Jim O'Brien (footballer, born 1987)

Association football player
the Athlone Town midfielder

James John O'Brien (born 28 September 1987) is a professional footballer who most recently played as a central midfielder for Notts County. His previous clubs include Motherwell and Ross County in Scotland, and Barnsley and Coventry City in England. Born in Scotland, he represented Ireland at youth international level.

Raised in Dumbarton, O'Brien began his career in the youth system at Celtic. He was loaned out to Dunfermline Athletic during the 2006–07 season. He made his debut in their 3–2 Scottish Cup victory over Rangers on 7 January 2007. He scored his first goal in Dunfermline's 4–1 victory over Motherwell on 7 May 2007. He made his debut Celtic in a 2–1 victory over Gretna on 7 October 2007; he filled in as a right back due to all of Celtic's recognised players in that position being injured. O'Brien joined Dundee United on loan on 31 January until May 2008.

On 8 August 2008, O'Brien signed for Motherwell. He scored four goals in 64 league appearances for Motherwell, earning selection for the PFA Scotland team of the year in 2009–10.

On 7 May 2010, O'Brien signed a pre contract agreement with English Championship side Barnsley, In May 2014, O'Brien rejected a new contract offer from Barnsley.

O'Brien completed a move to Coventry City on a two year contract on 4 July 2014. He made his league debut on the opening day of the 2014–15 season in a 3–2 defeat to Bradford City. He scored a disputed first goal for the club against Sheffield United at Sixfields (later credited as an own goal by Blades defender Bob Harris). His second goal for the club was less disputable as he scored from close range to make the score 2–2 against Peterborough United at the Ricoh Arena on 25 October 2014; the Sky Blues went on to win the game 3–2. On 15 February 2016, O'Brien was loaned out to Scunthorpe United on an emergency basis.

On 17 June 2016, O'Brien completed a move to League One side Shrewsbury Town. He signed a two year deal arriving as a free agent following his release from Coventry. A first team regular during the first half of the season, he scored his first goal for the club in an FA Cup second round replay against Fleetwood Town. On 18 January 2017, O'Brien joined Scottish Premiership side Ross County on loan from Shrewsbury until the end of the 2016–17 season. He made his debut for the club as a substitute in a Scottish Cup fourth round tie against Dundee United, scoring the final goal in a 6–2 victory. He left Shrewsbury by mutual consent in July 2017, despite having a year left to run on his contract. then signed a two year contract with Ross County.

In September 2018 he signed a short term contract with Bradford City. He left the club in January 2019. On 8 January 2019, O'Brien signed for Notts County the same day he was released by Bradford City. He was released at the end of the 2018–19 season, but rejoined the club on 1 August 2019. On 11 May 2021, O'Brien scored his first career hat trick in Notts County's 4–0 win away at Maidenhead United. He scored his second career hat trick on 22 April 2023 in a 5–2 victory at Maidstone United. Following manager Luke Williams departure to Swansea City, Jim O’Brien was placed in interim charge of Notts County. He oversaw one match in charge, a 5–5 draw with Grimsby Town, before the appointment of Stuart Maynard saw him return to his previous role. He was released by the club after the conclusion of the 2023 2024 season.

Although O'Brien represented the Republic of Ireland at under 19 and under 21 levels, he opted to switch allegiances and represent the nation of his birth, citing a chance to work with Craig Levein, who he also worked with while at Dundee United.