The Greatest Comeback In Football History: David Brooks

If you think about remarkable comebacks, there are quite a few that come to mind. Liverpool in Istanbul and against Barcelona, Bournemouth against Everton at the start of the season, or even Arsenal vs Reading in the 2012 League Cup. But away from the pitch, there is one comeback that has gone under the radar and hasn’t been noticed or appreciated by most football fans.

David Brooks’ story is the best ‘feel good story’ in football in the last few years. The Welsh winger went from cusp of a good Premier League career, to battling cancer, back to Premier League stardom in just five years. You can’t help but smile when you read about his career.

David Brooks’ Early Career

David Brooks started his career in the Manchester City academy, but switched to Sheffield United at the age of 17 before signing his first professional contract with the club in 2015. He joined Halifax Town on a one month loan deal in August alongside fellow Blades youngster CJ Hamilton before extending for another month. He scored once in his five appearances, against Aldershot Town in the National League.

David Brooks recovered from Man City rejection to become a breakthrough Premier League star with Bournemouth

The story of his rise: https://t.co/LqVAWmcIQ3 pic.twitter.com/FM0iS0vQ4c

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 6, 2018

The following season saw him get some game time for the Sheffield United first team while they were in League One, although these were limited to just cup competitions. It was the 2017/18 season in the Championship that really started to show Brooks’ worth. He played 30 times in the league, but despite scoring just three times, other teams started to show interest and he moved to Bournemouth that summer.

Premier League Debut And Relegation

Brooks was so highly rated by Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe, that he was put into Bournemouth’s starting XI straight away, playing against Cardiff City on the opening day of the season. The Welshman impressed in the 2-0 win, quickly earning the love of Bournemouth fans for his directness and creativity. He scored his first Premier League goal against Crystal Palace in October before scoring against both Watford and Fulham to earn the club’s Player of the Month award.

Introducing your @MMJBournemouth Player of the Month for October, @DRBrooks15! 🏆#afcb 🍒 pic.twitter.com/xHFr56XKR2

— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) November 6, 2018

An injury in January stopped him from competing in every league game that season, but he did end on seven goals and was nominated for the Premier League’s Young Player of the Season award alongside Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling. Bournemouth’s front four of Ryan Fraser, Callum Wilson, Joshua King and David Brooks was lethal that year and earnt the Cherries what was at the time a club record points total.

The next season was a frustrating one for Brooks, as he suffered an ankle injury in pre-season and was expected back in October, however it was more complicated than expected and he underwent a second operation in December with the expected recovery time to be about three or four months. Brooks returned in March, but due to the COVID pandemic, he had to wait until July to score his first of the season before the Cherries were relegated from the Premier League.

Play-Off Push

In Bournemouth’s first season in the Championship for six years, they had a mixed time. Many expected them to return back to the Premier League with ease, but Howe’s departure as well as losing Nathan Ake, Wilson, Fraser and King made that extremely difficult. Under both Jason Tindall and Jonathan Woodgate, Brooks retained his position on the right wing and won the Championship Player of the Month award for November with two goals and three assists in just three games. Bournemouth made the playoffs but lost in the semi-final to Brentford.

Cancer Diagnosis

The 2021/22 season started poorly for Brooks as he received the first red card of his career against Nottingham Forest. Bournemouth won that match, as he scored the opener, but it would end up being his only league goal that season. In October 2021, Brooks was diagnosed with Stage Two Hodgkin Lymphoma having withdrawn from the Wales squad the previous week due to illness.

Brooks said that the prognosis was a positive one and thanked the Wales medical staff who noticed the illness and sent him for a more thorough check. He began treatment the following week.

pic.twitter.com/AhK8TrkaF3

— David Brooks (@DRBrooks15) May 3, 2022

After seven months of treatment, Brooks posted to his social media accounts announcing that he had completed his cancer treatment and that he was excited to restart his footballing career. On the same day, Bournemouth beat Nottingham Forest in the Championship to secure their promotion back to the Premier League.

Return To Action And Loan To Southampton

18-months from his diagnosis and nearly a year from completing his treatment, Brooks finally made a return to football, coming on as a second half substitute against Aston Villa. In the rest of the 2022/23 season, Brooks made just six league appearances as he was still getting back up to speed with the Premier League.

The next year saw Andoni Iraola take over from Gary O’Neil and introduce a brand of football that was high intensity. On top of that, Bournemouth’s new owners splashed some cash to bring in new wingers such as Antoine Semenyo and Dango Ouattara, which made Brooks fall down the pecking order slightly. The Welshman made just 18 appearances in all competitions for the Cherries and was loaned out in January to Championship side Southampton. He only managed two goals in 20 games for the Saints, even worse than his return for Bournemouth in that campaign.

Brooks’ Season So Far

This season has been a different story for Brooks. He started the campaign slowly, with very few league appearances, but must’ve shown something in training as Iraola kept him around while sending Jaidon Anthony, Romain Faivre and Hamed Traore out on loan. Behind Antoine Semenyo in the pecking order on the right hand side, Brooks had to sit and watch as the Ghanaian winger was praised for his incredible performances early on in the season.

Injuries have played a big part in Brooks’ career, as he missed almost all of Bournemouth’s relegation season with an ankle injury, and his return from cancer was hampered by injury too. This season however, injuries have benefited the Welshman for the first time. Bournemouth’s current injury crisis has given him some time in the team, even allowing him to captain the side in an FA Cup fixture against West Brom in January.

Take a bow David Brooks. Don’t recall someone coming back from cancer and looking half the player they were initially but then over time improved again, but he has.#NEWBOU #afcbournemouth pic.twitter.com/fbqfyGeehh

— Pythagoras In Boots ⚽️ (@pythaginboots) January 18, 2025

January was an incredible month for Bournemouth, beating Everton, Nottingham Forest and Newcastle as well as earning a draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Justin Kluivert was awarded with the Premier League Player of the Month and Iraola won manager of the month for the second time, having done so in March the previous season. Three Bournemouth goals were nominated for goal of the month, two of which were from Kluivert, but it was Brooks’ volley against Everton that won it, giving the winger his first individual award since he won Welsh footballer of the year in 2018.

The technique from David Brooks 🪄

The @afcbournemouth star takes home January's Guinness Goal of the Month award! #PLAwards pic.twitter.com/S0kTFe9gh6

— Premier League (@premierleague) February 7, 2025

Bournemouth look like they could get European football next season and Iraola will want to keep hold of most of his squad because of the fixture congestion. Brooks has made no indication that he wants to leave, but given his lack of regular game time and his excellent performances when he does play, other Premier League teams may be sniffing around him this summer.