-1 draw with A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth is an English football club currently playing in Football League One. The club plays at Dean Court in Kings Park, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset and have been in existence since 1899....

. Thorrington would only manage two other appearances for Grimsby but missed the end of the season due to his ongoing injury woes. Grimsby suffered relegation at the end of the 2003-2004 season, and with Law dismissed as manager at the end of the season Thorrington's contract was not renewed.

Chicago Fire

Thorrington returned to the States and signed with MLS
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...

 side the Chicago Fire in early 2005, but injury problems continued. In mid-2006, during the team's inaugural training session in its new stadium, Thorrington suffered a knee injury. Thorrington scored his first goal of the season on 21 October 2007, netting a stoppage-time strike for the Chicago Fire against the Los Angeles Galaxy
Los Angeles Galaxy
The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional soccer team, based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California, which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, and the league's second...

 that helped send the fire into the MLS Cup playoffs. Since 2007, Thorrington has become an integral part of the Chicago midfield, In 2008, he scored five goals and had two assists. Although normally a winger, in the 2009 season he played defensive midfield and attacking midfield in the absences of Logan Pause
Logan Pause
Logan Pause is an American soccer player who currently plays for Chicago Fire in Major League Soccer.-College and Amateur:...

 and Cuauhtemoc Blanco
Cuauhtémoc Blanco
Cuauhtémoc Blanco Bravo is a Mexican professional footballer currently signed for Irapuato in the Mexican Liga de Ascenso.Known for his aggressive yet charismatic personality on the field, playing most of his career as a deep-lying forward and his last years as an attacking midfielder...

.

Vancouver Whitecaps

Thorrington was revealed as a signing for Vancouver Whitecaps FC ahead of the 2011 MLS season.

U.S. under 20

After gaining his U.S. citizenship in January 1999, played in nine games for the U.S. U-20 men's team. He was a member of the U.S. U-20 squad that advanced to the second round of the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

. Thorrington made his U.S. U-20 international debut in a 1-0 victory over Denmark on 24 January 1999. He scored his first international goal in a 1-1 draw with Morocco on 3 October 1999.

U.S. under 23

Thorrington played in four matches for the U.S. Under-23 men's national team in 2000, including three of the U-23's four matches (two starts) in the 2000 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Hershey, Pennsylvania
Hershey, Pennsylvania
Hershey is a census-designated place in Derry Township, Dauphin County in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The community is located 14 miles east of Harrisburg and is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. Hershey has no legal status as an incorporated municipality...

, helping the squad advance to the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. His first goal for the U-23s was in a 3-0 victory over Honduras on 21 April 2000, in the opening round of the 2000 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament. He was unable to participate in the 2000 Olympics after suffering a hamstring injury leading up to the tournament.

U.S. national team

He made his debut coming on for Steve Cherundolo
Steve Cherundolo
Steven Emil "Steve" Cherundolo is an American soccer defender who is the captain of Hannover 96 of the German Bundesliga, where he has spent his entire club career. He played for the United States men's national soccer team at the 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cups.-Early life:Cherundolo grew up in...

 in the 71st minute of a 0-0 draw versus Ecuador
Ecuador national football team
The Ecuadorian national football team represents Ecuador in international football competitions and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation. They generally play official home matches at Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in Quito, but often play friendlies in other stadiums around the country...

 on 7 June 2001.

His second cap came seven years later when he came on as a substitute against Barbados
Barbados national football team
The Barbados national football team, nicknamed Bajan Pride, is the national association football team of Barbados and is controlled by the Barbados Football Association. It has never qualified for a major international tournament...

 on 22 June 2008 and his third (his first start) against Guatemala in the last game of the semi-final round. His fourth came in a friendly against Sweden.

As well as playing four times for the U.S. national team
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...

, he has been called up to multiple national team camps including one in January 2009 and one before the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth association football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean . It was contested from 3 July to 26 July 2009 in the United States. This competition was the fourth tournament...

. However, he has failed to make another matchday roster.

External links

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