
A blue-eyed boy in the Gordon Strachan era for his enormous work-rate and tigerish tackling. Strachan loaned him to Dundee United in 1999 and he made a big impression and was voted young player of the year. The feisty midfielder was given his first-team chance after Strachan and Carlton Palmer fell out in early 2000 and John gave some outstanding performances. Never one to shirk a challenge John earned his colleagues and the fans’ respect with his competitive battles with top hard men such as Paul Ince and Roy Keane. Perhaps too much was asked of him in his second season but as City struggled his form dipped. After relegation he was appointed captain by Strachan but suffered a bad knee injury pre-season and barely played that season. On recovering his zest seemed to have gone and he was less able to get into the box to score the goals than before. A loan spell at Middlesbrough was followed by a permanent move to Stoke City but he was plagued with injuries and made less than 80 appearances in four and a half years. John's grandfather Ken Eustace also played one match for Hereford during the 1949-50 season.
Penalties (2 - both scored)
1999-00
18 March 2000 v Bradford City H, scored
2002-03
1 March 2003 v Grimsby Town A, scored















































































































































































































































































