Magnus Okuonghae

Magnus Erharuyi Okuonghae (born 16 February 1986) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender.

Okuonghae made over 200 appearances in all competitions for Colchester United where he was club captain, and has also played for Rushden & Diamonds, Aldershot Town, St Albans City, Crawley Town, Dagenham & Redbridge, Luton Town and Maidstone United. He has made loan appearances for Bishop's Stortford, Weymouth, Hartlepool United and Welling United. Born in Nigeria, he was capped once by the England national C team in 2006.

Club career Early career Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Okuonghae began his career with Fulham in the club's youth system, before appearing for Norwich City under-19s in March 2002, and later featured on the bench for Leicester City under-19s in April 2002.

Rushden & Diamonds Okuonghae was signed by Third Division club Rushden & Diamonds and became part of the under-16 squad. He made his professional debut for Rushden & Diamonds, now in the Second Division in 2003–04 as an 87th-minute substitute in a 4–0 win over Colchester United at Nene Park on 22 November, but did not feature again for the rest of the season. He would make a further 22 appearances in all competitions throughout the season, However, the season ended in relegation for Rushden, and Okuonghae rejected their offer of a new contract and left the club. He made his debut for the club on 13 January as they defeated his former club Aldershot 2–0 at the Recreation Ground. After making his debut on 1 September in a 1–0 win at home to Lincoln City, He scored his first goal for the club during the campaign in a 2–1 defeat away to Luton Town on 15 November 2008. He played all but one league match for Dagenham & Redbridge through the campaign as they fell just short of the League Two play-offs.

Colchester United 2009–10 season With Okuonghae out of contract, he decided to join League One club Colchester United in July 2009. Although Dagenham & Redbridge had offered Okuonghae a new contract, he described his move to Colchester as a "no-brainer" and felt that he could make the step up to League One football. He signed a two-year deal with the club, although compensation had to be paid to Dagenham & Redbridge for the transfer.

Okuonghae made his debut for Colchester on the opening day of 2009–10 in a 7–1 win away to newly relegated Norwich City. Okuonghae finished the season with 49 appearances in all competitions. He scored his first goal for the club on 25 September 2010 and Colchester's third in a 3–1 win at home to Tranmere Rovers. He then had to undergo ankle surgery in February 2011, ruling him out for the remainder of the season.

2011–12 season Okuonghae returned to the first team on the opening day of 2011–12 in a 4–2 win away at Preston North End. He received his first red card for Colchester on 15 October when he was sent off in their 2–2 draw away to Rochdale. With his contract expiring in the summer, Okuonghae said that rumours linking him with a move away from the club "helps me to raise my game" and gives him the confidence to improve his performances. He decided to leave Colchester after three years with the club on 3 July 2012 with the hope of securing a move to a Championship club. However, Okuonghae returned to Colchester on 14 July and signed a new three-year deal.

2012–13 season In a season where Colchester battled against the threat of relegation to League Two, Okuonghae made 46 appearances and scored three goals in all competitions, followed by Colchester's only goal in a 2–1 defeat at home to Doncaster Rovers on 15 September, and a consolation goal in a 5–1 defeat at home to Tranmere Rovers on 23 February 2013.

2013–14 season Following a solid start to 2013–14, Okuonghae was nominated for the League One Player of the Month award for August, having been an ever-present member of the Colchester defence that conceded just four goals in five matches. In a 4–1 defeat by his former club Dagenham & Redbridge in the Football League Trophy on 3 September, Okuonghae received his second red card of his Colchester United career. and once again in another defeat, this time at the hands of Swindon Town on 16 November. He went on to make 46 appearances for the club throughout the season. His vice captain was named as new-boy Sean Clohessy on 7 August 2014. He received a red card in only his second match of the season, a 4–0 League Cup defeat to Charlton Athletic on 12 August. He then received his second red card of the campaign a little over one month later when he was shown a straight red for fouling former teammate Dave Mooney in a match against Leyton Orient. He committed the foul just before half-time in what ended a 2–0 victory for Colchester on 13 September, their first win of the season. In Colchester's 1–0 defeat at home to Coventry City on 22 November, Okuonghae suffered an achilles tendon rupture and had to be stretchered off the field late in the match. This ruled him out of action for the rest of the season.

With his contract expiring in the summer of 2015, Colchester United took the decision not to renew Okhuonghae's contract, ending his six-year association with the club. Manager Tony Humes described Okuonghae as "an excellent servant to the club". He made his debut for the club as a 59th-minute substitute for Scott Cuthbert in a 2–1 win at home to Leyton Orient in the Football League Trophy on 1 September. After making his first start for Luton in a 2–1 defeat away to Gillingham in the Football League Trophy, Okuonghae joined League Two rivals Hartlepool United on a one-month loan on 17 October. He sustained an ankle injury during a 2–0 defeat away to AFC Wimbledon on 31 October and returned to Luton for treatment. Okuonghae did not play for Hartlepool again during his loan spell, having made four appearances. Okuonghae required knee surgery in April 2016 and did not feature again in 2015–16, having made 14 appearances in all competitions. He was placed on the transfer list at the end of the season, before his contract was cancelled by mutual consent on 31 August.

Return to Dagenham & Redbridge Okuonghae re-signed for National League club Dagenham & Redbridge on a short-term contract until 2 January 2017 on 25 November 2016. He made his second debut a day later in a 4–1 defeat at home to Barrow. Okuonghae was released following the expiration of his contract, having made four appearances for the club. He debuted on 14 April 2017 in a 3–1 victory away to Wrexham and finished the season with five appearances.

He joined National League South club Welling United on 9 March 2018 on loan until the end of 2017–18. Okuonghae made his debut a day later, starting in a 1–0 away victory over East Thurrock United, before finishing the loan with 10 appearances.

Dulwich Hamlet Okuonghae signed for National League South club Dulwich Hamlet on 23 July 2018.

Return to Welling United On 26 June 2019, Welling United announced that Okuonghae had returned to the club, this time on permanent basis. However, one month later, on 25 July 2019, the club announced that Okuonghae had decided to retire from football with immediate effect.

International career While playing for St Albans City, Okuonghae was selected for the semi-professional England National Game XI. He played in a friendly against Forest Green Rovers on 5 September 2006 to mark the official opening of their New Lawn stadium. England National Game XI lost the fixture 1–0, with Okuonghae scoring an own goal.

Personal life After retiring from football, Okuonghae began working as a HR and Recruitment Consultant for Annapurna Recruitment.

Career statistics

Honours Individual Dagenham & Redbridge Player of the Year: 2008–09