Saul Shotton

Saul Shotton (born 10 November 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays for Northern Premier League Division One West club Hanley Town.

Saul Shotton

Personal information
Full name	Saul Shotton^[1]
Date of birth	(2000-11-10) 10 November 2000 (age 23)^[2]
Place of birth	Stoke-on-Trent, England
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)^[2]
Position(s)	Defender, Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Hanley Town
Youth career
0000–2017	Stoke City
2017–2018	Bury
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2017–2019	Bury	4	(0)
2019–2022	West Bromwich Albion	1082	(9412)
2020–2021	→ Woking (loan)	15	(0)
2021–2022	→ AFC Telford United (loan)	8	(0)
2022	Hanley Town	0	(0)
2022-2023	FC Lambourne	15	(10)
2022-2023	Florence Reserves	15	(13)
2023	Florence FC	5	(6)
2023-	Hanley Town	4	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:39, 1 October 2023 (UTC)

Club career

Bury

Born in Stoke-on-Trent, Shotton started his career with Stoke City prior to his move to Bury in 2017.^[3] Having progressed through the club's youth structure, he made his first team debut in September 2018.^[4][5] On 19 September 2017, he made his debut for Bury in their EFL Trophy defeat to Rochdale, featuring for the entire 90 minutes in the 4–0 loss.^[6] Following this, Shotton was an unused substitute on several occasions before making his league debut in April 2018, in a 3–3 draw with Doncaster Rovers.^[7]

Ahead of the forthcoming 2018–19 campaign, Shotton, along with two fellow graduates, signed their first professional contracts.^[8] To March 2019, he has not played for the first team in 2018–19 but is an active member of the club's under-18 team.^[5]

West Bromwich Albion

He left the club after they were expelled from the Football League in August 2019, signing for West Bromwich Albion in September 2019.^[9] On 5 January 2020, Shotton made his debut for the club in their third round FA Cup tie against Charlton Athletic, replacing Rekeem Harper in the 95th minute during the 1–0 away victory.^[10]

On 2 October 2020, Shotton signed for National League side Woking on loan until January 2021.^[11] A day later, he made his debut for the club, playing the full 90 minutes in their 2020–21 National League opener against Solihull Moors, which resulted in a 2–1 victory for The Cards.^[12] Shotton made 18 appearances in all competitions for Woking, before returning to West Bromwich Albion in January 2021.

During the 2021–22 campaign, Shotton made his first West Bromwich Albion start during an EFL Cup second round tie against Premier League side, Arsenal, playing the full 90 in the 6–0 defeat.^[13]

On 29 October 2021, Shotton joined National League North side, AFC Telford United on a three-month loan.^[14]

Non-league

Shotton was released by West Bromwich Albion in the summer of 2022 when his contract expired and he subsequently dropped back into non-league permanently when he signed for newly-promoted Northern Premier League Midlands Division side Hanley Town, joining up to play with his cousin Ryan.^[15] He joined Hanley Town for a second time on 31 August 2023.^[16]

Personal life

He is the cousin of Ryan Shotton.^[17]

Career statistics

As of match played 7 October 2023

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Bury	2017–18^[5]	League One	4	0	0	0	0	0	2^[a]	0	6	0
	2018–19^[5]	League Two	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		4	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	6	0
West Bromwich Albion	2019–20^[5]	Championship	0	0	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
	2020–21^[5]	Premier League	0	0	—		0	0	—		0	0
	2021–22^[5]	Championship	0	0	0	0	1	0	—		1	0
	Total		0	0	1	0	1	0	—		2	0
Woking (loan)	2020–21^[5]	National League	15	0	2	0	—		1^[b]	0	18	0
AFC Telford United (loan)	2021–22^[5]	National League North	8	0	—		—		1^[b]	0	9	0
Florence Reserves	2022–23^[18]	SCSL Two North	15	13	—		—		11^[c]^[d]^[e]^[f]	4	26	17
Florence FC	2023–24^[19]	SCSL One	5	6	—		—		0	0	5	6
Hanley Town	2023–24	Northern Premier League Division One West	4	0	1	0	—		3^[b]	0	8	0
Career total			51	19	4	0	1	0	18	4	74	23

1. Appearances in EFL Trophy.
2. Appearances in FA Trophy.
3. Two appearances in SCSL Leek Cup
4. Four appearances and three goals in SCSL Chairman's Challenge Cup
5. Four appearances and one goal in SCSL Macron League
6. Appearance in SCSL Div 2 Divisional Final

References

1. "2020/21 Premier League squads confirmed". Premier League. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
2. "Saul Shotton". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
3. "Saul Shotton". Football Wonderkids. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
4. "Saul Shotton". SoccerBase. CenturyComm. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
5. Saul Shotton at Soccerway
6. "Bury vs. Rochdale". Soccerway. 19 September 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
7. "Doncaster Rovers vs. Bury". Soccerway. 17 April 2018. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
8. "Retained List". Bury Official Site. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
9. "Saul Shotton: West Bromwich Albion sign former Bury defender". BBC Sport. 21 September 2019. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
10. "Charlton Athletic vs. West Bromwich Albion". Soccerway. 5 January 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
11. "Saul Shotton Joins Woking On Loan". West Bromwich Albion. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
12. "Woking vs. Solihull Moors". Soccerway. 3 October 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
13. "West Bromwich Albion vs. Arsenal". Soccerway. 25 August 2021. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
14. "Shotton joins AFC Telford United on loan". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 29 October 2021. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
15. "West Brom Defender Saul Shotton Joins Hanley Town". The 72. 18 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
16. "This time it's real". Hanley Town Football Club. 31 August 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
17. "Saul Shotton: West Bromwich Albion sign former Bury defender". BBC Sport. 21 September 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
18. "Florence Reserves | Player Season Totals | The FA". fulltime.thefa.com. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
19. "Florence FC First Team | Player Season Totals | The FA". fulltime.thefa.com. Retrieved 2 September 2023.