Mark Cousins (footballer)

Mark Cousins

Personal information
Full name	Mark Richard Cousins[1]
Date of birth	9 January 1987[2]
Place of birth	Chelmsford, England
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[2]
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Club information
Current team	Dagenham & Redbridge
Number	30
Youth career
0000–2004	Fulham
2004–2006	Colchester United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
2005–2014	Colchester United	58	(0)
2005	→ Whitton United (loan)
2005–2006	→ Staines Town (loan)	1	(0)
2006	→ Enfield Town (loan)	9	(0)
2006	→ Yeading (loan)	2	(0)
2014–	Dagenham & Redbridge	59	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 17:02, 30 April 2016 (UTC). † Appearances (goals)

Mark Richard Cousins (born 9 January 1987) is an English footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Dagenham & Redbridge. He is a product of the Colchester United academy and has made over 50 Football League appearances for the Essex club. He also appeared on loan for Staines Town, Enfield Town and Yeading.

Career

Cousins, born in Chelmsford, Essex, is a product of the Colchester United academy.^[3] He signed for Colchester during his final year of school after being released by Fulham. Youth team coach Micky Cook expressed uncertainty over whether to sign Cousins but asked for him to attend pre-season for assessment. Putting in an impressive performance featuring in a friendly for Barnet, Cook promptly signed Cousins on a scholarship.^[4]

First featuring on the bench for Colchester in their 2–1 away defeat to Walsall in October 2004,^[5] Cousins would later join Whitton United on work experience in October 2005 prior to making his U's debut.^[6] He had additional work experience loan spells with non-league sides Staines Town, Enfield Town^[7] and Yeading, where he made three appearances.^[8] While on loan with Yeading, Cousins faced Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup first round, with 80 league places separating the two sides.^[9] The game finished 5–0 to Forest.^[10]

Cousins had to wait until the beginning of the 2007–08 season to get his first taste of first-team action with Colchester. He was brought on as a substitute for striker Kevin Lisbie after goalkeeper Dean Gerken was sent off for bringing down Kayode Odejayi in the penalty area during Colchester's 2–2 draw with Barnsley on 18 August 2007. His first task was to save the ensuing penalty, but Brian Howard slotted the penalty away. He conceded another goal later in the game, once again scored by Howard from the penalty spot.^[11] He made just one further appearance in the 2007–08 season, replacing the injured Gerken late on in a 1–1 away draw with Bristol City on 12 January 2008.^[12][13]

Cousins started in three Football League Trophy games for Colchester during the 2008–09 season^[14] and played in their 1–0 home defeat to Leyton Orient in the FA Cup on 8 November 2008.^[15] Cousins finally received his chance with regular first-team football with the arrival of new manager Paul Lambert in October 2008,^[3] as he finished the season with 13 appearances in all competitions, featuring in an eight-game run in March and April 2009.^[14] Following some impressive performances, Cousins was rewarded with a new two-year contract in May 2009.^[16]

Having not played a league game for the entire 2009–10 season,^[17] Cousins earned his first extended run in the first team since the end of the 2008–09 season following an injury to first choice goalkeeper Ben Williams. He kept goal for the first ten games of the season, a run in which Colchester were undefeated,^[18] as he then was selected in The Football League's League One Team of the Week on 20 September 2010.^[19] Cousins ended the season with 16 appearances in all competitions to his name, more than his combined total from the previous three seasons.

On 27 May 2011, Cousins agreed a new two-year deal with the club, competing with Ben Williams and Carl Pentney for the 2011–12 season.^[20] During the 2011–12 pre-season, a friendly match between local rivals Colchester United and Ipswich Town was abandoned when U's midfielder Andrew Bond suffered a serious head injury in a collision with Cousins, leaving Bond with concussion.^[21] Having started Colchester's first nine league games of the season, Cousins spent much of it as a back-up keeper who travelled to pomes but never made the substitutes bench. However, following Ben Williams' rejection of a new contract in July 2012 and his subsequent exit, Cousins was given the number 1 shirt ahead of the 2012–13 season.^[22]

After eight years around the first team waiting for the opportunity, Cousins was first-choice keeper at Colchester United. He made his first appearance in the number 1 shirt on 14 August 2012 as Colchester fell to a 3–0 League Cup defeat to Yeovil Town.^[23] After making 26 appearances for Colchester and with the club struggling at the lower end of League One, Cousins was gradually pushed out of the first-team picture, firstly by John Sullivan in November 2012, signed on loan from Charlton Athletic, and then by Sam Walker in January 2013, signed on loan from Chelsea. However, he was offered a fresh contract in May 2013,^[24] He signed on a one-year deal with the option of a further year on 14 June.^[25]

For the 2013–14 season, Colchester re-signed Sam Walker on loan from Chelsea on 19 July 2013 having been influential in helping the U's avoid relegation to League Two.^[26] Following the expiry of Walker's loan, Colchester signed him on a permanent basis on 20 January 2014, further keeping Cousins out of first-team action.^[27]

In June 2014, he signed for Football League Two side Dagenham & Redbridge on a two-year deal after rejecting a new contract offer from Colchester.^[28]

Career statistics

As of match played 30 April 2016.

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Staines Town (loan)	2005–06[29]	Isthmian League Premier Division	1	0	—		—		—		1	0
Enfield Town (loan)	2005–06[29]	Southern League Division One East	9	0	—		—		—		9	0
Yeading (loan)	2006–07[8]	Conference South	2	0	1	0	—		—		3	0
Colchester United	2007–08[13]	Championship	2	0	0	0	0	0	—		2	0
	2008–09[14]	League One	9	0	1	0	0	0	3[lower-alpha 1]	0	13	0
	2009–10[30]	League One	0	0	0	0	1	0	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	2	0
	2010–11[31]	League One	14	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	16	0
	2011–12[32]	League One	10	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	11	0
	2012–13[33]	League One	23	0	1	0	1	0	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	26	0
	Total		58	0	2	0	5	0	5	0	70	0
Dagenham & Redbridge	2014–15[34]	League Two	37	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	39	0
	2015–16[35]	League Two	22	0	4	0	1	0	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	28	0
	Total		59	0	6	0	1	0	1	0	67	0
Career total			129	0	9	0	6	0	6	0	150	0

1. Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy

References

1. Hugman, Barry (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 97. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
2. Hugman, Barry J. (ed) (2008). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2008–09. Mainstream. ISBN 978-1-84596-324-8.
3. "Mark Cousins". Colchester United FC. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
4. Whitehead, Jeff; Drury, Kevin (2008). The Who's Who of Colchester United: The Layer Road Years. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 60. ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.
5. "Walsall 2–1 Colchester". BBC Sport. 9 October 2004. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
6. "Whitton borrow Colchester keeper". BBC Sport. 28 October 2005. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
7. "U's goalkeeper joins Enfield Town". BBC Sport. 24 February 2006. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
8. "A to Z of Yeading FC". Hayes & Yeading United FC. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
9. "Yeading aim to fell Forest". BBC Sport. 10 November 2006. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
10. "Nottingham Forest 5–0 Yeading". BBC Sport. 11 November 2006. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
11. "Colchester 2–2 Barnsley". BBC Sport. 18 August 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
12. "Bristol City 1–1 Colchester". BBC Sport. 12 January 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
13. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
14. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
15. "Colchester 0–1 Leyton Orient". BBC Sport. 8 November 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
16. "Vincent to stay with Colchester". BBC Sport. 29 May 2009. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
17. "Colchester United's Mark Cousins makes first team vow". BBC Sport. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
18. "Keeper Carl Pentney signs Colchester United contract". BBC Sport. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
19. "Week 7" (PDF). The Football League. 20 September 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
20. "Keeper Mark Cousins extends Colchester United deal". BBC Sport. 27 May 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
21. "John Ward backs Colchester United-Ipswich abandonment". BBC Sport. 27 July 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
22. Marston, Carl (5 July 2012). "Mark Cousins likes the sound of the No.1". East Anglian Daily Times (East Anglia). Retrieved 30 April 2014.
23. "Yeovil 3–0 Colchester". BBC Sport. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
24. Waldron, Jonathan (3 May 2013). "Duo offered new deals as Heath departs U's". Daily Gazette (Colchester). Retrieved 30 April 2014.
25. Waldron, Jonathan (14 June 2013). "Cousins signs new contract with U's". Daily Gazette (Colchester). Retrieved 30 April 2014.
26. "Chelsea goalkeeper Sam Walker rejoins Colchester United". BBC Sport. 19 July 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
27. "Transfer window: Colchester United sign Chelsea's Sam Walker". BBC Sport. 20 January 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
28. "Dagenham sign Mark Cousins and Nathan Green". BBC Sport. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
29. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2005/2006". SoccerFactsUK. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
30. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Retrieved 21 December 2013.
31. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
32. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Retrieved 21 December 2013.
33. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Retrieved 21 December 2013.
34. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
35. "Games played by Mark Cousins in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Retrieved 16 September 2014.

External links

• Mark Cousins career statistics at Soccerbase