William Henry Hatfield (born 10 October 1991) is an English semi-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

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 ...

for club

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

. He began his career with

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...

, but never made an appearance for their first team. He went on to play in the

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 ...

for

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England, that compete in the , the fourth level of the English football league system. They have spent their entire history playing a ...

as well as in

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 ...

for

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, as of the 2024–25 seas ...

FC Halifax Town FC Halifax Town is a professional association football club based in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. They currently compete in the National League (division), National League, the fifth level of English football league system. They replac ...

Guiseley Guiseley ( ) is an area in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated south of Otley and Menston and is now a north-west ...

and

AFC Fylde AFC Fylde is a professional football club based in Wesham in the Borough of Fylde, Lancashire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Mill Farm. Originally known as Kirkham & Wesham following a merger of Kirkham Town and Wes ...

. He returned to Darlington in August 2023.

Early life

Hatfield was born in

Liversedge Liversedge is an industrial town in the Kirklees district, in West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Liversedge lies between Cleckheaton and Heckmondwike. The Kirklees ward is now called Liversedge and ...

, West Yorkshire, and attended

Woodhouse Grove School Woodhouse Grove School ('The Grove') is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private, co-educational, Boarding school, day and boarding school and sixth form. it is located to the north of Apperley Bridge, West Yorkshire, England (Apperle ...

Apperley Bridge Apperley Bridge is a village in the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford, in West Yorkshire, England in the Idle and Thackley Ward. Apperley Bridge is north-east of Bradford on the boundary with the City of Leeds bounded in the east b ...

Career

Hatfield came through the

youth system, having joined the club as an eight-year-old. His first matchday involvement in the first team came on 3 February 2010 as an unused substitute in a 3–1 home defeat to

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

in an

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

fourth-round replay. Hatfield joined

Conference Premier The National League, officially known as Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in England. The National League is the first division of the National Leagues and step 1 of the National Le ...

club

on 28 January 2011 on a one-month

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 ...

, playing four matches. He joined League Two club

on 14 October 2011 on a one-month loan. He made his debut the following day as a half-time substitute in a 2–0 home 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 ...

in League Two. Having made four appearances, his loan was extended until the end of December 2011. After his loan spell at Accrington ended, Hatfield and his Leeds teammate Sanchez Payne joined Conference Premier club Lincoln City on trial. Hatfield left Leeds on 12 January 2012 after agreeing to mutually terminate his contract. He signed for

later that month, making his debut on 24 January 2012 as a 66th-minute substitute in a 2–2 home draw with

Gainsborough Trinity Gainsborough Trinity Football Club is a Association football, football club based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England. Established in 1873, the club became members of the English Football League, Football League i ...

in the

Conference North The National League North, officially known as Vanarama National League North for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Association football league in England. National League North is the second division of the National Leagues and step 2 o ...

. On 10 February 2012, Hatfield re-signed for League Two club Accrington Stanley on a contract until the end of 2011–12 season. He signed a new one-year contract with the club in June 2012. He scored four goals in an FA Cup tie against

on 3 November 2012. Hatfield re-joined Conference Premier club FC Halifax Town on 27 November 2014 on a 28-day loan, and signed for the club permanently on 15 January 2015 after leaving Accrington by mutual consent. Hatfield signed for newly promoted

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

club

on 19 June 2015, and went on to spend four seasons with the club. He left Guiseley in July 2019 and signed for

National League North The National League North, officially known as Vanarama National League North for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Association football league in England. National League North is the second division of the National League (English footb ...

club

. Hatfield was named as Darlington's Away Player of the Year, Players' Player of the Year and Player of the Year for the 2019–20 season, as well as winning their Goal of the Season award for his strike against

Kidderminster Harriers Kidderminster Harriers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. The team competes in the National League North, the sixth level of the English football league system. Formed in ...

. On 22 March 2022, Hatfield signed for fellow National League North club

for an undisclosed fee. He was a regular starter for the rest of the season, and although playing less often in 2022–23, he made a major contribution to AFC Fylde's league title and promotion. Unable to guarantee him regular football at the higher level, AFC Fylde cancelled his contract, which had a year still to run, and Hatfield re-signed for Darlington on 14 August 2023 on a two-year deal. After the dismissal of manager

Alun Armstrong Alan Armstrong (born 17 July 1946), known professionally as Alun Armstrong, is an English character actor. He grew up in County Durham in North East England, and first became interested in acting through Shakespeare productions at his grammar ...

and assistant Darren Holloway on 6 September, Hatfield was one of a group of three senior players tasked with covering managerial duties until an appointment was made.

Career statistics

References

External links

Will Hatfield profile
at the Guiseley A.F.C. website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hatfield, Will 1991 births Living people People from Liversedge Sportspeople from Kirklees Footballers from West Yorkshire English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Leeds United F.C. players York City F.C. players Accrington Stanley F.C. players FC Halifax Town players Guiseley A.F.C. players Darlington F.C. players AFC Fylde players National League (English football) players English Football League players 21st-century English sportsmen