Benjamin Owen Swallow (born 20 October 1989) is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a winger.

Early life

Born in

Barry, Vale of Glamorgan Barry (; ; ) is a town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It is on the north coast of the Bristol Channel approximately south-southwest of Cardiff. Barry is a seaside resort, with attractions including several beaches and the resu ...

, Swallow attended Eglwys Newydd Primary School in Whitchurch,

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

from 1994 to 2001.

Club career

Cardiff City and Bristol Rovers

Swallow played schoolboy football for

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

for seven years before being released and went on to spend two years with

South Gloucestershire and Stroud College South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, also known as SGS College, is a college of further education and higher education based in South Gloucestershire and Stroud, England. It was established in February 2012 following the merger of Filton Co ...

, playing for the College side and

Bristol Rovers Bristol Rovers FC is a men's professional football club in Bristol. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club is affiliated to Bristol Rovers W.F.C., whose team play in the FA Women's National Leag ...

' under-18 team. After finishing at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College he signed his first professional contract with Rovers during the summer of 2008, ahead of the start of the 2008–09 season. He joined

Southern Football League The Southern League is a football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the South and Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven a ...

Division One South & West side Taunton Town on

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

in September 2008, making his debut in a 4–0 defeat away at Gosport Borough. Swallow made five appearances for Taunton in all competitions before signing for Bridgwater Town of the Southern Football League Division One South & West on a one-month loan in November. He started a one-month loan with Southern Football League Premier Division side

Chippenham Town Chippenham Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. They are currently members of and play their games at Hardenhuish Park. History The club states it was established in 1873,

on 20 February 2009. Swallow started his fourth and final loan of the season after joining Southern Football League Premier Division side Mangotsfield United in April. Swallow had earned much praise for his pre-season performances in 2009, and his senior debut came on 11 August, when he played in a League Cup

first round First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

tie against

Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spr ...

, coming on as a 73rd minute substitute for

Sean Rigg Sean Michael Rigg (born 1 October 1988) is an English former professional footballer who played as a winger or forward. In a 13-year career in the English Football League and National League, he scored 57 goals in 477 league and cup appearanc ...

. On 9 November 2010, Swallow scored his first senior goal for the club in a 6–3 win over

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 188 ...

in the

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...

. He scored his second goal for Rovers in the next round of the Football League Trophy against

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third level of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

. On 31 August 2011, Swallow joined

Conference Premier The National League, officially known as Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in England. The National League is the first division of the National Leagues and step 1 of the National Le ...

side

Bath City Bath City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Bath, Somerset, England. The club is affiliated to the Somerset FA and currently competes in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football. Nicknamed the "R ...

on a three-month loan. After making nine appearances for Bath he was recalled by Rovers on 16 November because of injury problems in the team. On 4 December, Swallow came on as a second-half substitute against

AFC Totton Amalgamated Football Club Totton is a football club based in Totton, Hampshire, England. The club is affiliated to the Hampshire Football Association and is an FA Standard Chartered club. They are currently members of the and play at the Test ...

in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

second round The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

. Rovers were 4–1 up, and Swallow was sent off for a reckless challenge after just six minutes, which drew criticism from manager

Paul Buckle Paul John Buckle (born 16 December 1970) is an English football manager and former player. He has previously been the interim head coach of San Diego Wave FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the manager of Torquay United, Bristol ...

, although Rovers went on to win 6–1. Later that month he was told he could leave the club on a free transfer. Conference Premier side

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, as of the 2024–25 seas ...

made a failed attempt to sign Swallow during January 2012, before he was released by Rovers after his contract was cancelled by mutual consent on 31 January.

York City

Swallow eventually signed for York on a contract until the end of the 2011–12 season on 2 February 2012. He made his debut in York's 1–0 victory at home to

Ebbsfleet United Ebbsfleet United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Northfleet, Kent, England. The club compete in the National League South, the sixth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1946 from the merger ...

in the

FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, also known as the Isuzu FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after The Football Association (the FA) and competed by mainly National League ...

third round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

on 14 February. Swallow was released by York on 13 April 2012 because of an internal issue reported as his lack of punctuality at training sessions.

Newport County

On 10 August 2012, Swallow signed for Conference Premier club Newport County on an initial one-month contract which was subsequently extended. He was part of the Newport team that reached the Conference Premier play-offs in the 2012–13 season, in which he made 23 appearances and scored 2 goals. Swallow was not part of the matchday squad as Newport won the

2013 Conference Premier play-off final The 2013 Conference Premier play-off final, known as the 2013 Blue Square Bet Premier play-off final for sponsorship purposes, was a football match between Wrexham and Newport County on 5 May 2013 at Wembley Stadium in London. It was the eleven ...

versus

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

2–0 to return to

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

after a 25-year absence with

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

to League Two. He was released by Newport on 11 May 2013.

Bromley

He joined

Conference South The National League South, officially Vanarama National League South, is a professional Association football league in England. National League South is the second division of the National Leagues and step 2 of the NLS and sixth-highest ti ...

team

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

on 10 September 2013 following a successful trial. He made his debut as a second-half substitute in a 3–0 win over Staines Town on 14 September 2013. Following further substitute appearances in victories against Concord Rangers and Basingstoke Town, his first start for the club came in the

Second qualifying round against Burgess Hill Town on 28 September 2013.

went on to win the match 1–0, with Swallow providing the assist for the goal, scored by Shamir Mullings. He scored his first goal for Bromley on 5 October 2013, in a 1–1 away draw with

Boreham Wood Borehamwood (, historically also Boreham Wood) is a town in southern Hertfordshire, England, from Charing Cross. Borehamwood has a population of 36,322, and is within the London commuter belt. The town's film and TV studios are commonly known ...

. He left the club on 13 January 2014, having made 15 appearances in all competitions and scoring one goal.

Dartford

On 20 January 2014, Swallow signed for

Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames Estuary, is Thurrock in ...

, and was given the number 19 shirt. He made his debut in a 5–1 win over

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

on 18 February, coming on as an 86th-minute substitute. In May 2014, Swallow was released by Dartford after spending six months with the club, making eleven appearances.

Havant & Waterlooville

In July 2014 trailed with Havant & Waterlooville F.C. and played 45 minutes on 10 July against Horndean FC. He was than after successful trial signed on 11 July 2014 by the

Hawks Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are very widely distributed and are found on all continents, except Antarctica. The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks, and othe ...

Redditch United

Swallow signed for Southern League Premier Division Central side

Redditch United Redditch United Football Club is an English football club based in Redditch, Worcestershire. The club participates in the and play their home games at the Valley Stadium. They are managed by Matt Clarke. History They were originally called Re ...

on 4 October 2020.

International career

Swallow was called up to the Wales semi-professional squad for the match versus Turkey in October 2012 and made his debut in the starting line-up.

Style of play

Swallow plays primarily as a

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

and can also operate at

left back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

. He has been praised for his crossing ability, his ability to hold the ball up and his workrate.

Career statistics

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Swallow, Ben 1989 births Living people Footballers from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan Welsh men's footballers Wales men's semi-pro international footballers Men's association football wingers Cardiff City F.C. players Bristol Rovers F.C. players Taunton Town F.C. players Bridgwater United F.C. players Chippenham Town F.C. players Mangotsfield United F.C. players Bath City F.C. players York City F.C. players Newport County A.F.C. players Bromley F.C. players Dartford F.C. players Havant & Waterlooville F.C. players Margate F.C. players Bognor Regis Town F.C. players Weston-super-Mare A.F.C. players Merthyr Town F.C. players Redditch United F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Southern Football League players 21st-century Welsh sportsmen