Callum Morris (born 3 February 1990) is a professional

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 ...

who plays as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for Morpeth Town. Released by

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional Association football, football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football league system, English football. The club was ...

as a youngster, Morris played for

Blyth Spartans Blyth Spartans Association Football Club is a football club based in Blyth, Northumberland. They are currently members of and play at Croft Park. They were founded in September 1899 by Fred Stoker, who was the club's first secretary before ...

then went to the

Glenn Hoddle Academy The Glenn Hoddle Academy (GHA) was established in 2008, by former England international footballer Glenn Hoddle. Hoddle set the academy up in the memory of his brother, Carl, a former Tottenham Hotspur player who died aged 40. The academy coach ...

in Spain, where he also played for

Jerez Industrial Jerez Industrial Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team based in Jerez de la Frontera, Cádiz, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1951, it currently plays in '' División de Honor – Group 1'', holding home matches at Es ...

. Returning to England, he joined

Hayes & Yeading United Hayes & Yeading United Football Club is an association football club based in Hayes, in the London Borough of Hillingdon, England. The club was formed in 2007 from a merger of Hayes Football Club (founded in 1909) and Yeading Football Club (f ...

before moving to Scotland in 2012, initially with

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish Association football, football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Champ ...

before joining

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in ...

in 2014. Morris moved to

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), ...

in the summer 2016, but did not play for the club. Morris returned to Dunfermline in December 2016, then moved to Ross County in June 2018. Morris returned to England in 2021 with Morpeth Town. Born in England, Morris is of Irish descent and received his first call up to the

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. North ...

squad in 2016, having previously played for the Republic of Ireland under-21 team.

Club career

Early career

Morris started his career as a youth player with

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

side

. He was given a twelve-month extension to his scholarship in 2008. While with Newcastle United reserves, Morris and teammate Darren Lough were described by coach Adam Sadler as "the next big thing", but he was released by the club in 2010, having never featured in the first team. Following his release from Newcastle, Morris had an unsuccessful trial with Gateshead, before joining

on 13 August 2010. After making five appearances for Blyth, Morris left the club to join the

in Spain. While at the Glenn Hoddle Academy, Morris also played for Spanish Fourth Division side Jerez Industrial CF, where he gained full-time, senior football experience. In November 2011, Morris joined

, making three appearances for the club before being released in January 2012.

Dunfermline Athletic

Following unsuccessful trials in England, Portugal and Greece, Morris had considered giving up professional football before signing for

in the

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...

on 31 August 2012. He made his debut for the club in a 3–1 win against

Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leag ...

and went on to be a first team regular. On 8 December 2012, he received a straight red card after a foul on Stefan Scougall, in a 2–1 loss against

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

. On his return on 29 December 2012, Morris scored his first goal, in a 4–2 loss against

Morton Morton may refer to: People * Morton (surname) * Morton (given name) Fictional * Morton Koopa, Jr., a character and boss in ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' * A character in the ''Charlie and Lola'' franchise * A character in the 2008 film ''Horton ...

. His second goal was also against Morton on 23 February 2013, when Dunfermline Athletic lost 4–1. The season was marked with financial problems, which led to the club entering administration. Morris wrote on Twitter of his frustrations over wage delays. The club were relegated following a defeat in the play-offs, where Morris was absent for all four matches due to a hamstring injury. Despite relegation, he was named in the

PFA Scotland Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Scotland Team of the Year (often called the PFA Scotland Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 44 footballers in the four national tiers of the Scottish foo ...

for the First Division. He was also named the club's player of the season. In his second season at Dunfermline Athletic, Morris rejected rumours that he had left the club by appearing in the opening friendly against Hearts. In his first competitive appearance of the season, Morris scored the club's first goal in

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

, as the club lost 3–2 against

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( gd, Obar Bhrothaig ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the council area of Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast some ENE of Dundee and SSW of Aberdeen. ...

. As the season progressed, Morris continued to be a regular in the first team until mid-December when he suffered an Achilles tendon injury. After returning to the first team, Morris was offered a new contract with the club. His rejection of the offer led to interest from

. Morris helped Dunfermline to finish second in League One, qualifying for the Championship play-offs and then winning against Stranraer on aggregate. The club remained in League One after losing 4–1 on aggregate to

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 18 ...

in the play-off final, in which Morris made his final appearance for the club.

Dundee United

Morris signed a two-year contract with

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottis ...

side

on 17 June 2014. He made his debut on 10 August 2014, as Dundee United beat

3–0 in the opening game of the season. His first goal for the club came on 21 September 2014, as Dundee United won 4–1 against city rivals Dundee in the

Dundee derby The Dundee derby is a football match between Dundee and Dundee United. The clubs are based yards apart in the city of Dundee, the fourth-largest city in Scotland. History Dundee is the older of the two, having been founded in 1893, compare ...

. Having established himself in central defence alongside

Jarosław Fojut Jarosław Fojut (born 17 October 1987) is a Polish former professional footballer. He currently serves as the sporting director of Stal Rzeszów. Fojut began his career in England, where he played for Bolton Wanderers and also spent time on lo ...

, Morris soon suffered an Achilles injury during a match against

St Johnstone St Johnstone Football Club is a professional association football club in Perth, Scotland which is a member of the Scottish Premiership for the 2022–23 season. The club's name is derived from St John's Toun ''aka'' Saint Johnstoun – an ol ...

which kept him out for several weeks. Morris made his return to the first team on 24 January 2015 in a 3–1 win over

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lana ...

. He scored in the next game, in the semi-final of the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in exist ...

, which saw Dundee United beat Aberdeen 2–1 to send them through to the final. Morris then injured his knee, but recovered in time to start in the

League Cup Final The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by t ...

as Dundee United lost 2–0 to

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...

. Morris sustained a hamstring injury which kept him out for three weeks, then made his return to the first team and played six matches before suffering another injury, ruling him out for the rest of the season. Despite his injuries, Morris made 30 appearances and scored twice in all competitions.

Aberdeen

Morris signed a one-year contract with

side

in June 2016. He made no appearances for the side, and was released on 30 December 2016.

Dunfermline return

After leaving

, Morris re-signed for

on 31 December 2016 on a deal until the end of the 2016–17 season. After helping the club finish fifth in the

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...

, Morris signed a one-year contract extension keeping him at the club until May 2018. Prior to the start of the 2017–18 season, Morris was named captain of the club, following the departures of

Andy Geggan Andy Geggan (born 8 May 1987) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays for Drumchapel United. Geggan started his career with Livingston, and has also played with Dumbarton, Dunfermline Athletic, Partick Thistle, BSC Glasgow and had tw ...

and

Callum Fordyce Callum Fordyce (born 23 June 1992) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back, and is a player-assistant manager for Airdrieonians. Fordyce started his career as a youth player with Hibernian and Livingston, before signi ...

. Morris spent the season with the Pars before leaving at the end of his contract in May 2018.

Ross County

Morris signed for Ross County during the 2018 close season. In his first season at the club Morris won the 2018-19 Scottish Championship and the 2018-19 Scottish Challenge Cup. Morris was released by County on 27 May 2021 along with nine other players.

Morpeth Town

On 19 July 2021 Morris signed for

Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English Association football, football league that was founded in 1968. It has four divisions: the Premier Division (which stands at level 7 of the English football league system), Division One East, Division ...

side Morpeth Town.

International career

Although born in England, Morris has Irish ancestry through both his parents, his mother's family originating from

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

and his father's from

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingd ...

. He initially chose to represent the Republic of Ireland, and played for their under-19 and under-21 teams before deciding to switch his allegiance to Northern Ireland. On 31 August 2016, Morris was called up for the first time to the

squad for the World Cup qualifying game against the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...

Career statistics

Honours

Ross County *

: 2018–19 *

Scottish Challenge Cup The Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup,2018–19

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Callum 1990 births Living people Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Republic of Ireland men's under-21 international footballers English men's footballers English people of Irish descent English people of Northern Ireland descent Newcastle United F.C. players Blyth Spartans A.F.C. players Jerez Industrial CF players Hayes & Yeading United F.C. players Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players Dundee United F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish Professional Football League players English expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Morpeth Town A.F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players Ross County F.C. players Men's association football defenders Footballers from Newcastle upon Tyne