Samuel James Hart (born 10 September 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 a

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 ...

for club

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in , the third tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal ...

. Hart began his career at

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, where he made his first-team debut in a pre-season friendly in August 2016. He played 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 ...

during the 2016–17 season and was sold on to

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

in August 2017. He joined

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

on loan in January 2018 and again for the 2018–19 season. He joined

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth level of English football. The team are known as "The Shrimpers", a reference ...

on loan in January 2019 and then loaned out to

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 ...

in January 2020. He joined

permanently in November 2020 and then signed for

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...

in June 2021. He signed with

Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional association football club from Sutton, South London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Sutton started out playing in junior, ...

in June 2022 and spent two years with the club before he joined Port Vale. He was promoted out of League Two with the club at the end of the 2024–25 season.

Career

Liverpool

Hart moved from the Manchester United Academy to the Liverpool Academy whilst an under-16 level player. He made his first appearance for

on 7 August 2016, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 4–0 friendly defeat to

Mainz 05 1. Fußball- und Sport-Verein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05 or simply Mainz 05 (), is a German professional sports club, founded in 1905 and based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Mainz 05 play in the Bundesliga, the top tie ...

at the Opel Arena. In August 2016, Hart joined League One side

for the 2016–17 season, as

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Bruno Ribeiro Bruno Miguel Fernandes Ribeiro (born 22 October 1975) is a Portuguese former football manager and player. A midfielder with a powerful left-foot strike, he began his playing career with hometown club Vitória Setúbal from 1994 to 1997, befo ...

needed cover for injured duo Kiko and

Adam Yates Adam Richard Yates (born 7 August 1992) is a British professional road and track racing cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . Yates placed fourth overall at the 2016 Tour de France and became the first British rider to win the Young rider clas ...

. He made his debut in professional football on 27 August, coming on as an 83rd-minute substitute for

Jerome Thomas Jerome William Thomas (born 23 March 1983) is an English former footballer who is the head of academy recruitment at club Brighton & Hove Albion. He played predominantly as a left-winger during his career. He scored 25 goals in 292 league and ...

in a 3–1 win over

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in ...

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 ...

. With Thomas injured, Hart made his first league start on 27 September, playing at left-wing in a 3–1 home win 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 ...

. His performance impressed Ribeiro, who stated that Hart played well enough to guarantee himself either the left-back or left-wing spot in the next game. He scored his first goal in senior football on 29 October, in a 3–1 defeat to hometown club

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

at the

Macron Stadium The Toughsheet Community Stadium is a Association football, football stadium in Horwich near Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. It is the home ground of Bolton Wanderers F.C., Bolton Wanderers Football Club, with an all-seated capacity of 28, ...

. Hart's loan deal was cut short after Michael Brown succeeded Ribeiro as manager in January 2017; he had made 12 starts and four substitute appearances for the "Valiants", often out of position on the left and right-wing. He was reportedly targeted by

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...

for a loan deal in July 2017.

Blackburn Rovers

On 31 August 2017, Hart signed a two-year deal with League One side

after he was purchased for an undisclosed fee. On 18 January 2018, he joined fellow League One side

on loan until the end of the 2017–18 season, having featured just seven times for

Tony Mowbray Anthony Mark Mowbray (born 22 November 1963) is an English football manager and former footballer who was most recently the manager of EFL Championship club West Bromwich Albion. Mowbray played for Middlesbrough, Celtic and Ipswich Town as a d ...

's Rovers. Manager Keith Hill needed cover at left-back having sold

Joe Bunney Joseph Elliott Bunney (born 26 September 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back or forward for Stalybridge Celtic. He has previously played professionally in the Football League for Rochdale, Northampton Town, Bolt ...

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...

. Hart featured just three times for the "Dale" during his time at

Spotland Spotland ( ) is a district of Rochdale in Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseysi ...

, though came on as a substitute in the final day win over

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

that secured the club's League One status. On 30 August 2018, Hart returned to Rochdale on loan for the remainder of the 2018–19 season. He said: "I'm really happy. I have got a bond with the football club and the people here, so I am excited to be back". He made 13 appearances, but did not feature after playing in a 4–2 defeat at

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 27 November, and was recalled to Blackburn on 2 January. On 15 January 2019, he returned to League One, joining

on loan until the end of the 2018–19 season. He made his "Shrimpers" debut four days later, playing at left-wing-back in a 4–0 win at

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

; after the game manager Chris Powell said that he was pleased with Hart's performance. Hart went on to sign a one-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 ...

extension at Blackburn the following week, keeping him tied to the club until 2020. He missed the first half of the 2019–20 season after picking up a

hamstring A hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in human anatomy between the hip and the knee: from medial to lateral, the semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris. Etymology The word " ham" is derived from the Old ...

injury in pre-season. On 17 January 2020, Hart joined League One side

on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season. "Shrews" manager

Sam Ricketts Samuel Derek Ricketts (born 11 October 1981) is a professional football coach and former player. As a player, his favoured position was at full back, where he was able to play either side as well as being able to operate at the centre of defe ...

signed him to replace recalled

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

loanee Ryan Giles. He was released by Blackburn manager

on 24 July 2020.

Southend United

On 11 November 2020, Hart rejoined Southend United, who were now bottom of League Two, on a permanent deal until the end of the

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

season. He was

sent off In sports, an ejection (also known as dismissal, sending-off, disqualification, or early shower) is the removal of a participant from a contest due to a violation of the sport's rules. The exact violations that lead to an ejection vary depending ...

for a strong challenge on

Derick Osei Derick Osei Yaw (born 10 September 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker. Early life Derick Osei Yaw was born in Toulouse, in the South of France, to Ghanaian parents. His father was born in Kumasi and his mother in ...

during a 0–0 draw with

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

Roots Hall Roots Hall is a Soccer-specific stadium, football stadium located in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The stadium is the home ground of the National League (English football), National League team Southend United F.C., Southend United. With a ...

on 23 March and handed a three-match ban. However, manager

Mark Molesley Mark Clifford Molesley (born 11 March 1981) is an English football manager and former professional player. He played in the Football League for AFC Bournemouth, Aldershot Town, Plymouth Argyle and Exeter City, and the Football Conference fo ...

confirmed Southend would appeal the ban. New boss Phil Brown took charge the following month and said Hart was an "outstanding" player who would "definitely be in the standing line up". The club were

relegated 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 ...

out of the

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

after finishing second-bottom of League Two.

Oldham Athletic

On 22 June 2021, Hart signed a one-year deal – with an option to extend – with League Two side

. Manager

Keith Curle Keith Curle (born 14 November 1963) is an English football manager and former professional player, who was most recently the manager of National League side Hartlepool United. He played as a centre back from 1981 to 2005, notably in the Prem ...

stated that as a "typical type of wing-back... he'll have an impact on a regular basis in games" and would "become an important part of the team". He scored his second career goal on 20 November, to secure a 3–2 win over former club Port Vale at

Boundary Park Boundary Park is a football stadium in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Its name originates from the fact that it lies at the northwestern extremity of Oldham, with Royton and Chadderton lying immediately north and west respectively. Bound ...

. Curle was sacked in November and the "Latics" form improved after John Sheridan replaced

interim manager Interim management is the temporary provision of management resources and skills. Interim management can be seen as the short-term assignment of a proven heavyweight interim executive manager to manage a period of transition, crisis or change wi ...

Selim Benachour in January. However, Oldham were relegated at the end of the 2021–22 season, and Hart took to social media to say it would "hurt for a long time". The ''Oldham Times'' described him as "one of the club's better and most consistent performers". Oldham offered him a new contract, which he turned down.

Sutton United

Hart remained in League Two after he agreed a two-year deal with

on 28 June 2022, with manager Matt Gray looking to provide competition for left-back

Robert Milsom Robert Steven Milsom (born 2 January 1987) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Dorking Wanderers. Club career Fulham Milsom began his career as a youth player at Fulham, which he joined since eleven, before he was pro ...

. He featured 24 times in the

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

campaign and said "it's good being in a winning environment again" in April, though Sutton missed out on the

play-offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

. He featured 32 times in the 2023–24 season and was named as the Supporters' Club Player of the Season. Sutton were relegated back into

non-League football 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 ...

at the end of the season and Hart rejected the club's offer of a new contract.

Port Vale

On 26 June 2024, Hart agreed to join his former loan club, Port Vale, on a two-year deal. Manager

Darren Moore Darren Mark Moore (born 22 April 1974) is a professional football manager and former player who played as a centre-back. He is the manager of club Port Vale. Moore was born in Birmingham, though represented Jamaica at international level. He ...

said that the signing would bring balance to the club's back line. Hart sustained a hamstring injury early in the season and was ruled out of action for what Moore said would be "some considerable time". He played 22 league games in the 2024–25 campaign, helping the team to secure an automatic promotion place.

Style of play

Hart was described by the

website as "a left-back, who relishes going forward and poses a real threat when pushing on down the flank" and someone who "can carry the attack with his fine athletic profile – but he's also very strong in the tackle".

Career statistics

Honours

Individual *

Supporters' Club Player of the Season: 2023–24 Port Vale *

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 ...

second-place promotion: 2024–25

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Sam 1996 births Living people Footballers from Bolton English men's footballers Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football wingers Liverpool F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players Rochdale A.F.C. players Southend United F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players Sutton United F.C. players English Football League players 21st-century English sportsmen