A number of players have played for both Hull City and Stoke City over the years, ranging from the genuinely world class to the comically dreadful.
Former Stoke City and Hull City defender Abdoulaye Faye
Hull City face Stoke City tomorrow for the second time this season, with the two sides having played each other in the EFL Cup exactly a month ago today. The Tigers emerged victorious that day, winning 2-1, courtesy of a last minute goal from Markus Henriksen.
When it comes to connections between the two, there is one player who stands out. Neil Franklin is probably the second finest player to have played for both clubs, behind Stanley Matthews at Stoke and Raich Carter at Hull.
A number of the most notable players to have played for both clubs, for good and bad reasons, seem to be centre-backs. No fewer than five of the eight ex-Hull and Stoke players featured here plied their trade, or continue to ply their trade, at the centre of defence.
Jonathan Walters in action for Ireland against Germany
If we start at the bottom and work our way up, then we must surely start with Ibrahima Sonko. Stoke City made a mistake in paying £2 million for the defender, who had struggled to recover from his last injury at Reading. He played 17 games for the Potters, 14 in the Premier League, and it was abundantly clear that he wasn’t fit for purpose.
Hull City brought him in on-loan to replace the departed Michael Turner. Has it been long enough to laugh about that now? Sonko was everything Turner was not. Calamitous, sloppy and error-prone. His 9 outings for the Tigers were best summed up by his performance at Anfield in a 6-1 defeat, where he was outshone by Liam Cooper. Sonko now plays Harlow Town in the seventh tier.
Unlike Sonko, Abdoulaye Faye was a man who was impervious at the back for both clubs. A compatriot of Sonko’s and a fellow Senegalese international, the two defenders were world’s apart in their performances. Faye was a mountain of a man who is much-liked by both sets of supporters, reaching an FA Cup final and winning Player of the Year at Stoke, whilst winning promotion at Hull.
The Sarge: Former Hull City captain Justin Whittle
From a man who is much-liked by Hull and Stoke supporters, to one who is a cult hero. Nicknamed ‘Sarge’, Justin Whittle played 79 league games for Stoke and 193 league games for Hull. Admired by Stoke fans as a traditional 90’s style no-nonsense defender, many were disappointed to see him depart shortly after the clubs relegation from the old First Division (second tier) in 1998.
It was a similar story at Hull City, although to an even greater extent. Adored by the Tigers fans for his role in the club’s 1998/99 ‘Great Escape’ season, Whittle spent 6 years at Boothferry Park and the KC Stadium, playing 219 games in all competitions, and his departure for Grimsby in 2004 upset a number of supporters.
One player who has had a greater impact at Stoke than Hull is Jonathan Walters. The only player featured here to still play for one of the two teams, Walters is currently in his seventh season with the Potters, where he has scored 58 goals in 255 games. The 33-year-old played 48 games for Hull City in two separate spells, first on-loan and later as a permanent fixture.
Seyi Olofinjana whilst at Stoke City
Nigerian international Seyi Olofinjana is a player who never really impressed for either Stoke or Hull. The midfielder was a long-time target of Phil Brown’s, and although he failed to sign him in 2008, as Olofinjana joined Stoke, he got his man just a year later, after a move from Stoke to Monaco broke down.
Olofinjana didn’t prove to be worth the wait for Hull City. In fact, he must go down as one of the worst signings in the club’s history. Despite appearing physically imposing, he was weak in the challenge and fancied himself as more of a ball-player. One of the highest earners at Hull, they were laboured with him for 4 years. He played just 14 games after leaving Hull in 2013 before retiring.
Leon Cort was a player who did a much more capable job in both the red and white of Stoke and the black and amber of Hull. The lanky defender spent two successful years at Hull, before following Peter Taylor to Crystal Palace and eventually ending up at Stoke a couple of years later. He made only 53 appearances for the Potters but formed a strong partnership with Ryan Shawcross at times.
Ibrahima Sonko having a torrid time against Liverpool
The only striker to have played for both teams featured here is Jon Parkin. The towering and at times rather rotund forward is actually quite a technically gifted player, and has scored more than 175 career goals, although he has developed something of a reputation for starting with a bang at clubs before tailing off in the following season/s.
Lastly we come to Neil Franklin. The finest defender to have played for either Stoke City or Hull City and one man who could genuinely challenge Bobby Moore for the title of greatest ever English defender. Football was a vastly different game in the 1940’s and 50’s, when Franklin was a player, and defenders were very much of the boot and head everything that comes your way mould.
In this respect, Franklin was not just years but decades or even whole generations ahead of his time. A ball-playing defender before anyone even knew what one was; he was also an athletic, intelligent and formidable centre-back. The complete defender if you like. Staffordshire-born, Franklin spent 11 years at Stoke (six interrupted by the war), before heading to Colombia.
Victoria Ground: The former home of Stoke City
Aged 28 and at the peak of his powers, Franklin had played 27 consecutive games for England (a record at the time) when he swapped Stoke for a lucrative contract in Bogota to avoid the wage cap in Britain. He lasted just 6 games in South America, turning down England at the 1950 World Cup in the process.
Upon his return, neither England nor any top flight teams would touch him, but Hull City and their then-manager Raich Carter, a former England teammate of Franklin’s, would. He joined the Second Division Tigers for a world record fee for a defender.
Injuries disrupted his time at Boothferry Park, managing just 95 league appearances in 5 years, and sadly failing to recapture the scintillating form which had made him England’s number one defender during his time at Stoke. Had it not been for his ill-fated move to Colombia, Franklin would most likely have become England captain and the first player to hit 100 caps. Read more about Franklin here.
Jon Parkin celebrates scoring for Hull City
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