John Egan (footballer, born 1992)

John Egan (born 20 October 1992) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for EFL Championship club Hull City and the Republic of Ireland national team.

John Egan

Egan with Gillingham in 2014
Personal information
Full name	John Egan[1]
Date of birth	(1992-10-20) 20 October 1992 (age 32)
Place of birth	Cork, Ireland
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s)	Centre back
Team information
Current team	Hull City
Number	15
Youth career
2000–2009	Greenwood
2009–2011	Sunderland
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011–2014	Sunderland	0	(0)
2012	→ Crystal Palace (loan)	1	(0)
2012	→ Sheffield United (loan)	1	(0)
2012	→ Bradford City (loan)	4	(0)
2014	→ Southend United (loan)	13	(1)
2014–2016	Gillingham	81	(10)
2016–2018	Brentford	67	(6)
2018–2024	Sheffield United	208	(7)
2024–2025	Burnley	7	(0)
2025–	Hull City	2	(0)
International career‡
	Republic of Ireland U17	2	(0)
2010–2011	Republic of Ireland U19	10	(0)
2012–2014	Republic of Ireland U21	6	(0)
2017–	Republic of Ireland	36	(3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:16, 15 February 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:48, 10 September 2023

Beginning his career at Sunderland, he had loan spells with Crystal Palace, Sheffield United, Bradford City and Southend United, but was released by the Wearside club without making an appearance for the first team. In July 2014, he joined Gillingham, and was named Player of the Year in his first season, and voted in the League One PFA Team of the Year in his second. In July 2016, he joined Brentford, where he was captain of the club in his second season. In July 2018, he rejoined Sheffield United and was part of the team that got promoted to the Premier League.

Internationally, Egan has represented the Republic of Ireland at under-17, under-19 and under-21 level. He made his debut for the senior side in March 2017.

Early and personal life

Born in Cork, Egan started his career with Greenwood FC in Togher. His father John Egan respresented Kerry in Gaelic football,^[3] and his mother, Mary Egan, was a football player and has a League of Ireland medal under her belt.^[4] He played hurling and Gaelic football for Bishopstown.^[5]

Career

Early career

Egan was loaned by Sunderland to Crystal Palace in January 2012.^[6] Egan made his professional debut for Palace in the FA Cup third round playing the full 90 minutes in their 1–0 loss to Derby County. In March 2012, Egan joined Football League One side Sheffield United on a month's loan to ease a defensive crisis,^[7] making his début for the Blades that evening in a defeat at Walsall.^[8]

In July 2012, Egan was called up by Martin O'Neill for Sunderland's pre-season tour to South Korea to take part in the Peace Cup. He came on as a substitute for the injured Wes Brown in the 3rd place play-off against FC Groningen of the Netherlands, playing 50 minutes of the 3–2 victory. After a solid pre-season, he was praised by Martin O'Neill and handed the number forty-two jersey for the season. At the start of November 2012 after being around the first team Egan signed a three-month loan deal with Bradford City to get games under his belt.^[9] He made his début for Bradford on 6 November in a 0–0 draw at home to Chesterfield.^[10] His loan was cut short two weeks later after suffering a broken leg,^[11] returning having played four games for the Bantams. This injury ruled him out for a year but during his rehab, Egan agreed to a one-year contract extension with Sunderland in March 2013.^[12]

On 27 February 2014, Egan joined League Two side Southend United on an emergency loan.^[13] His first goal came on 11 March 2014, in a 2–2 draw against Scunthorpe United, where he scored a "spectacular long-distance effort".^[14] He later went on to win Southend's 'Goal of the Season' award and the strike was a sensation on YouTube gaining over 35,000 views. On 28 March 2014, Egan extended his loan stay with the Blues until the end of the 2013–14 season.^[15]

Gillingham

On 3 July 2014, amid interest from several clubs from League One and the Championship, Egan signed a two-year deal with Gillingham following his release from Sunderland.^[16] Egan enjoyed a fantastic debut season with Gillingham, playing 52 times and scoring 5 goals. He also won the main Player of the Year and Away Player of the Year awards for the club to cap off a good year after finishing 12th in League One.^[17] In April 2016, Egan was named in the League One PFA Team of the Year for his performances over the 2015–16 season.^[18]

Brentford

Egan rejected the offer a new contract by Gillingham at the conclusion of the 2015–16 season and joined Championship club Brentford.^[19][20] He scored his first goals for Brentford when he scored twice in a 2–0 win over Ipswich Town on 16 August 2016.^[21] In December 2016 the Professional Football Compensation Committee ruled that Brentford should pay Gillingham an initial net compensation fee of £400,000, an additional £25,000 for every 20 games that he plays for Brentford, up to 80 games, as well as a 20% sell-on fee and a fee of £75,000 in the event that Brentford are promoted to the Premier League within the period of the player's three-year contract.^[22][23]

After the sale of captain Harlee Dean in August 2017 to Birmingham City, Egan was appointed as the new captain of Brentford.^[24] During the 2017–18 season, Egan impressed as Brentford kept 15 clean sheets as they finished 9th in the EFL Championship.^[25]

Sheffield United

Egan re-joined former loan club Sheffield United on 19 July 2018 on a four-year contract for an undisclosed club-record fee.^[26] In his first season with the team, he helped them gain promotion to the Premier League. On 21 August 2020 he signed a new four-year contract, keeping him at the club until 2024. Egan departed the club upon the expiry of his contract.^[27]

Burnley

In September 2024, Egan signed for EFL Championship side Burnley on a free transfer on a one-year deal.^[28]

Hull City

On 3 February 2025, Egan signed an eighteen-month contract with EFL Championship side Hull City for an undisclosed fee.^[29] He made his Hull City debut on 12 February against his former team in a 2–0 defeat.^[30]

International career

On 28 March 2017, Egan made his senior international debut, starting in a friendly against Iceland at the Aviva Stadium.^[31] He captained his country for the first time in September 2019 in a 3–1 win against Bulgaria at the Aviva Stadium.^[32] On 1 September 2021, he was named FAI Senior International Player of the Year for 2020,^[33] the same day that he scored his first international goal in a 2022 World Cup qualifier: a 2–1 loss against Portugal.^[34]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 February 2025^[35]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Sunderland	2011–12	Premier League	0	0	—		0	0	—		0	0
	2012–13	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Crystal Palace (loan)	2011–12	Championship	1	0	1	0	—		—		2	0
Sheffield United (loan)	2011–12	League One	1	0	—		—		—		1	0
Bradford City (loan)	2012–13	League Two	4	0	—		—		—		4	0
Southend United (loan)	2013–14	League Two	13	1	—		—		2[a]	0	15	1
Gillingham	2014–15	League One	45	4	1	0	2	0	4[b]	1	52	5
	2015–16	League One	36	6	1	0	2	0	1[b]	0	40	6
	Total		81	10	2	0	4	0	5	1	92	11
Brentford	2016–17	Championship	34	4	2	0	1	0	—		37	4
	2017–18	Championship	33	2	0	0	1	1	—		34	3
	Total		67	6	2	0	2	1	—		71	7
Sheffield United	2018–19	Championship	44	1	0	0	1	0	—		45	1
	2019–20	Premier League	36	2	2	0	0	0	—		38	2
	2020–21	Premier League	31	0	3	0	0	0	—		34	0
	2021–22	Championship	46	2	0	0	0	0	2[c]	0	48	2
	2022–23	Championship	45	2	5	1	1	0	—		51	3
	2023–24	Premier League	6	0	0	0	1	0	—		7	0
	Total		208	7	10	1	3	0	2	0	223	8
Burnley	2024–25	Championship	7	0	1	0	—		—		8	0
Hull City	2024–25	Championship	2	0	0	0	—		—		2	0
Career Total			384	24	16	1	9	1	9	1	418	27

1. Appearances in League Two play-offs
2. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
3. Appearances in Championship play-offs

International

As of match played on 10 September 2023^[36]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Republic of Ireland	2017	2	0
	2018	2	0
	2019	4	0
	2020	4	0
	2021	9	1
	2022	9	2
	2023	6	0
Total		36	3

International goals

Scores and results list Ireland's goal tally first.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	1 September 2021	Estádio Algarve, Algarve, Portugal	Portugal	1–0	1–2	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
2.	24 September 2022	Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland	Scotland	1–0	1–2	2022-23 UEFA Nations League B
3.	27 September 2022	Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland	Armenia	1–0	3–2	2022-23 UEFA Nations League B

Honours

Sheffield United

• EFL Championship runner-up: 2018–19,^[37] 2022–23

Individual

• Gillingham Player of the Year: 2014–15^[17]
• PFA Team of the Year: 2015–16 League One^[18]
• Sheffield United Community Player of the Year: 2019–20,^[38] 2020–21^[39]
• FAI Senior International Player of the Year: 2020^[33]

References

1. "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2018: Brentford" (PDF). English Football League. p. 8. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
2. "John Egan Official Sheffield United Profile". Sheffield United F.C. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
3. "Irwin shows a touch of class on U-19 debut". Independent.ie. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
4. "Sons and their fathers". irishexaminer.com. 18 September 2010. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
5. "John Egan: The Corkman who only ever wanted to play for Kerry..." irishexaminer.com. 31 August 2019. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
6. "Crystal Palace sign Egan & Dumbuya ; extend Martin stay". BBC Sport. 6 January 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
7. "Blades secure loan double". Sheffield United Official Web Site. 6 March 2012. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
8. "Blades cut down again to offer hope to rivals". Yorkshire Post. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
9. "Bradford City sign Egan". Telegraph & Argus. 3 November 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
10. "Bradford 0–0 Chesterfield". BBC Sport. 6 November 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
11. "Egan returns to Sunderland". Sunderland Association Football Club. 21 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
12. "John Egan has put pen to paper on a one-year contract extension". Sunderland Association Football Club. 26 March 2013. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
13. "News: John Egan joins from Sunderland". Southend United FC. 27 February 2014.
14. "News: Scunthorpe 2 – 2 Southend". BBC Sport. 11 March 2014.
15. "News: Egan extends Southend United loan". Southend United FC. 28 March 2014.
16. "News: Gillingham FC clinch the signature of former Sunderland defender John Egan on a two year contract". Gillingham FC. 3 July 2014.
17. "John Egan scoops Gillingham FC's Player of the Year Award". www.gillinghamfootballclub.com. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
18. "PFA awards: Leicester and Spurs dominate Premier League team". BBC Sport. 21 April 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
19. "John Egan to leave Gillingham after rejecting contract offer". Kent Online. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
20. FC, Brentford. "Brentford sign John Egan on three-year deal". Archived from the original on 2 August 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
21. "Brentford 2–0 Ipswich". BBC Sport. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
22. "Tribunal sets transfer fee following John Egan's move from Gillingham to Brentford". Kent Online. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
23. EFL. "Gillingham and Plymouth Argyle to receive compensation fees for transfers of John Egan and Curtis Nelson". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
24. "Brentford's latest captain speaks out on his new role". Get West London. 11 September 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
25. -"JOHN EGAN: CAPTAIN'S DUTIES". Brentford. 17 May 2018. Archived from the original on 14 July 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
26. "John Egan: Sheffield United sign Brentford defender for a club-record fee". BBC Sport. 19 July 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
27. "Thanks". Sheffield United F.C. 1 July 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
28. "EGAN IS A CLARET! | BurnleyFC". www.burnleyfootballclub.com. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
29. "Egan completes Hull City move". Hull City A.F.C. 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
30. "Burnley 2–0 Hull City". BBC Sport. 12 February 2025. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
31. "Iceland's Hordur Magnusson proves too much for Ireland's second string". Guardian. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
32. "John Egan to captain Ireland in tonight's Aviva Stadium friendly".
33. "Giles and Gorham recognised in FAI Awards | Football Association of Ireland".
34. Doyle, Paul (1 September 2021). "Record-breaker Cristiano Ronaldo's late goals for Portugal break Ireland's hearts". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
35. John Egan at Soccerbase
36. John Egan at National-Football-Teams.com
37. Anderson, John, ed. (2019). Football Yearbook 2019–2020. London: Headline Publishing Group. pp. 320–231. ISBN 978-1-4722-6111-3.
38. FC, Sheffield United. "Player of the Year Awards". Sheffield United FC. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
39. FC, Sheffield United. "End of Season Awards". Sheffield United FC. Retrieved 13 March 2022.

External links

• John Egan at Soccerbase
• John Egan – UEFA competition record (archive)