Matthew William Jay (born 27 February 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

National League 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 League (English football), National Leagues and step ...

side

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the National League South, the sixth level of the English football league system. They have played their ho ...

Early life and education

Jay was born in

Torbay Torbay is a unitary authority with a borough status in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It is governed by Torbay Council, based in the town of Torquay, and also includes the towns of Paignton and Brixham. The borough consists of ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

and he attended

South Dartmoor Community College South Dartmoor Community College (SDCC) is a co-educational academy school located in Ashburton, Devon, England. The number of students on roll is 1,650. The school has a sixth form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, ...

together with

Ollie Watkins Oliver George Arthur Watkins (born 30 December 1995) is an English professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa and the England national football tea ...

and

Jamie Reid Jamie Macgregor Reid (16 January 1947 – 8 August 2023) was an English visual artist. His best known works include the record cover for the Sex Pistols single " God Save the Queen", which was lauded as "the single most iconic image of the pun ...

Playing career

Exeter City

Jay made his professional debut for

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

in a 2–0 loss to

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 ...

St James Park St James Park and variants may refer to: Football stadiums * St James' Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, ground of Newcastle United F.C. * St James Park (Exeter), England, ground of Exeter City F.C. * St James Park, ground of Brackley Town F.C., ...

on 3 September 2013. On 22 November 2015, Jay joined

side Hayes & Yeading United on a one-month loan. He scored his first goal for Exeter in an

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 ...

tie against

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 30 August 2016. Jay finally scored his first league goal on the 8th of April, in the 2017–18 campaign, away to Cambridge United in a game where Exeter came twice from behind to win 3–2. This came to the delight of many players and fans alike following a run of impressive games starting and from the bench. In 2021, Jay scored his first career hat trick in a 4–0 victory 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. ...

. After a month in which he scored five goals and got one assist, Jay received the

League Two Player of the Month The EFL League Two Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the player adjudged the best for each month of the season in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of English football. Originally named the Football League Two Pla ...

award for March 2021. At the end of the 2020–21 season, he was named as the Devon side's Player of the Season, and on 29 April 2021 was named in the 2020–21 EFL League Two Team of the Season at the league's annual awards ceremony. Jay was awarded the Exeter captaincy following the departure of Jake Taylor in the summer of 2021 and was given the number 7 shirt. He continued his goalscoring form into the 2021–22 season, netting 16 times in all competitions. The most significant of these came in a 2–1 home win over Barrow, where he scored a late winner, chesting the ball down from a Josh Key cross and slamming home through the legs of Paul Farman on the volley to secure his boyhood club's return to League One after a decade in League Two.

Colchester United

On 9 January 2023, Jay signed for

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its ea ...

for an undisclosed fee. On 23 January 2025, Colchester United announced that Jay's contract had been cancelled by mutual consent, with Jay free to seek another club as a free agent.

Torquay United

On 24 January 2025, Jay signed for

side

Career statistics

Honours

Exeter City *

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 ...

runner-up: 2021–22 Individual *

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's Football in England, En ...

: 2020–21 League Two, 2021–22 League Two * EFL League Two Team of the Season: 2020–21 *Exeter City Player of the Season: 2020–21 * EFL League Two Player of the Month: March 2021

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jay, Matt 1996 births Living people English men's footballers Footballers from Devon Men's association football forwards Exeter City F.C. players Weston-super-Mare A.F.C. players Hayes & Yeading United F.C. players Truro City F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players Torquay United F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players 21st-century English sportsmen People educated at South Dartmoor Community College