Jonathan Grant

Jonathan Grant

Grant receives 2017 L1O Defender of the Year award
Personal information
Full name	Jonathan Nicholas Grant
Date of birth	(1993-10-15) October 15, 1993 (age 31)
Place of birth	Pickering, Ontario, Canada
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Defender
Team information
Current team	Atlético Ottawa
Youth career
0000–2009	Wexford SC
2009–2012	Sigma FC
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2012–2013	Yavapai Roughriders
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014	Sigma FC	12	(0)
2015	FC Montreal	10	(0)
2016	Swope Park Rangers	18	(1)
2017	Sigma FC	20	(7)
2018	Nyköpings BIS	0	(0)
2019–2022	Forge FC	41	(1)
2023	York United	15	(0)
2024–	Atlético Ottawa	0	(0)
International career^‡
2015	Canada U23	6	(0)
2023–	Guyana	6	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of February 16, 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 21, 2023

Jonathan Nicholas Grant (born October 15, 1993) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Atlético Ottawa in the Canadian Premier League. Born in Canada, Grant plays for the Guyana national team.

Early life

Grant began playing youth soccer at age three with Wexford SC in Scarborough, Ontario.^[1] When he was 15, he joined Sigma FC.^[2]

In 2012, Grant committed to join Yavapai College.^[3][4]

Club career

In 2014, he played with Sigma FC in League1 Ontario.^[2] After the season, he was invited to train with the first team and reserves of Belgian club Genk.^[2]

On May 15, 2015, after a month-long trial, he signed a professional contract with USL club FC Montreal, the second team of Major League Soccer club Montreal Impact.^[5] He made his debut the same day against the Charleston Battery.^[6]

In December 2015, he signed with the Swope Park Rangers for the 2016 season.^[7] He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–0 win over Orange County Blues FC on July 23, 2016.^[8]

In 2017, he returned to his former club Sigma FC in League1 Ontario.^[9] He was named Defender of the Year and a league First-Team All-Star.^[10][11]

In February 2018, Grant signed with Swedish Division 1 Norra club Nyköpings BIS for the 2018 season.^[12] However, he suffered an injury in pre-season and would miss the entire 2018 season due to surgery, so he and the club agreed to terminate the contract by mutual consent in June 2018.^[13]

In February 2019, he signed with Forge FC of the Canadian Premier League.^[14] He scored his first goal on August 25, 2019, against Cavalry FC.^[15][16] Injuries limited his play time over his first two seasons with the club.^[17] In February 2021, he extended his contract with the club.^[18][19] After the 2022 season, his option for 2023 was declined by the club.^[20]

In March 2023, he signed with fellow CPL side York United for the 2023 season.^[21][22] In August 2023, he suffered a facial fracture after a head-on-head collision with Théo Collomb in a match against the HFX Wanderers, keeping him out for several weeks.^[23] After the 2023 season, he departed the club.^[24]

In February 2024, he signed with Atlético Ottawa on a two-year contract.^[25][26] He became the first player to have played for all three of the league's Ontario-based clubs.^[27][28] During pre-season, he suffered a knee injury requiring knee surgery, forcing him to miss the entire 2024 season.^[29][30]

International career

Grant was eligible to play for Canada, where he was born, and Guyana, where his parents are from.^[31][32]

Canada

Grant received his first call-up to Canada national team on January 9, 2015, for a pair of friendlies against Iceland.^[33][34] However, he did not appear in either of the two matches.^[19] In June 2015, he was called up to the Canada U23 for the 2015 Pan Am Games.^[35] In September 2015, he was named to the squad for the 2015 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship.^[36]

Guyana

In 2023, it was revealed that he had begun the process to obtain a Guyanese passport, with the goal of representing the country at senior level.^[37] In March 2023, he was called up to the Guyana national team for the first time ahead of their CONCACAF Nations League matches.^[38][39][40] He proceeded to win his first cap for the Golden Jaguars on 25 March, starting in a 2–0 win over Bermuda, in which he recorded an assist.^[41][42] In June 2023, Grant was named to Guyana's 23-man squad for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification tournament.^[43]

Honours

Club

Forge FC

• Canadian Premier League: 2019, 2020, 2022

Individual

• League1 Ontario Defender of the Year: 2017
• League1 Ontario First Team All Star: 2017

References

1. Jonathan Grant at the Canadian Soccer Association
2. "Johnny Grant heads to KRC Genk". Sigma FC. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016.
3. "Johhny Grant signs with National power Yavapai College for 2012". Sigma FC. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
4. "Yavapai soccer nabs 12 solid recruits for 2012 campaign". Yavapai College. June 19, 2012.
5. "Le FC Montréal obtient le défenseur latéral droit Jonathan Grant" [FC Montreal gets right-back Jonathan Grant]. RDS (in French). May 14, 2015.
6. D'Amours, Tristan (May 15, 2015). "FC Montreal Clinches First Win With Shutout". The Link.
7. Bell, Thad (December 16, 2015). "Swope Park Rangers add four players". The Blue Testament.
8. Bergabo, Patrik (July 23, 2016). "Recap: Swope Park Rangers cruise to 3-0 win over Orange County Blues FC". Sporting Kansas City.
9. "Jonathan Grant 2017 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
10. "Toronto Blizzard's Simpson And Sigma FC's Grant Named 2017 League1 Ontario Defenders Of The Year". League1 Ontario. November 6, 2017.
11. "League1 Ontario Announces 2017 Men's First, Second and Third Team All-Stars". League1 Ontario. November 7, 2017.
12. "Jonathan Grant klar för Nyköpings BIS" [Jonathan Grant ready for Nyköping's BIS]. Nyköpings BIS (in Swedish). February 26, 2018.
13. "Jonathan Grant lämnar Nyköping" [Jonathan Grant leaves Nyköping]. Nyköpings BIS (in Swedish). June 20, 2018.
14. "Forge FC adds Senegalese international Cisse, Canadian international Johnny Grant". Canadian Premier League. February 26, 2019.
15. "Forge FC knock off Cavalry to climb to top of CPL Fall table". CBC Sports. August 25, 2019.
16. "Jonathan Grant a quiet, unheralded contributor for Forge FC". Canadian Premier League. October 5, 2019.
17. "Forge FC re-signs Canadians Grant and Choinière through 2022 CPL season". Forge FC. February 11, 2021.
18. "Forge FC re-signs Choinière and Grant to multi-year contracts". Forge FC. February 11, 2021.
19. Jacques, John (February 11, 2021). "Forge Secures Grant, Choiniere To Multi-Year Deals". Northern Tribune.
20. Jacques, John (February 7, 2023). "York United Eyeing Jonathan Grant". Northern Tribune.
21. Jacques, John (March 8, 2023). "York United Signs Former Forge Man Jonathan Grant". Northern Tribune.
22. Hewitt, Thomas (March 9, 2023). "Switching Sides in The 905: Jonathan Grant Joins York United". 13th Man Sports.
23. Jacques, John (August 6, 2023). "Grant, Collomb Out For Weeks After Collision". Northern Tribune.
24. Jacques, John (February 11, 2024). "Jonathan Grant Set To Stay In CPL". Northern Tribune.
25. Healey, Josh (February 16, 2024). "Five years into his CPL journey, Jonathan Grant's still hungry to win: 'We have a good enough roster to compete'". Wanderers Notebook.
26. Tierney, Mitchell (February 16, 2024). "'I bring years of experience': Atlético Ottawa announce signing of fullback Jonathan Grant". Canadian Premier League.
27. "Atlético Ottawa welcomes three-time Canadian Premier League Champion Jonathan Grant". Atlético Ottawa. February 16, 2024.
28. Jacques, John (February 16, 2024). "Ontario Hat Trick: Jonathan Grant Nets Atletico Ottawa Deal". Northern Tribune.
29. "Atlético Ottawa defender Jonathan Grant placed on inactive roster list following pre-season injury". Atlético Ottawa. March 18, 2024.
30. Jacques, John (March 18, 2024). "Out For Ottawa: Grant Placed On Inactive List". Northern Tribune.
31. Toney, Rawle (February 7, 2023). "Shabazz targets Morgan Ferrier, Jonathan Grant for Nations League". Kaieteur News.
32. Jacques, John (February 26, 2023). "Guyana Eyes Jonathan Grant". Northern Tribune.
33. Squizzato, Daniel (January 9, 2015). "Benito Floro eyes future with prospect-filled roster for Canada's upcoming friendlies vs. Iceland". Major League Soccer.
34. "Jonathan Grant profile". Canadian Olympic Committee.
35. "Four members of Impact organization to take part in Pan Am Games". Montreal Gazette. June 19, 2015.
36. "USL Standouts Join Canada For Olympic Qualifying". USL Championship. September 19, 2015.
37. Tierney, Mitchell (March 8, 2023). "'I want to bring a winning mentality to this team': Former Forge fullback Johnny Grant joins York United". Canadian Premier League.
38. Toney, Rawle (March 17, 2023). "Jonathan Grant lone debutant in Guyana's 23-man Nations League squad". Kaieteur News.
39. "Called Up: Jonathan Grant named in Guyana squad for first time ahead of Nations League games". York United FC. March 20, 2023.
40. Jacques, John (March 20, 2023). "Guyana's Guy: Jonathan Grant Is The Latest CPL Call-Up". Northern Tribune.
41. "Family Ties: Johnny Grant on what it means to be on the cusp of Gold Cup with Guyana". York United FC. June 20, 2023.
42. Jacques, John (November 14, 2023). "Guyana Gets Grant For Nations League Matches". Northern Tribune.
43. "Johnny Grant included in Guyana squad for crucial Gold Cup preliminary tournament". York United FC. June 14, 2023.

External links

• Jonathan Grant at the Canadian Soccer Association
• Jonathan Grant at Soccerway