Flanagan's Football Files

He has graced the Essex Senior League and been in the headlines recently. At first glance, you might think we’re talking about Richard Kone. But no, this forward is a different story. Currently at his 22nd club and approaching his 50th birthday, Jamie Cureton is still going strong and has no intention of hanging up his boots just yet.

The former Enfield star has just registered as a player once again for his current side, Cambridge City, where he also serves as player-manager.

Cureton was only 19 when he made his Premier League debut for Norwich City against Everton in November 1994. At that time, Oldham Athletic and Swindon Town had just been relegated from the top flight, Neville Southall was still Everton’s goalkeeper, and Blackburn Rovers were on their way to being crowned champions of England.

If he features for Cambridge City this season, Cureton will mark a remarkable 32 consecutive seasons as a player, across nine tiers of English football, from the Premier League down to the Essex Senior League.

The list of clubs he has represented is astonishing: Norwich, Bournemouth (loan), Bristol Rovers, Reading, Busan I’Cons (South Korea), QPR, Swindon Town, Colchester, Barnsley (loan), Shrewsbury (loan), Exeter… and more. Cheltenham, Dagenham & Redbridge, Farnborough, Eastleigh, St Albans City, Bishop’s Stortford, Enfield, Hornchurch, Maldon & Tiptree, and now Cambridge City, where he begins his second season in charge.

Cureton himself admits he lost count of his appearances after passing the 1,000 mark. That milestone, reached six years ago, placed him in elite company alongside Barcelona legend Xavi and Real Madrid icon Raúl. According to Wikipedia, Cureton has now played 1,075 games, making him 25th on the list of male footballers worldwide with 1,000 or more official appearances.

'Football is all I’ve ever known,' Cureton says. He admits he could so easily have taken the wrong path growing up in a tough area, but football kept him grounded. He confesses it not only makes him happy, but also keeps him sane, and that life outside the game would feel 'a bit alien.'

His most recent competitive appearance came on 26 April, when the 49-year-old came off the bench in the 68th minute during Cambridge City’s 1-0 away win at Basildon Town in the Isthmian League North Division. Cureton was 24 years older than Junior Mubiayi, the teammate who scored the winning goal.

Since making his final professional appearance at the age of 41, Cureton has moved into non-league management, combining coaching with playing at Bishop’s Stortford, Enfield, and now Cambridge City. He also spent two years as an academy coach at Arsenal (2017–2019), where one of the youngsters under his watch was a certain 16-year-old Bukayo Saka.

Looking ahead, Cureton plans to stay in football as a coach or manager for at least another decade. But in the immediate future, he will celebrate his 50th birthday on 28 August, just two days before Cambridge City’s home game against Wroxham.

The big question remains: will he give himself the perfect birthday present by stepping onto the pitch and achieving his long-held ambition of playing at 50?