Lewis Haldane
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Lewis Oliver Haldane (born 13 March 1985) is a Welsh former under-21 international
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 scored 75 goals in 414 league and cup games in a 14-year career. A winger, he was a youth player 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, ...
and Trowbridge Town before he turned professional at
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 ...
in 2002.
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ed out to
non-League Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...
Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...
, he broke through into the Rovers first-team in 2003–04. He was loaned out to
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club
Forest Green Rovers Forest Green Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Formed in October 188 ...
for a part of the 2004–05 and 2005–06 campaigns. He stormed into the Bristol Rovers first-team picture with sixty appearances in 2006–07. At the end of the season, he helped the club to win
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into League One through the play-offs. He also played in the club's defeat 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 ...
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
. A first-team regular in 2007–08, he lost his place and spent the 2008–09 season on loan at Conference side
Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...
. He joined Port Vale on loan at the start of the 2009–10 season before joining the club permanently in January 2010. He recovered from a serious infection following an insect bite sustained at the start of the 2010–11 season, only to be struck down with a broken leg at the start of the 2011–12 campaign. The injury eventually forced him to retire from professional football in October 2012. However, he later returned to play semi-professionally with Yate Town, before signing for Frome Town in November 2014. He retired following a brief return to Yate Town in January 2016.


Club career


Bristol Rovers

Haldane was a product of the
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, ...
youth academy. He moved on to
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 ...
though for the 2002–03 season, and had a brief spell on 'work experience' at Southern League side
Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...
. His professional debut at the Memorial Stadium came on 27 September 2003 as he replaced Junior Agogo as an 85th-minute substitute; despite only playing for a few minutes he won a penalty in a 2–0 win over
Cheltenham Town Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1887, ...
. His first goal came seven days later at Belle Vue, the sole consolation of a 5–1 drubbing by
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...
; he scored minutes after coming onto the pitch. His first start came a week later, at
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, where he scored the opener of a 4–0 victory. He made it three in three on 14 October, as Rovers crashed out of 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 ...
with a 2–1 defeat by Southend United at
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. He finished the 2003–04 season with 29 appearances, scoring six goals and picking up seven yellow cards. At the end of the season, he was one of the few players retained, as eleven were let go. He went on to sign a new three-year deal in November 2004. The teenager made 16 appearances in 2004–05, all but one as a substitute, picking up one goal against
Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...
in the League Trophy. In April 2005 he joined
Conference A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...
club
Forest Green Rovers Forest Green Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Formed in October 188 ...
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 ...
. He played six games before returning to Bristol, following the dismissal of
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Ian Atkins Ian Leslie Atkins (born 16 January 1957) is an English football manager, scout, and former player. Atkins amassed over 300 appearances for Shrewsbury Town, the club where he began his career. He also made appearances in the Football League for ...
. He began the 2005–06 season on loan at Forest Green, putting in seven appearances before heading back to Rovers in September. He played 32 games for the League Two side, scoring three goals, two of them at the end-of-season clash with Macclesfield Town. During the season, he was utilized on the right of midfield rather than his usual role as a striker. He played a remarkable sixty competitive games in 2006–07. The highlights of the season included playing in the Football League Trophy final at the
Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium (), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium () for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it has a retractable roof and is the home of the Wales national rugby union team; it has ...
and playing in the play–off final at
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 ...
. In the League Trophy final, the "Gas" lost 3–2 to
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...
, a game in which Haldane was
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...
, but at the play-off final at Wembley they defeated
Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...
3–1. Haldane started both games but finished neither. At the end of the season, he put pen to paper on a three-year
contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...
. He made 38 appearances in 2007–08, as the "Pirates" adapted to life playing at a higher level. His only goal of the campaign was a late winning header over
Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
on 17 November. At the reverse fixture he set up Craig Disley's winning goal. He joined
Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...
on a season-long loan in July 2008, following the arrival of Jeff Hughes at Rovers. He played 46 games for the Conference side, but remained on the transfer list at the Memorial Stadium upon his return.


Port Vale

In August 2009, he joined Port Vale for a trial period. This came despite talk of a loan move to Newport County. He started a loan spell at
Vale Park Vale Park is a football stadium in the area of Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, and it has been the home ground of Port Vale Football Club since its opening in 1950. It has a current capacity of 15,695, and was renovated durin ...
on 1 September, hopeful of later earning a permanent deal with the club. The one-month loan was extended by another month to keep him in Vale colours for October, before the deal was extended once again in November. Spending the maximum allowed loan time at Vale Park (93 days), he scored once in a total of twenty appearances. He remained in training with the club, hopeful of a short-term contract in January 2010. Due to sign permanently for the "Vale", he was instead only able to re-join the club on loan on 31 December 2009, having failed to gain a release from Rovers. That release was eventually secured however. Haldane signed for Vale on 27 January 2010, just days before the
transfer window In association football, a transfer window is the period during the year in which a football club, club can add players to their squad who were previously under contract with another club. Such a Transfer (association football), transfer is comp ...
closed. He was sent off in his first game as a fully signed Vale player, to his great disappointment. He was offered a new contract by the club at the end of the season, and quickly signed the two-year deal. In the
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
pre-season, Haldane was rushed into hospital after being bitten by a blandford fly during a training session. The unusual illness kept him bed stricken, and cost him his place in the team's trip to Ireland, giving Gary Roberts a chance to earn a contract. He spent two weeks in hospital. He had to wait until November before he had returned to match fitness, and even longer before returning to full fitness. Following his recovery he managed to finish the season with 27 appearances to his name. Haldane won his first start of the 2011–12 campaign in a League Trophy clash with
Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...
; however, he landed awkwardly after an aerial challenge, the result of which was a double leg
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and another lengthy spell on the sidelines. By January 2012 the bone had completely healed, however, manager Micky Adams confirmed that another operation looked likely. Three months later he took to the field again in a
reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players who are under contract to a club but who do not regularly play in matches for the club's primary team. Reserve teams usually include players who are part of the larger first-team squad but ...
clash with
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club moved its home g ...
. He was allowed to prove his fitness when he was offered a new six-month contract in May 2012. However, two months later he went under the knife again to remove scar tissue from his left ankle. The leg injury proved too severe, and his retirement was officially announced on 7 October.


Non-League

Haldane began the 2013–14 season with Southern League side Yate Town. He helped the "Bluebells" to a ninth place in Division One South & West in 2013–14. He was a prolific goalscorer, scoring two consecutive hat-tricks in February. He rejected an approach from Paulton Rovers in August 2014, and three months later instead joined Frome Town. The "Robins" finished one place above the Southern League Premier Division
relegation Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...
zone in 2014–15. He re-signed with Yate Town in January 2016. Yate finished 16th in Division One South & West in 2015–16, but Haldane was unable to feature due to work commitments.


International career

Although Haldane was born in
Trowbridge Trowbridge ( ) is the county town of Wiltshire, England; situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, close to the border with Somerset. The town lies south-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, south-west of Swindon and south-east of Brist ...
,
Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...
, due to parentage, he had
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 ...
eligibility and was called up to the under-21 squad for the first time in August 2006. His only under-21
cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...
came in a goalless draw with
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on 2 September 2006. In February 2009, Haldane was selected to represent
England C The England national football C team (previously known as the England National Game XI and the England Semi-Pro national team) are the football teams that represent England at non-League level. Formed in 1979 as the England Non-League team, it f ...
for the fixture against Malta under-21s. However, he was forced to withdraw because he had previously represented Wales at under-21 level.


Style of play

Haldane was a pacey winger, adept at working either flank. In January 2005, Bristol Rovers assistant
coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...
Kevan Broadhurst said that "He gets into good areas but he needs to improve on the physical and finishing side of his game. He doesn't quite have the end product and he's too willing to go down under a tackle rather than fight for the ball."


Personal life

Already boasting a considerable amount of
body art Body art is art in which the artist uses their human body as the primary medium.Oxford Dictionary of Modern and Contemporary Art, Oxford University, p. 88 Emerging from the context of Conceptual Art during the 1970s, Body art may include performanc ...
, Haldane had his girlfriend's name (Michelle)
tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...
ed onto his
torso The torso or trunk is an anatomical terminology, anatomical term for the central part, or the core (anatomy), core, of the body (biology), body of many animals (including human beings), from which the head, neck, limb (anatomy), limbs, tail an ...
in February 2010 as a
Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...
gesture. After retiring as a professional footballer in October 2012 he began working for a lorry components company in
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
.


Career statistics


Honours

Bristol Rovers *
Football League Two play-offs The EFL League Two play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from fourth to seventh in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are part of the annual Engli ...
:
2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
*
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 ...
runner-up: 2006–07


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Haldane, Lewis Footballers from Trowbridge Welsh men's footballers Wales men's under-21 international footballers Men's association football wingers Trowbridge Town F.C. players Bristol Rovers F.C. players Weston-super-Mare A.F.C. players Forest Green Rovers F.C. players Oxford United F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Yate Town F.C. players Frome Town F.C. players Southern Football League players English Football League players National League (English football) players 1985 births Living people 21st-century Welsh sportsmen