James Francis Edward O'Connor (born 20 November 1984) is an English former professional footballer who is the assistant manager to Russell Penn at National League North club Kidderminster Harriers.

[4] He joined the Aston Villa youth set-up in 1997 after his P.E teacher Mr Alan Miller recommended O'Connor to the club as a creative midfield player.

A traffic collision early in the year had ruled him out for several weeks, and he missed the first leg of the semi-final but returned to help his side resist an Everton attack fronted by Wayne Rooney in the final.

Turning professional with Aston Villa in 2004, later in the year, he enjoyed a three-month loan spell at League One side Port Vale to gain first-team experience.

Recovering from a hand injury,[9] he helped manager Sean O'Driscoll to keep the Dean Court club five points above the League One relegation zone in 2005–06.

He capped a fine season by helping the club to Football League Trophy success following a 3–2 win over Bristol Rovers at the Millennium Stadium, where he was named man of the match.

In the 2007–08 season, O'Connor began to excel in the right-back slot, providing width and speed to the Rovers attacks and playing his part as a key player in a solid defence.

[11] O'Connor was again named man of the match as Doncaster beat Leeds United in the League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium.

[16] O'Connor made his debut at Pride Park in a 2–2 draw with Sheffield Wednesday on 18 August, coming on for Nathan Tyson as a 74th-minute substitute.

[18] Two days after the Bolton match, Derby manager Nigel Clough praised O'Connor by saying; "With only two [league] games played this season, we've seen the value of James already.

[20] O'Connor covered at left-back for the injured Gareth Roberts in December 2012, after he fell behind Jake Buxton and Mark O'Brien in the pecking order in central defence.

[24] On 2 September 2013, O'Connor signed a loan deal until 13 January with Bristol City, again linking up with Sean O'Driscoll with a view to a permanent transfer.

"[29] He was surprisingly not named in the starting lineup for the 2015 Football League Trophy final at Wembley Stadium, a 2–0 defeat to Bristol City, but denied rumours that he and Smith had fallen out over the issue.

[37] His signing was seen as a big coup by manager John Eustace as O'Connor turned down offers from Football League clubs to go to Aggborough.