John Brayford

Early career

As a youth player, Brayford had played for Manchester City but was released by the club at a young age. He instead joined non-League side Burton Albion, becoming the first graduate of the club's revamped youth academy. He made almost 80 league appearances, before signing for League One side Crewe Alexandra on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee on 1 September 2008. Burton later revealed that the fee was an initial up-front payment of £80,000, which would be raised to £130,000 if he were to progress into the first team. He made his debut for the club in a 3–0 defeat to Scunthorpe United on 11 October. Although Brayford's first season with Crewe ended in relegation for the club, it was a successful season on a personal level, as he won the Fans' Player of the Season, and attracted the interest of several bigger clubs. In the summer of 2009, Crewe confirmed Brayford's former manager Nigel Clough was interested in taking Brayford to Derby County, and that they were prepared to sell him to a club that matched Crewe's valuation of the player. No deal materialised however and Brayford remained with Crewe for the full 2009–10 season, missing just one game and being named captain. Starting the season at right back, he finished it at centre half and earned a place in the PFA League Two Team of the Season as well as retaining the club's Player of the Season award. With this form, Derby's long standing interest seemed to have reached its conclusion with…

As of end of 2023–24 season

Individual

PFA Team of the Year: 2009–10 League Two Crewe Alexandra Fans' Player of the Year: 2008–09, 2009–10 Derby County Fans' Player of the Year: 2010–11 Burton Albion Players' Player of the Year: 2021–22 Burton Albion Fans' Player of the Year: 2021–22 Burton Albion Community Player of the Year: 2021–22