John Keister (footballer, born 1970)

John Keister (born 11 November 1970) is a football coach and former professional player. Born in England, he played for the Sierra Leone national team during his career and currently serves as its head coach.[1]

John Keister
Keister in 2009
Personal information
Date of birth (1970-11-11) 11 November 1970
Place of birth Manchester, England
Position(s) Sweeper, midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1993 Tigres
1993–2000 Walsall 106 (2)
2000 Chester City 10 (0)
2000–2001 Shrewsbury Town 8 (0)
2001 Stevenage Borough
2001–2006 Margate 186 (22)
2006–2009 Dover Athletic 97 (3)
2009–2011 Margate 3 (0)
International career
2000–2002 Sierra Leone 7 (0)
Managerial career
2017–2019 Sierra Leone
2020–2023 Sierra Leone
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Keister started his career at Sierra Leone side Tigres in 1992 before moving to England in 1993. Since living in England he has played for Walsall, Chester City, Shrewsbury Town, Stevenage Borough, Margate and Dover Athletic where he was captain before returning to previous club Margate on a free transfer in September 2009.[2]

Whilst playing for non-league club Margate he gained two international caps for Sierra Leone. He played in two World Cup qualifying games against Nigeria and Morocco, making him the first player from the club to receive international recognition whilst playing for them.[3]

Keister was player-assistant manager at the club but left in February 2011.

Following a spell at FC Johansen, he was appointed as manager of the Sierra Leone national team in 2017.[4][5] After leaving the post in 2019, he was reappointed in August 2020.[6]

References
  1. "Dover Athletic website". Archived from the original on 17 January 2007. Retrieved 4 June 2007.
  2. John Keister at Soccerbase
  3. "Odds & Ends". margatefchistory.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 December 2007. Retrieved 4 June 2007.
  4. "Sierra Leone to unveil new head coach John Keister". FootballSierraLeone.net. 18 May 2017.
  5. "Leone Stars go local and appoint Keister". BBC Sport.
  6. "Sierra Leone appoint John Keister as new head coach of the national team for the second time". FootballSierraLeone.net. 11 August 2020.


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