Sam Sutton
Sam Harry Sutton (born 10 December 2001) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a left-back for A-League Men club Wellington Phoenix.
| Sutton playing for the Wellington Phoenix in 2024. | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sam Harry Sutton[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 10 December 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Auckland, New Zealand | ||
| Position(s) | Left-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Wellington Phoenix | ||
| Number | 19 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2016 | East Coast Bays | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016– | Wellington Phoenix Reserves | 44 | (3) |
| 2019– | Wellington Phoenix | 75 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021– | New Zealand U23 | 4 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 May 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 26 March 2023 | |||
Club career edit
Wellington Phoenix Reserves edit
Sutton joined the Wellington Phoenix as part of their academy in 2016[2] after moving down from Auckland.[3] He started playing for the Wellington Phoenix Reserves in the New Zealand Football Championship in the 2016–17 season, making 4 appearances with 2 starts.[4] His debut in the national league was two weeks before he turned 15 when he came on in their away game against Southern United with the team leading 1–0 and looking for their first back-to-back wins in the reserve team's history.[3]
Wellington Phoenix edit
Sutton started training with the first team players during pre-season July 2019.[3] On 21 December 2019, Sutton made his A-League debut as a stoppage time substitute in the Phoenix 2–2 draw against Sydney FC in Sydney.[5] He followed that up with another 25 mins and his Sky Stadium home debut against Western Sydney Wanderers[6]
Sutton got his first start on the 25 July 2020 in a 1–1 draw with Adelaide United[7] playing for 60 minutes in an attacking midfield role.[3] With young teammates Callan Elliot and Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi also starting alongside Sutton, the starting XI in this match was the youngest in club history, with an average age of 25.02 years.[7]
On the 29 October 2020, Sutton signed a three-year deal with the Phoenix, his first professional contract with the club.[8] On 21 March 2022, Sutton extended his contract with the Phoenix for a further two years until the end of the 2024–25 season.[9]
Personal life edit
Sutton grew up on Auckland's North Shore and played for East Coast Bays as a junior. He was spotted by Wellington Phoenix's Academy Director Paul Temple at 12 years old and was asked to attend the Academy.[6] After moving to Wellington with his family, Sutton enrolled at Wellington College while training with the Phoenix academy.[10]
International career edit
On 12 July 2021, Sutton made his debut for the New Zealand U23's in a pre-Olympic friendly against Australia.[11] Sutton scored his first goal for the New Zealand U23's from the penalty spot, in a 2–0 win over China on 23 March 2023. He was also named captain for this first time during this game.[12][13]
Career statistics edit
Club edit
- As of match played on 9 March 2024.[14]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Others | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Wellington Phoenix Reserves | 2016–17 | New Zealand Championship | 4 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | New Zealand Championship | 14 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| 2018–19 | New Zealand Championship | 18 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | New Zealand Championship | 7 | 2 | — | — | 7 | 2 | |||
| 2022 | New Zealand National League | 1 | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||
| Total | 44 | 3 | — | — | 44 | 3 | ||||
| Wellington Phoenix | 2019–20 | A-League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 2020–21 | A-League | 12 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22 | A-League | 21 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 26 | 1 | |
| 2022–23 | A-League | 15 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | |
| 2023–24 | A-League | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| Total | 66 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 75 | 2 | ||
| Career total | 110 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 119 | 5 | ||
- ^ Appearance in A-League Men Finals
References edit
- ^ "Men's Olympic Football Tournament Tokyo 2020: Squad list, New Zealand" (PDF). FIFA. 7 July 2021. p. 12. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ . Wellington Phoenix Football Academy. Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
- ^ a b c d Voerman, Andrew (4 August 2020). "Sam Sutton relishes first start for Wellington Phoenix as he eyes a professional contract". Stuff. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ "Sam Sutton Profile". Soccerway. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ^ "Ulises Davila miss proves costly in Wellington Phoenix's Sydney FC stalemate". Stuff. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ a b "A-League: Rising Wellington Phoenix star Sam Sutton could be New Zealand football's next next big thing". NZ Herald. New Zealand Herald. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
- ^ a b Rollo, Phillip (26 July 2020). "Wellington Phoenix held by Adelaide United after Ulises Davila misses late penalty". Stuff. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ Francis, Ben. "A-League: Wellington Phoenix re-sign midfielder Sam Sutton on three-year deal". Newshub. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip (21 March 2022). "Wellington Phoenix secure form left-back Sam Sutton for next three seasons". Stuff. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip (23 December 2019). "'Now I'm on the other side': Sam Sutton goes from Phoenix fan to player". Stuff. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ Voerman, Andrew (13 July 2021). "'A real shot of confidence': OlyWhites beat Olyroos for boost ahead of Tokyo Olympics". Stuff. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
- ^ Smith, Logan (23 March 2023). "New Zealand U-22s impress as they beat China 2-0 at Mt Smart Stadium". friendsoffootballnz.com. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
- ^ "All Whites draw with China". New Zealand Football. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
- ^ "S. Sutton". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
External links edit
- Sam Sutton at Soccerway