STUART WHITEHEAD

Height 5'11"

Weight: 12st 4lbs

Defender

League Appearances 139

Stuart was born in Bromsgrove, on the17th July 1976 and played for non league Bromsgrove Rovers through the 94/95 season before joined Bolton  Wanderers on 1st September 1995. Unable to break through into the first team he was released at the end of the 97/98 season.

He joined  Carlisle on the 31st July 1998 on a free transfer and immediately made an impact. Playing alongside then captain David Brightwell he added speed and the ability to read the game quickly to the centre backs.  One fan described his first game by saying "That lad thinks he's better than the rest and I tend to believe him".   By the final game most fans agreed and he was voted player of the season. 

Stuart started the 98/99 season in a 1-0 home win against Brighton.  Defeats followed at Scunthorpe and at home against Rochdale where he picked up an injury, missing the next four games.  A good performance in the 1-1 draw at Mansfield Town on his return gave him his first Carlisle Man of the Match award. Two more 1-1 draws followed, the first against Chester at home, the second away at Shrewsbury. This time though despite a committed performance Stu was not to see out the match after picking up a second yellow card on 86 minutes from ref  Mr P Dowd. This saw him suspended for the away game against Torquay on 17th October.  Then followed a consistent run of good performances until the Cardiff game on 1st of December where a first half injury  meant he was subbed at half time and missed the next game against Hartlepool. By the Plymouth away game on the 19th of December, now with Pearson in charge, he was back on the bench and was subbed on in that strange match where the floodlights went out at half time and there was a 30 minute delay before the second half was played.   From then until  Darlington away on 23rd March Stu played every game and had become a popular and reliable member of the team.  After missing the Darlington and Cardiff away games, he was then an ever present  to the end of the season.  Read his comments on taking part in the Jimmy Glass game  here.  Stats for the season read:

Stu played the first three games of the 99/00 season but didn't seem to be at his best, a niggling calf problem sidelined him for the Mansfield Town (A) and Plymouth (H) games although he came back to give a sterling performance against Northampton away.  A good run in the team ended  when he was injured for the Brighton Home game on 10th of October and he didn't reappear until the York game (H) on second of November. After missing the Barnet  away game on 23rd of November Stu came back for the following  game against Rotherham and although the game ended in defeat the next few games saw him back to his best.  

Nightmare time was to come at Torquay on the 8th of January. A 4-1 defeat in a bad tempered game where Stu picked up a nasty knock before half time then was sent off for retaliation in the second half after appearing to be elbowed by Torquay's Michael Griffiths. The ref Mr M Jones chose to take no action against the Torquay player.  Whitehead missed the next six matches at a time when his skills were sorely needed and by the time he came back for the York game (A) on 11th March, United were again staring relegation in the face. Whitehead's return heralded a few good performances, notably the 2-0 home win against title chasing Swansea with Reid, Teale and Whitehead forming a resolute back line.  

Then came the Chester away game. Many fans felt this was the decider as to which team would drop out of the league and the blue army went en masse to the Deva stadium to witness what was for 80 minutes are a very scrappy boring 0-0 draw. Ref on the day, Mr Kevin Lynch, was well known for his controversial decisions and the Carlisle faithful  got what they expected  when in the 83rd minute Whitehead was ordered off for the alleged use of an elbow, seconds later Halliday followed and Carlisle were down to nine men.  Peter Clarke saved the day in the 90th minute with a fine break and pass to Dobie for the last gasp goal and 1-0 win.  Stu played the next two games but had to sit out the last four where, like the fans, he had to pray for another miracle to keep us in the league.

The 00/01 season saw Brightwell leave for Hull City and Whitehead take on the role of Captain. Off the field troubles  meant the season started with a threadbare, makeshift squad that changed from week to week.  Even with the experience and motivational skills of Ian  Atkins it was going to be another year of struggle.  

Despite the problems Carlisle started the season  with two wins, two draws, and two losses and there was hope of a mid table 'boring' season.  The visit of Chesterfield on 12th of September brought home to supporters just how far behind the top teams United were, their 4-2 win belies the  gap in football skills witnessed that night. In defence however things didn't look too bad, Winstanley had slotted into the centre back position with a couple of Man of the Match performances and the centre backs seemed to be working well together. From the Rochdale  home game on the 9th of September to Southend  on 11th of November United recorded 12 league games without a win and things looked desperate.  Weaver who had proved such an asset in goal the previous season  seemed to be going through a bad patch  and was dropped in favour of Keen, then an on loan keeper was brought in from Bolton, Mattie Glennon. Glennon's debut against Southend at home on 11th of November at last saw a win, 3-1.  Whitehead  had played every game so far but his partners at centre back had constantly changed, Darby, Winstanley, Inglis,  and Thurstan all cast in that role. Whitehead himself had  vacated the centre back position for the home 2-2 draw against Cardiff on 17th October, his role in midfield  gaining him the Man of the Match Award. 

Dave Morley joined Carlisle in time for the Hartlepool game (A) on 20th January and immediately  put in a man of the match performance.   The next league game on 27th of January was at home against Mansfield Town. A 2-1 home win with Stu grabbing the winner, his first ever goal in league football.  Afterwards he was quoted in the Evening News and Star: "It was nice to finally get a goal, although I didn't know a lot about it.  I didn't know what to do when I scored. I was just running about, but I didn't know where I was running to. I think my last goal was for my school under-12s in the playground. Now I just want to go on and get more than one. Our confidence is growing now. The spirit has always been good because we know our position is a false one."  The Hartlepool game saw yet another centre back arrive in Darren Carr, a  very physical  presence who shared Winstanley's place for the rest of the season.  Whitehead had been picking up yellow cards through the season, his rather combative style and unwillingness to give an inch in the box, particularly when corners are coming in means  he is always liable to get caught out in the totting up procedure. The home game against Darlington on 3rd of March saw Stu suspended but he was back for the next, a crucial away win at Barnet and gave consistent performances through every game until the end of the season.

The 01/02 season  was a  disappointing year for Stu  by his own high standards,  hampered by injury  and  playing many games in his less favoured position of midfield. The start of the season saw Stu  in his usual position of centre back. Against Hull at home on the 25th of August, a 0-0 draw, he gained our MOM award with a  strong performance, nullifying Hulls attack to such an extent that  they chose to substitute Gary Alexander. His work in the 1-1draw at away at Oxford on the 23rd of October brought the following comment from Roddy Collins " Stuart Whitehead was fantastic in the middle of defence."  The start of the season saw  a rash of yellow cards, picking up four in the first  five league games.   The fifth,  leading to a one match suspension  came in October and meant that Stu was to miss the first round of the FA Cup away at Barnet, a 0-0 draw. He was back in the side for the replay at Brunton park the following week to take part in the much needed 1-0 win. Throughout the season Stu suffered from an ankle problem which effected his pace and mobility,  a spell at Lilleshall confirmed he needed an operation but  he was determined to try and carry on.  After missing the Shrewsbury home game,  a defeat, on  the 20th of November, he was back for the the away defeat at Plymouth on the 24th only to miss the next two, again through injury. After playing in the 3-1 away defeat at Rushden and Diamonds Stu was on the bench for the next two matches but came on in the 88th minute to enjoy the 6-1  home win against Leyton Orient.  The next game, away at Hull,  saw Stu come on in the 61st minute to replace Johny Allan and do sterling work to protect the 1-0 lead we had gained early in the match. An away win at Hull had seemed unbelievable just a few weeks before. A hard fought draw away at Luton followed  by a home win against Rushden and Diamonds and an away draw against Rochdale saw Stu settling in to his midfield role and playing well.  The low point of the season on the field  came  at the away game at Kidderminster, where he managed to pick up two yellow cards  in 8 minutes and receive his marching orders from the referee.  This saw him suspended for Lincoln away  and still struggling with his ankle injury Stu  only started two more games, the last of these being the home game against Swansea on the 9th of March. Ian Stevens  had already put Carlisle in front when in the 19th minute Peter Murphy sent in a cross to the far post and Stu headed in the second. The game was eventually won 3-1, Stu being taken off in the second half to be replaced by McDonagh.  By now it was obvious that the operation  on his ankle wouldn't wait and he was booked in to have surgery at the end of March.  The deepening injury crisis saw him make one further appearance, coming on for Jack in the 50th minute in the home win against Oxford on the 23rd. A crunch game that needed his  defensive experience to  steady the ship and earn  a deserved 2-1 victory.

Stu started the 02/02 season in great form. In a poll of fans conducted by the Evening News & Star he was voted player of the month and looked as though he had put last seasons injury worries behind him and was back to his best.  He took a knock on his ankle at the away game at Scunthorpe on the 17th of September which was to keep him out for the next two league games.   By the Newcastle friendly at Brunton Park on the 2nd of October rumour was rife that Stu was about to sign for Darlington. He played the second half in what proved to be his final match for United on the Wednesday and the following Saturday helped Darlington  to a 1- 0 win  against Bristol Rovers.  Stu has been a rock in defence since he joined the Club for the 98/99 season and was our longest serving player, we wish him all the best in his future career.

To read the interview Stu was kind enough to give to 3gamesinhand  Click Here

Back to Player archive