Jake Alexander Hesketh (born 27 March 1996) is an English 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 lea ...

who plays as an

attacking midfielder 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. ...

for club Sholing.

Early and personal life

Hesketh was born in

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

, Greater Manchester, but his family moved to

Whiteley Whiteley is a planned community of 6,500 homes in the county of Hampshire, England, United Kingdom near Fareham. The development straddles the boundary between two council districts: the Fareham (borough), Borough of Fareham to the south and we ...

, near

Fareham Fareham ( ) is a market town at the north-west tip of Portsmouth Harbour, between the cities of Portsmouth and Southampton in south east Hampshire, England. It gives its name to the Borough of Fareham. It was historically an important manufac ...

, Hampshire when he was six months old. He studied at Whiteley Primary School before moving onto Swanmore College.

Club career

Southampton

Hesketh started his career at

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

's academy, first training with the club as an under-7 before signing with the club as an under-nine, the youngest at which he could sign, having previously been scouted at a local tournament playing for Crofton Saints Football Club. After progressing through the club's academy, he completed a two-year scholarship with the club and after finishing as the Under-18 team's top scorer was awarded the 2013–14 Scholar of the Season accolade at the Southampton club awards ceremony. He signed a three-year professional contract the same day, having spent the previous six weeks training and playing with the club's under-21 team. He was promoted into the first team by coach

Ronald Koeman Ronald Koeman (; born 21 March 1963) is a Dutch professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the manager of the Netherlands national football team, Netherlands national team. Koeman scor ...

due to injury problems among the squad. He made his debut for the club on 8 December 2014 in a

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

match against

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

, being brought in as a substitute for Dušan Tadić in the 70th minute of the 2–1 home defeat. Five days later Hesketh made his first

start as Southampton lost 1–0 away to

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. Hesketh made 22 appearances for Martin Hunter's Under-21s in 2014–15, scoring two goals and lifting the 2015 U21 Premier League Cup. He failed to make a first team appearance during the 2015–16 season as he was not part of Koeman's first-team plans, but returned to the first-team following the arrival of Claude Puel as manager in summer 2016. After an appearance for the Southampton under-23 team in the

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Motors, Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football, football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and ...

in August 2016, he made his first first-team appearance of the season and scored his first senior goal on 22 September 2016, in a 2–0 win over Crystal Palace in the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

. Hesketh played again in a 0–0

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

draw away to Hapoel Beer Sheva a week later, but picked up an injury in October and failed to make any more appearances that season. In December 2016, he signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract with the club. Puel was sacked as manager in summer 2017, with Southampton being managed by Mauricio Pellegrino and later

Mark Hughes Leslie Mark Hughes (born 1 November 1963) is a Welsh association football, football coach and former player who is the head coach of club Carlisle United F.C., Carlisle United. During his playing career he usually operated as a Forward (asso ...

, and Hesketh failed to make a first-team appearance during the 2017–18 season.

Loan spells

On 30 August 2018, Hesketh signed for Burton Albion on a loan deal until 2 January 2019. He scored his first league goal in a 2–2 draw at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

on 23 October 2018. He appeared 23 times for Burton, scoring three goals. On 31 January 2019, Hesketh joined League Two club Milton Keynes Dons on loan for the remainder of the 2018–19 season. He made his debut for the club as a substitute in a 3–1 defeat to

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 2 February 2019, before scoring his first goal for the club on 9 February in a 3–2 defeat to

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

. He amassed 16 appearances in total across his loan spell, and scored twice. On 2 September 2019, he joined League One club Lincoln City on loan for the remainder of the 2019–20 season. He appeared in 24 matches and scored one goal across the 2019–20 season. He joined League Two club

Crawley Town Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1896 as Crawley Foo ...

on a season-long loan on 16 October 2020. He made his debut for the club on 20 October 2020 as a substitute in a 2–1 defeat to

in League Two. On 31 October 2020, Hesketh was given a

red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction. Red card may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers * Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or di ...

in Crawley's 2–1 win over

Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They currently compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed the U’s, the club h ...

. After 17 years at Southampton, Hesketh announced that he would leave the club at the end of the 2020–21 season after the expiry of his contract.

Eastleigh

Following his release by Southampton in June 2021, Hesketh signed for

Eastleigh Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the United Kingdom 2011 census, 2011 census. The town ...

on 2 August. He was released at the end of the 2022–23 season.

Sholing

On 31 May 2023, Hesketh signed for Southern League Premier Division side Sholing.

Style of play

Hesketh's preferred position is as an

, but is also able to play as a

central midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

or as a

wide midfielder 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. ...

Career statistics

Honours

Club

Southampton * U21 Premier League Cup: 2014–15 Milton Keynes Dons *

EFL League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...

third-place promotion: 2018–19

References

External links

* *
Profile at Southampton FC website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hesketh, Jake Living people 1996 births Footballers from Stockport English men's footballers Southampton F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players Milton Keynes Dons F.C. players Lincoln City F.C. players Crawley Town F.C. players Eastleigh F.C. players Men's association football midfielders Premier League players English Football League players National League (English football) players Sholing F.C. players 21st-century English sportsmen