Drey Jermaine Wright (born 30 April 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger for Scottish Premiership club St Johnstone.
The son of former Ipswich Town and Southampton midfielder Jermaine Wright, Wright progressed through the Academy at Colchester United, before he made his first-team debut in 2012. He made over 150 career appearances for Colchester before leaving to join St Johnstone in May 2018. After two seasons with Hibernian, Wright returned to St Johnstone in 2022.
Career
Colchester United
Born in Greenwich, London, Wright is the son of former Ipswich Town and Southampton midfielder Jermaine Wright, and brother to fellow footballer Diaz Wright. A rapid winger who progressed through the Academy at Colchester United, Wright featured for the Colchester first-team in the 2011–12 pre-season campaign, scoring in a 6–2 friendly win over Whitton United on 27 July 2011 for a youthful U's side. Through the season, he mostly featured for the youth and reserve sides, alongside appearances in the Essex Senior Cup. He netted in their 4–0 semi-final win against Concord Rangers on 23 February 2012 to earn a place in the final. He featured in the final held against Canvey Island on 17 April, a game in which Colchester were defeated 1–0. He then scored in the reserve sides penultimate game of the campaign on 24 April in a 2–1 win against Oxford United, and despite a defeat to Luton Town in the final game, he helped the side claim the last-ever Football Combination North Division title on 1 May.
2012–13 season
In May 2012, after just one year of his apprenticeship and on the back of his success with the club's reserve side, Wright signed a two-year professional development contract with Colchester alongside fellow academy products Bradley Hamilton, Ryan Melaugh, Tosin Olufemi and Shaun Phillips. Wright featured in the first-team preparations for the 2012–13 season, with Colchester manager John Ward saying that "it doesn't really surprise me" that both Wright and teammate Alex Gilbey has made strides towards first-team football. Ward then handed Wright his professional debut in the League Cup tie against Yeovil Town on 14 August, the opening game of the season. Wright started the match, and played for 58 minutes before being replaced by Karl Duguid in the 3–0 defeat at Huish Park. He was drafted into the squad at the last minute following Freddie Sears' withdrawal, but earned praise from his manager despite being forced into playing first-team football prematurely. His father, Jermaine, said he was "proud to see my son out there playing" and that "he plays with a smile on his face and he loves playing with the first team". He then made his first League One appearance for the club, coming on as a 79th-minute substitute for Clinton Morrison in Colchester's 2–2 home draw with Portsmouth on 21 August.
On 28 August, Wright's cross for Freddie Ladapo's goal in their Professional Development League Two match against Swansea City was enough to hand Colchester their first-ever win in the newly established under-21 league format. He scored his first professional goal on his first league start on Boxing Day in a 3–1 home defeat to Brentford, a game in which he played the full 90 minutes. Manager Joe Dunne enthused that "Drey Wright was outstanding" and that he "had an exceptional full debut and really showed his strength".
In March 2013, Wright was shortlisted for the League Football Education ' League One Apprentice of the Year' award, nominated alongside Sheffield United's George Willis and eventual winner Luke James of Hartlepool United. Wright ended his first professional season with 23 first-team appearances, having scored three goals, and was rewarded at the club's annual end of season awards evening on his 18th birthday, earning the Colchester United 'Young Player of the Year' accolade ahead of Sam Walker and Gavin Massey.
2013–14 season
With one-year remaining on his contract, Wright signed a two-year extension on 26 July 2013 to keep him with the club until summer 2016. He was brought on as a substitute in the opening game of the season on 3 August in a 1–0 win at Gillingham, setting up Andy Bond to score the 88th-minute winner.