Steve Morison

Born in Enfield, London, Morison attended Enfield Grammar School, leaving school at the age of 16 with a single GCSE qualification. He subsequently earned a National Diploma in sports science. ==Club career==

Northampton and Bishop's Stortford Morison joined Northampton Town as part of the club's youth system following a successful trial period, having also spent time on trial at Leicester City. He made two further appearances for the club, scoring Northampton's equaliser away at Darlington on 18 September 2004. The following month, Morison signed for Conference South club Bishop's Stortford for an undisclosed fee. He scored on his debut in a 1–1 draw against Redbridge. He helped Bishop's Stortford reach the semi-final of the FA Trophy and ended the season as both the club's top goalscorer and the 2004–05 FA Trophy leading goalscorer. In the following season, Morison initially struggled for form and was used primarily as a substitute during the first two months of the season. He returned to the starting line-up for a match against Histon in November 2005, scoring a hat-trick in a 5–0 victory. Stevenage Borough After opening the 2006–07 season by scoring two goals in two matches for Bishop's Stortford, Morison joined Conference National club Stevenage Borough on a two-year contract in August 2006 for a "small four figure fee". He scored on his debut in a 3–2 defeat against Crawley Town on 19 August 2006, and followed this up with a hat-trick against Morecambe in a 3–3 draw at Christie Park in the club's next fixture. Morison scored regularly during his debut season, contributing to the club's success in the FA Trophy, where he finished as the competition's top goalscorer with eight goals. This included scoring the winning goal in the final in May 2007 against Kidderminster Harriers, as Stevenage overturned a 2–0 deficit to win 3–2 at Wembley Stadium in front of a competition-record crowd of 53,262. Morison made 53 appearances during the season, scoring 34 times in all competitions and finishing as the club's leading goalscorer. as the club narrowly missed out on the Conference Premier play-offs. At the end of the season, Morison submitted a transfer request as he sought a return to the Football League. Although the club accepted the request and received interest from League Two club Crewe Alexandra, no transfer materialised, and Morison subsequently signed a new three-year contract with Stevenage. The contract contained a clause allowing him to leave the club at the end of the 2008–09 season for a pre-agreed fee, should Stevenage fail to achieve promotion to the Football League. He scored 30 goals in 51 appearances for the Hertfordshire club during the 2008–09 season, and captained the team for the majority of the season. His season began with a 5–0 away defeat to Wrexham, a match in which Morison was sent off for an "off-the-ball headbutt". He missed the following three games through suspension, but returned in early September 2008, scoring a hat-trick against eventual champions Burton Albion and two goals against Altrincham in successive matches. Morison also scored seven times in seven games in the FA Trophy that season, including one in the 2–0 victory against York City in the final on 9 May 2009. During his three-year spell at the club, Morison made 152 appearances and scored 89 goals. This tally ranks him as the second-highest goalscorer in the club's history. Morison made his debut for Millwall in the opening match of the 2009–10 season, starting in a 1–1 draw with Southampton on 8 August 2009, during which he provided the assist for Millwall's equaliser. A month later, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 victory against Huddersfield Town. After scoring seven goals in five matches in March 2010, Morison was named Football League One Player of the Month. He scored in Millwall's 2–0 win against Huddersfield Town on 18 May 2010, his 23rd goal of the season, as Millwall progressed to the League One play-off final, where they defeated Swindon Town 1–0 at Wembley Stadium on 6 June 2010. The victory marked Morison's third successive win at the stadium. He scored 23 goals in 52 appearances during his debut season at Millwall leaders QPR Morison began the 2010–11 season by assisting two of Millwall's goals in a 3–0 victory over Bristol City at Ashton Gate on 7 August 2010. In the club's following league match, he scored two headed goals as Millwall defeated Hull City at The Den. It was reported that Millwall rejected a £2 million offer for Morison from Nottingham Forest on 15 October 2010, with Millwall manager Kenny Jackett stating there would be "no chance" that Morison will be sold in the January transfer window. Morison subsequently signed a new -year contract with Millwall on 5 February 2011, ending transfer speculation regarding his long-term commitment to the club. Morison concluded the season having scored 17 goals in 43 appearances. Norwich City At the end of the 2010–11 season, Morison submitted a written transfer request amid speculation linking him to a move to newly promoted Premier League club Norwich City. Millwall rejected the request. Millwall subsequently accepted an offer from Norwich after the two clubs agreed a fee for the player on 2 June 2011. It was the fourth bid Norwich had submitted for Morison. He signed for the club on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee on 6 June 2011. Morison made his Norwich City debut against Wigan Athletic during the club's opening match of the 2011–12 season, playing 75 minutes in a 1–1 draw and providing the assist for Norwich's equalising goal. He scored his first goal for the club in Norwich's first home win of the season, a 2–1 victory over Sunderland on 26 September 2011. He scored his 10th goal of the season in a 3–3 draw away to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on 5 May 2012. Morison's late goal from a tight angle drew Norwich level after they had trailed 3–2 with five minutes remaining. The following season, under new Norwich manager Chris Hughton, Morison featured predominantly as a substitute, starting only four matches during the first half of the 2012–13 season. He scored his first goal of the season in a 5–2 home defeat to Liverpool on 29 September 2012, a match in which he was named in the starting line-up. Morison made his final appearance for Norwich in a 4–3 defeat to Manchester City in the club's last match of 2012. He made 59 appearances during his one-and-a-half-year spell at the club, scoring 12 goals. Leeds United On the final day of the 2013 January transfer window, Morison signed for Championship club Leeds United as part of a swap deal. The transfer involved Luciano Becchio moving to Norwich, with Norwich also paying Leeds a "further undisclosed sum". Upon Morison's arrival, Leeds manager Neil Warnock stated: "Steve meets all the requirements of the striker we've been looking to bring in. For me, he is a player who has everything. He can score goals from anywhere, whether it's 25 yards or a tap-in, he has pace, and he has all the attributes you want". He scored his first goal for the club on his home debut on 20 February 2013, the second goal in a 2–0 victory over Blackpool. He scored three goals in 16 appearances during the second half of the 2012–13 season. Upon his return, he stated: "I'm pleased to be back here. If anybody has any doubts about me all I'd say is that I aim to score plenty of goals for Millwall and help this club to greater success". Morison made 41 appearances during the loan agreement, of which 25 were starting, and scored eight times as Millwall finished 19th in the Championship. Morison missed the opening matches of the season through injury, making his first league appearance for Leeds in over a year as a substitute against Huddersfield Town on 20 September 2014. He scored his first goal for Leeds in more than two years with a volley in a 2–1 defeat to Charlton Athletic on 19 April 2015. He made 26 appearances during the season, scoring twice. He scored in the first game upon returning, a 2–1 victory over Shrewsbury Town on 8 August 2015. Morison scored 19 goals in 57 appearances during the season, as Millwall were defeated 3–1 in the 2016 Football League One play-off final on 29 May 2016. He made 50 appearances over the course of the season, scoring 19 times. He made his competitive debut for the club on 3 August 2019, starting in a 1–0 home victory against Portsmouth. The loan agreement was made permanent on 8 August 2019 and was set to run until the end of the 2019–20 season. He made nine appearances for Shrewsbury during the opening months of the 2019–20 season. Morison announced his retirement from playing with immediate effect on 18 October 2019, in order to begin his coaching career at the academy of his first club, Northampton Town. ==International career==

England C Morison was called up to the England C team, who represent England at non-League level, in November 2006. He scored in a European Challenge Trophy match against the Netherlands and also featured in matches against Grenada and Barbados, scoring against Grenada in a 1–1 draw. Morison played eight times for the England C team, scoring three goals, before becoming ineligible due to age restrictions. Wales colours In May 2010, Morison was identified as eligible to represent Wales due to Welsh ancestry, as his grandmother was born in Tredegar, near Ebbw Vale. Wales assistant manager Roy Evans attended Millwall's 1–0 victory against Swindon Town to observe Morison, who had expressed interest in playing for Wales. Morison started in Wales' 5–1 victory, playing the full match and providing the assist for Ashley Williams' goal. Wales manager Gary Speed called Morison up for the country's two UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers in September 2011. He scored his first international goal in a 2–1 victory against Montenegro, played at Cardiff City Stadium on 2 September 2011. Morison's goal, a close-range finish from six yards, proved decisive in Wales earning their first victory of the qualification group. He earned his 20th and final cap in a 2–0 defeat to Croatia in Osijek on 16 October 2012. ==Coaching career==

Morison earned his first coaching qualification at Protec Football Academy during his playing career. His first match as caretaker manager was a 3–3 draw away at Stoke City, with Cardiff recovering from a 3–0 deficit in the final 25 minutes; the result ended Cardiff's club-record run of eight consecutive defeats. Cardiff recorded their first win in 10 matches in Morison's third match in caretaker charge, defeating Huddersfield Town 2–1 on 6 November 2021. Club owner Vincent Tan stated that he had been impressed by the more attacking style of football implemented during Morison's three matches as caretaker manager. Morison was subsequently appointed first-team manager on 12 November 2021, signing a contract until the end of the 2021–22 season. He drew criticism for his treatment of players following a 3–0 defeat to Bournemouth on 30 December 2021, His first match in charge was a 2–2 draw with promotion-chasing Barrow on 13 January 2024.{{cite news ==Style of play==

Morison played as a striker and was noted for his positional awareness, having been described as a "player who is always in the right place at the right time". Prior to the 2008–09 season, Stevenage manager Graham Westley sent Morison to a specialised training camp to improve his acceleration and agility. Westley also characterised Morison as a player that "no defender would want to play against", citing his combination of height, pace, and strength. Nick Szczepanik of The Times described Morison as playing with "a fearless, all-action style". ==Personal life==

While playing part-time football for Bishop's Stortford in 2004, Morison was employed by a shredding company, describing the role as "getting up at four in the morning shredding paper around London". In January 2013, he co-founded a greyhound racing syndicate with former Norwich City teammate Grant Holt. ==Career statistics==

Club International International goals ''Wales' goal tally first'' Managerial statistics ==Honours==

As a player Stevenage Borough • FA Trophy: 2006–07, 2017 • Football League One Player of the Month: March 2010 As a manager Individual • EFL Championship Manager of the Month: March 2022 ==References==