Nottingham Forest Prutton was born in
Hull, and came through the
Nottingham Forest youth system, going on to make 155 appearances for the club where his career started. Having starred for Nottingham Forest and in the England under-21 squad the versatile midfielder was signed by
Southampton, then of the
Premier League, on the final day of the
transfer window for £2.5 million in 2003.
Southampton Prutton was a versatile player, having played across the
midfield and at
right-back for Southampton, and despite being a very important player in the
2002–03 season missed out on the
FA Cup Final as he was
cup-tied having played for Nottingham Forest against
West Ham in the third round. Despite only being at Southampton for less than four months Prutton played 12 games for Southampton and impressed in
Gordon Strachan's squad. In the
2003–04 season Prutton featured heavily for Southampton, playing 30 games and scoring one goal against
Charlton Athletic, on the last day of the season. The
2004–05 saw Prutton scoring 2 goals (one against European champions
Liverpool) and playing 28 games in all competitions. Following Southampton's home game with
Arsenal on 26 February 2005, Prutton was charged by the
FA on two counts for the events following his
red card for a tackle on
Robert Pires. First was for his failure to leave the field of play promptly following his
dismissal and his attempt to remonstrate with the
assistant referee, during which he pushed the
referee,
Alan Wiley, on at least one occasion. The second charge relates to his threatening words and/or behaviour towards a match official. Prutton was handed a 10-match ban and fined £6,000 after admitting the two charges of improper conduct. Prutton returned on the final day of the season for Southampton's game against
Manchester United, which the side needed to win to stay in the
Premier League. Southampton lost the game 2–1 and he and the club were relegated to the
Football League Championship. In
2005–06 the versatile midfielder's season was marred by a broken
metatarsal which he picked up in September against
Queens Park Rangers. A lack of first team opportunities forced him to seek employment elsewhere and in January 2007 he left Southampton to return to
Nottingham Forest on loan. In total he played 94 games for the Saints, scoring 5 goals. He was released by Southampton on 23 May 2007.
Return to Nottingham Forest Narrowly beating the transfer deadline, Prutton re-joined his old club in January 2007 on loan until the end of the season, with a view to a permanent move if Forest were promoted. He had piqued interest from Championship clubs
Leeds United and his home-town club,
Hull City. On 14 April, Prutton scored his first Forest goal since returning to the club against
Brentford in a league match, heading in the first of Forest's four second-half goals to inspire a fightback that would win Forest the game 4–2, despite being 2–0 down after 50 minutes. He was sent-off in 90th minute of the League One play-off semi-final second leg match against
Yeovil Town on 18 May 2007, leaving Forest with 10-men for
extra time.
Leeds United Prutton joined
Leeds United on trial during pre-season 2007 and officially joined the club on 7 August 2007. Prutton scored his first goal for Leeds against
Swansea City on 22 September 2007 in a 2–0 victory as Leeds notched up their seventh consecutive victory. Prutton generally played in a right midfield role during
Dennis Wise's rule at the club. When
Gary McAllister became manager, Prutton was moved to his natural central midfield role, and put in several man-of-the-match performances. He was one of Leeds' most consistent performers in the
2007–08 season, having started over 40 matches and winning several man of the match awards along the way. Leeds reached the playoff final that season but lost 1–0 to
Doncaster Rovers. Prutton became a cult hero amongst the Leeds fans, due to his humour in interviews and his Jesus-like appearance, mainly due to his hair. Leeds retained the services of Prutton for the next season, with his contract lasting a further year. with a view to make the move permanent. The same day, Prutton made his debut for Colchester, coming off the bench against
Milton Keynes Dons and scoring a long-range effort. Prutton's loan was set to be made permanent after Colchester played against Prutton's employers, Leeds United. Prutton wasn't allowed to play in the game due to the terms of the loan deal. On 1 February, Prutton was released from his contract at Leeds United, and signed a six-month deal at
Colchester United. Prutton was offered a new contract by Colchester manager
Aidy Boothroyd in the close season; the deal remained on the table when
John Ward took over following Boothroyd's departure to
Coventry City, but Prutton rejected the deal.
Swindon Town On 5 July 2010, he signed for
Swindon Town on a two-year deal, joining up with former Leeds teammates
David Lucas and
Jonathan Douglas. He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw with
Brentford on 21 August 2010. On 26 March Prutton scored his third goal for the robins, netting away to longtime leaders
Brighton. He left Swindon in 2011 to play for
Football League One team
Sheffield Wednesday on a free transfer after Swindon were relegated to Football League Two.
Sheffield Wednesday On 24 May 2011, Prutton signed for
Sheffield Wednesday on a two-year deal. He made his debut for the Owls in their first game of the 2011–12 campaign, against
Rochdale at Hillsborough. He scored his first goal for the club in that game, a sensational volley from the edge of the 18-yard box in the 72nd minute. On 27 March 2014, Prutton joined
League One side
Coventry City on loan until the end of the
2013–14 season, following which his career ended. == Media ==