Leon Knight
Encyclopedia
Leon Leroy Knight is an English footballer who plays for Coleraine
as a striker. Having begun his career with Chelsea
, he spent time on loan with Queens Park Rangers
, Huddersfield Town
, Sheffield Wednesday
and Brighton & Hove Albion
before joining the latter permanently in 2003. Knight spent three years with Brighton, scoring 30 goals in 106 league matches. He was transferred to Swansea City
in 2006 and had a loan spell with Barnsley
before joining Milton Keynes Dons
and then Wycombe Wanderers
.
Knight signed for Rushden & Diamonds
in 2008, but left the club five months later when he was sacked for misconduct. Rushden retained his registration and would not release it to another English club unless they were compensated, which prevented Knight from playing in England for three years. He subsequently played in Greece for Thrasivoulos Fylis
, and Scotland for Hamilton Academical
and Queen of the South
before joining Northern Irish club Coleraine
in 2010.
(where he made one appearance in the UEFA Cup
against Levski Sofia
), before spending loan periods at Queens Park Rangers
, Huddersfield Town
, Sheffield Wednesday
and Brighton & Hove Albion
before joining Brighton on a permanent contract in August 2003. During his spell at Huddersfield, he reignited the Terriers' play-off push and formed an unlikely partnership with local hero Andy Booth
, earning himself the nickname 'Neon Light'. Unfortunately, he was sent off in the penultimate game of the season and was suspended for the play-off games. Although his transfer was initially free, £50,000 was to be paid if Brighton were promoted. It was Knight himself who secured Brighton's promotion with his penalty against Bristol City
in the play-off final at the Millennium Stadium
, Cardiff
in 2004. Knight had a falling out with Brighton manager Mark McGhee
, which culminated in Knight being thrown off the team bus in the middle of the New Forest
en route to a match against Southampton
on 2 January 2006.
Knight moved to Swansea City
shortly afterwards, and scored a hat-trick
on his debut against Milton Keynes Dons
. His stay at the Liberty Stadium
was short-lived, and he was placed on the transfer list in October 2006, due to a poor attitude. After a short spell on loan with Barnsley
, he joined Milton Keynes Dons in January 2007. In January 2008, Knight signed for Wycombe Wanderers
, just one year after joining MK Dons. On 19 August 2008, Knight's contract was "terminated by mutual consent", after he scored five goals in 20 appearances during his short stay with Wycombe.
Knight signed for Rushden & Diamonds
on a three-year contract on 24 August 2008. but was transfer listed on 29 October, along with Lee Tomlin
, Curtis Woodhouse
, Andy Burgess
, Phil Gulliver
, Sagi Burton
, Lee Phillips and Dean McDonald
, after the club's poor start to the season. On 12 December, Rushden & Diamonds confirmed that Knight had been sacked after continual breaches of conduct between November and December 2008. Despite his contract having been terminated, Rushden & Diamonds retained the players registration, preventing Knight from joining another English club until the term of his contract had expired, unless £30,000 in compensation was paid to the club. The FA confirmed and validated the retaining of the registration, meaning Knight could not play at any level of English football until the contract had expired. The contract had initially been due to expire following the 2009-10 season, but Rushden & Diamonds invoked a clause allowing them to extend the contract by a further year.
On 13 January 2009, Knight joined Greek club Thrasivoulos Filis
on a six-month contract. He made his Super League
debut on 25 January as a second half sub playing 20 minutes against Skoda Xanthi
. Knight made only 2 subsequent appearances as a sub, his last appearance coming on 8 February 2009. Knight had not been involved in any game for the club in over 3 months and looked certain to leave Thrasivoulos when his contract expired at the end of the season. After his contract expired he went on trial with Major League Soccer
side San Jose Earthquakes
.
Knight joined Scottish side Hamilton Academical
on 21 August 2009, and he made his SPL
debut against Aberdeen as a second half substitute the following day. He made one start and six substitute appearances for the Lanarkshire side. He was sent off for his role in a tunnel brawl after a win over Heart of Midlothian
, having been an unused substitute during the game. Knight was later released by Hamilton on 14 January 2010. The next day, Knight joined Dumfries
club Queen of the South
until the end of the season. He made his debut in a 1–1 draw with Dundee
on 23 January. He was released at the end of the 2009–10 season, having made six league appearances for the club. In September 2010, Knight was set to return to English football with Conference
side Darlington
after a successful trial, but his transfer was blocked by previous club Rushden, who had held onto his registration and demanded £30,000 for the deal to be completed. Knight responded by criticising Rushden & Diamonds on his Twitter
account, saying that he has chosen not to buy-out his contract as a matter of principle. "Rushden have said they don't want the money from Darlington, they want it from me – I refuse to pay them out of principle. If I wanted I could raise the money and pay them but I don't want to give them the satisfaction."
The following month, Knight elected to continue his career outside of England by signing for Northern Irish side Coleraine
. He scored twice on his debut in a 2–1 win away to Glenavon
on 16 October 2010. He agreed an 18-month contract extension with the club in January 2011, and finished the 2010–11 season with 14 league goals from 23 matches. In June, he went on trial with Swindon Town
, but was released after two days because of insufficient fitness levels. "He's not the player for us. It's not his fault, we tried, but his fitness at the moment is not good," said Swindon manager Paolo Di Canio
. "We are not in a position where we can wait for a player to be fit, we need a player to be ready and fit in the next two weeks, to compete and challenge during the season." Two weeks later, Knight was transfer-listed and suspended by Coleraine for failing to appear for training and matches. He also breached club rules by stating his desire to return to England and play for another IFA Premiership
club. However, a fortnight later, Knight signed a new two-year contract with the club. "I said things about wanting to leave and at the time I felt it was right for me, but things change," he said. "I've spoken at great length with the manager over the last three or four days and I came back to him wanting to work something out. Agreeing a new two-year deal shows my commitment to the club and that I'm eager to put the last few weeks behind me."
and under 20 level
.
, London
, to a Jamaica
n mother and St. Lucia
n father, and was educated at Raine's Foundation School
, Bethnal Green
,
He has three sisters, and is the cousin of Bolton Wanderers
defender Zat Knight
. He is the cousin of Grime MC Trim
.
Knight was a good all-around sportsman and a third dan black belt in karate as a child.
He played schoolboy football for his school, the Hackney & Tower Hamlets District team and Senrab
, and had trials with Charlton
and Tottenham Hotspur
before joining Chelsea
as a trainee.
Coleraine F.C.
Coleraine F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1927, hails from Coleraine, County Londonderry and plays its home matches at the Showgrounds. Club colours are blue and white...
as a striker. Having begun his career with Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
, he spent time on loan with Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers F.C.
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in White City, Hammersmith and Fulham, west London. As the 2010-11 Football League Championship champions, they now play in the top tier of English football the Premier League, for the first time in 15 years...
, 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...
, Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
and Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are an English association football club based in the coastal city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system....
before joining the latter permanently in 2003. Knight spent three years with Brighton, scoring 30 goals in 106 league matches. He was transferred to Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
in 2006 and had a loan spell with Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
before joining Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons F.C.
.Milton Keynes Dons Football Club is an English professional football club founded in 2004 and based since 2007 at Stadium mk, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire...
and then 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...
.
Knight signed for Rushden & Diamonds
Rushden & Diamonds F.C.
Rushden & Diamonds Football Club was an association football club based in Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, England. Formed by a merger of Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds in 1992, the club played in the Conference National following a short spell in the Football League at the start of...
in 2008, but left the club five months later when he was sacked for misconduct. Rushden retained his registration and would not release it to another English club unless they were compensated, which prevented Knight from playing in England for three years. He subsequently played in Greece for Thrasivoulos Fylis
Thrasyvoulos F.C.
Thrasyvoulos Filis is a football club, based in Fyli, Attica, currently in the Greek Second Division. It was founded in 1938 and named after Thrasybulus, an ancient General who used Fyli as his base to liberate Athens from Sparta. They gained promotion to the Greek Super League for 2008–09...
, and Scotland for Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical F.C.
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Academical, or Accies, are a Scottish football club from Hamilton in South Lanarkshire. They were established in 1874 from the school football team at Hamilton Academy. They remain the only professional club in British football to have...
and Queen of the South
Queen of the South F.C.
Queen of the South Football Club is a Scottish professional football club founded in 1919 and located in Dumfries. The club currently plays in the Scottish First Division, the second tier of Scottish football. They are officially nicknamed The Doonhamers, but usually referred to as Queens or QoS...
before joining Northern Irish club Coleraine
Coleraine F.C.
Coleraine F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1927, hails from Coleraine, County Londonderry and plays its home matches at the Showgrounds. Club colours are blue and white...
in 2010.
Club career
Knight began his career as a trainee at ChelseaChelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
(where he made one appearance in the UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup (trophy)
The UEFA Cup, also known as the Coupe UEFA, is a trophy awarded annually by UEFA to the football club that wins the UEFA Europa League. Before the 2009–10 season the competition shared its name with the trophy, being also known as the UEFA Cup....
against Levski Sofia
PFC Levski Sofia
"Levski Sofia" redirects here. For the sports club, see Levski Sofia .PFC Levski Sofia, otherwise simply known as Levski or Levski Sofia, is a professional football club based in Sofia, Bulgaria...
), before spending loan periods at Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers F.C.
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in White City, Hammersmith and Fulham, west London. As the 2010-11 Football League Championship champions, they now play in the top tier of English football the Premier League, for the first time in 15 years...
, 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...
, Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
and Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are an English association football club based in the coastal city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system....
before joining Brighton on a permanent contract in August 2003. During his spell at Huddersfield, he reignited the Terriers' play-off push and formed an unlikely partnership with local hero Andy Booth
Andy Booth
Andrew David "Andy" Booth is a retired professional footballer. Whilst at Huddersfield he announced his retirement on 22 April 2009, but remains at the club as an ambassador.-Huddersfield Town:...
, earning himself the nickname 'Neon Light'. Unfortunately, he was sent off in the penultimate game of the season and was suspended for the play-off games. Although his transfer was initially free, £50,000 was to be paid if Brighton were promoted. It was Knight himself who secured Brighton's promotion with his penalty against Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
in the play-off final at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
in 2004. Knight had a falling out with Brighton manager Mark McGhee
Mark McGhee
Mark Edward McGhee is a former Scottish professional football player. McGhee started his career at Greenock Morton in 1975 and spent spells at clubs including Newcastle United, Aberdeen, Hamburg, Celtic, IK Brage and Reading...
, which culminated in Knight being thrown off the team bus in the middle of the New Forest
New Forest
The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....
en route to a match against Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
on 2 January 2006.
Knight moved to Swansea City
Swansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
shortly afterwards, and scored a hat-trick
Hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...
on his debut against Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons F.C.
.Milton Keynes Dons Football Club is an English professional football club founded in 2004 and based since 2007 at Stadium mk, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire...
. His stay at the Liberty Stadium
Liberty Stadium, Swansea
The Liberty Stadium is a purpose-built sports stadium and conferencing venue in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales. The stadium is all-seated, with a capacity of 20,532 making it the largest purpose-built venue in Swansea and the third largest stadium in Wales after the Millennium Stadium and the...
was short-lived, and he was placed on the transfer list in October 2006, due to a poor attitude. After a short spell on loan with Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
, he joined Milton Keynes Dons in January 2007. In January 2008, Knight signed for 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...
, just one year after joining MK Dons. On 19 August 2008, Knight's contract was "terminated by mutual consent", after he scored five goals in 20 appearances during his short stay with Wycombe.
Knight signed for Rushden & Diamonds
Rushden & Diamonds F.C.
Rushden & Diamonds Football Club was an association football club based in Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, England. Formed by a merger of Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds in 1992, the club played in the Conference National following a short spell in the Football League at the start of...
on a three-year contract on 24 August 2008. but was transfer listed on 29 October, along with Lee Tomlin
Lee Tomlin
Lee Marc Tomlin is an English footballer who plays for Peterborough United as a winger or Striker. He has previously played for Leicester City and Rushden & Diamonds.-Career:...
, Curtis Woodhouse
Curtis Woodhouse
Curtis Woodhouse is an English professional footballer and boxer. Woodhouse plays football as a central midfielder for Conference North outfit Eastwood Town, and competes as a light-welterweight boxer. He is the reigning International Masters light-welterweight champion...
, Andy Burgess
Andy Burgess
Andrew John Blakemore "Andy" Burgess is an English footballer who is currently a player/coach midfielder for Corby Town.-Playing career:...
, Phil Gulliver
Phil Gulliver
Philip Stephen Gulliver is an English footballer who played in the Football League for Blackpool, Carlisle United, A.F.C. Bournemouth, Bury, Scunthorpe United, Rushden & Diamonds and Hereford United. Since 2008 he has played for Corby Town. He plays as a central defender.-Career:Gulliver was born...
, Sagi Burton
Sagi Burton
Osagyefo Lenin Ernesto Burton-Godwin , known commonly as Sagi Burton, is an English-born former Kittitian international football defender...
, Lee Phillips and Dean McDonald
Dean McDonald
Dean Louis McDonald is an English professional footballer who signed for Carshalton Athletic in June 2011.-Career:McDonald was noticed for his skill rather than size when signed by Ipswich Town from Arsenal where he started his career as a youth player...
, after the club's poor start to the season. On 12 December, Rushden & Diamonds confirmed that Knight had been sacked after continual breaches of conduct between November and December 2008. Despite his contract having been terminated, Rushden & Diamonds retained the players registration, preventing Knight from joining another English club until the term of his contract had expired, unless £30,000 in compensation was paid to the club. The FA confirmed and validated the retaining of the registration, meaning Knight could not play at any level of English football until the contract had expired. The contract had initially been due to expire following the 2009-10 season, but Rushden & Diamonds invoked a clause allowing them to extend the contract by a further year.
On 13 January 2009, Knight joined Greek club Thrasivoulos Filis
Thrasyvoulos F.C.
Thrasyvoulos Filis is a football club, based in Fyli, Attica, currently in the Greek Second Division. It was founded in 1938 and named after Thrasybulus, an ancient General who used Fyli as his base to liberate Athens from Sparta. They gained promotion to the Greek Super League for 2008–09...
on a six-month contract. He made his Super League
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...
debut on 25 January as a second half sub playing 20 minutes against Skoda Xanthi
Skoda Xanthi
Skoda Xanthi F.C. , or F.C. Skoda Xanthi Athletic Club, is a Greek football club, based in the city of Xanthi. The club currently competes in the Super League Greece.-History:...
. Knight made only 2 subsequent appearances as a sub, his last appearance coming on 8 February 2009. Knight had not been involved in any game for the club in over 3 months and looked certain to leave Thrasivoulos when his contract expired at the end of the season. After his contract expired he went on trial with 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...
side San Jose Earthquakes
San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes professional soccer team is located in the San Jose, California, United States suburb of Santa Clara, and participates in Major League Soccer , the top level soccer league in the United States and Canada....
.
Knight joined Scottish side Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical F.C.
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Academical, or Accies, are a Scottish football club from Hamilton in South Lanarkshire. They were established in 1874 from the school football team at Hamilton Academy. They remain the only professional club in British football to have...
on 21 August 2009, and he made his SPL
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
debut against Aberdeen as a second half substitute the following day. He made one start and six substitute appearances for the Lanarkshire side. He was sent off for his role in a tunnel brawl after a win over Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
, having been an unused substitute during the game. Knight was later released by Hamilton on 14 January 2010. The next day, Knight joined Dumfries
Dumfries
Dumfries is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth. Dumfries was the county town of the former county of Dumfriesshire. Dumfries is nicknamed Queen of the South...
club Queen of the South
Queen of the South F.C.
Queen of the South Football Club is a Scottish professional football club founded in 1919 and located in Dumfries. The club currently plays in the Scottish First Division, the second tier of Scottish football. They are officially nicknamed The Doonhamers, but usually referred to as Queens or QoS...
until the end of the season. He made his debut in a 1–1 draw with Dundee
Dundee F.C.
Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...
on 23 January. He was released at the end of the 2009–10 season, having made six league appearances for the club. In September 2010, Knight was set to return to English football with Conference
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
side Darlington
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
after a successful trial, but his transfer was blocked by previous club Rushden, who had held onto his registration and demanded £30,000 for the deal to be completed. Knight responded by criticising Rushden & Diamonds on his Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account, saying that he has chosen not to buy-out his contract as a matter of principle. "Rushden have said they don't want the money from Darlington, they want it from me – I refuse to pay them out of principle. If I wanted I could raise the money and pay them but I don't want to give them the satisfaction."
The following month, Knight elected to continue his career outside of England by signing for Northern Irish side Coleraine
Coleraine F.C.
Coleraine F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1927, hails from Coleraine, County Londonderry and plays its home matches at the Showgrounds. Club colours are blue and white...
. He scored twice on his debut in a 2–1 win away to Glenavon
Glenavon F.C.
Glenavon F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1889, hails from Lurgan and plays its home matches at Mourneview Park...
on 16 October 2010. He agreed an 18-month contract extension with the club in January 2011, and finished the 2010–11 season with 14 league goals from 23 matches. In June, he went on trial with Swindon Town
Swindon Town F.C.
Swindon Town Football Club are a team based in Swindon, Wiltshire. Currently in League Two, Swindon have been managed by Paolo Di Canio since 23 May 2011...
, but was released after two days because of insufficient fitness levels. "He's not the player for us. It's not his fault, we tried, but his fitness at the moment is not good," said Swindon manager Paolo Di Canio
Paolo Di Canio
Paolo Di Canio is a Italian former professional footballer and current manager of League Two side Swindon Town. Di Canio made over 500 league appearances and scored over 100 league goals as a player....
. "We are not in a position where we can wait for a player to be fit, we need a player to be ready and fit in the next two weeks, to compete and challenge during the season." Two weeks later, Knight was transfer-listed and suspended by Coleraine for failing to appear for training and matches. He also breached club rules by stating his desire to return to England and play for another IFA Premiership
IFA Premiership
The IFA Premiership – formerly the Irish Premier League, and before that the Irish Football League–and still known in popular parlance simply as the Irish League, is the national football league in Northern Ireland, and was historically the league for the whole of Ireland. Clubs in the league are...
club. However, a fortnight later, Knight signed a new two-year contract with the club. "I said things about wanting to leave and at the time I felt it was right for me, but things change," he said. "I've spoken at great length with the manager over the last three or four days and I came back to him wanting to work something out. Agreeing a new two-year deal shows my commitment to the club and that I'm eager to put the last few weeks behind me."
International career
Knight has played for England at under 19England national under-19 football team
-Other matches:-Latest squad:The following players were named in the squad for the friendly match against Denmark.- Recent call-ups :The following players have also been called up to the England under-19 squad and remain eligible.-Past squads:...
and under 20 level
England national under-20 football team
- Round of 16 :-Friendlies:-Latest squad:The following players were named in the squad for the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup running from 29 July to the 20 August 2011.-Recent call-ups:...
.
Personal life
Knight was born in HackneyLondon Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, to a Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n mother and St. Lucia
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
n father, and was educated at Raine's Foundation School
Raine's Foundation School
Raine's Foundation School is a Church of England Voluntary Aided school in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.Henry Raine, a very rich man who lived in Wapping, decided to create a school where poor children could get an education for free, so that they could go into skilled labour when they left....
, Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
,
He has three sisters, and is the cousin of 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....
defender Zat Knight
Zat Knight
Zatyiah "Zat" Knight is an English footballer who plays for Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League. Knight has two caps for England.-Club career:-Fulham:Fulham signed Knight from Rushall Olympic on a free transfer in 1999...
. He is the cousin of Grime MC Trim
Trim (rapper)
Trim, born Javan St. Prix and formerly known as Taliban Trim is a British grime MC from East London and a former member of Roll Deep. He is a cousin of Roll Deep member DJ Karnage, former Roll Deep member Roachee, footballer Leon Knight and grime MC Lee Brasco...
.
Knight was a good all-around sportsman and a third dan black belt in karate as a child.
He played schoolboy football for his school, the Hackney & Tower Hamlets District team and Senrab
Senrab F.C.
Senrab F.C. is a Sunday League football team, based at Wanstead Flats in the Forest Gate district of London, England.- Operation :Senrab operates fifteen teams for age groups ranging from 5 to 17 years old, and the club has produced a great number of players who have gone on to have successful...
, and had trials with Charlton
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
and Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
before joining Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
as a trainee.