Ben Futcher
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Paul "Ben" Futcher (born 4 June 1981 in Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...

, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....

) is an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 professional footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 currently playing for Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...

 on loan from Bury
Bury F.C.
Bury Football Club is an association football team based in Bury, Greater Manchester. The team currently play in League One. The club's nickname is The Shakers which was bestowed upon them by club chairman JT Ingham, an industrialist and ironmonger of the late 1890s.-Formation of the club and the...

. He notably played for Lincoln City
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....

 between 2002 and 2005 where he played in two play-off finals. He has also played for Oldham Athletic, Stalybridge Celtic
Stalybridge Celtic F.C.
Stalybridge Celtic are an English full time professional football club from Stalybridge, Greater Manchester in North West England. The club, which plays its home matches at Bower Fold, is currently in the Conference North in the sixth tier of the English football league system...

, Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers F.C.
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The team currently competes in the Football League Championship, after being promoted via the League One play-offs in 2008, and have remained there since.The club was founded in...

, Boston United
Boston United F.C.
Boston United Football Club are an association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. They currently play in the Conference North. The club is known as 'the Pilgrims' in reference to the Pilgrim Fathers, who fled from Boston to the USA and founded Boston, Massachusetts. The club's...

, Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

 and Peterborough United
Peterborough United F.C.
Peterborough United Football Club are a professional English football club based in Peterborough. Peterborough United formed in 1934 and played in the old Midland League, which they won six times; eventually being admitted to the Football League in 1960, replacing Gateshead. Their home ground is...

. He is the son of former professional footballer, defender Paul Futcher
Paul Futcher
Paul Futcher is a former professional footballer who had a distinguished career as defender in the English football league, for England under 21s and as manager of several non-league clubs. Futcher is also the father of fellow footballer Ben Futcher.-Playing career:Futcher was the defensive half...

.

Oldham Athletic

Futcher started off playing for Oldham Athletic, signing professional terms in July 1999. Futcher struggled to grasp first team opportunities at Boundary Park
Boundary Park
Boundary Park is the main sports stadium of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies at the northwestern extremity of Oldham, with the towns of Royton and Chadderton lying immediately north and west respectively, giving rise to the name Boundary Park....

 and in August 2001 was made available for a loan transfer in order to gain experience. He linked up with Stalybridge Celtic
Stalybridge Celtic F.C.
Stalybridge Celtic are an English full time professional football club from Stalybridge, Greater Manchester in North West England. The club, which plays its home matches at Bower Fold, is currently in the Conference North in the sixth tier of the English football league system...

, the club being managed by his father Paul
Paul Futcher
Paul Futcher is a former professional footballer who had a distinguished career as defender in the English football league, for England under 21s and as manager of several non-league clubs. Futcher is also the father of fellow footballer Ben Futcher.-Playing career:Futcher was the defensive half...

, where he spent three months on loan, making 17 appearances and scoring once. On 3 January 2002 his contract with the Latics was cancelled by mutual consent.

Stalybridge Celtic and Doncaster Rovers

And it was too be, Stalybridge, who Ben would sign for permanently in the January transfer window of 2002. Futcher went on to play in ten games for the Celtic, before joining fellow Conference side Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers F.C.
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The team currently competes in the Football League Championship, after being promoted via the League One play-offs in 2008, and have remained there since.The club was founded in...

.

Lincoln City

After playing in only two games for Rovers, manager Dave Penney released Futcher two months later at the end of the season. On 10 May 2002, he along with Dene Cropper
Dene Cropper
Dene Cropper is a former professional footballer who now competes in the semi-professional game.Career...

 became Lincoln City
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....

 manager Keith Alexander
Keith Alexander (footballer)
Keith Alexander was a Saint Lucian footballer and manager. Born in Nottingham, England, he was the manager of League Two side Macclesfield Town at the time of his death, in a career that included international appearances for Saint Lucia. Alexander played for a whole host of lower league football...

's first signings of his second spell in charge at Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank is a football stadium in Lincoln, England and has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since the club's 1884 inception. Sincil Bank has an overall capacity of 10,120 and is colloquially known to fans as "The...

. With The Imps struggling in the previous season, it was to be a different string of events in the new season, despite a rocky start, Lincoln climbed the league, and with the help of Futcher, for his goals more than anything, The Imps qualified for the play offs. As well as this, Ben finished the season as the clubs top goal scorer, scoring over 10 goals, the majority of them being close range headers, from set pieces. In honor of this he was voted "Young Player Of The Season" by the Club's management team. A Simon Yeo
Simon Yeo
Simon John Yeo is a former English footballer.-Army career:After leaving school, Yeo began a two-year YTS as a carpet fitter before, in May 1992, joining the army with the 22nd Regiment...

 inspired Lincoln dumped Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United F.C.
Scunthorpe United Football Club is an English association football team based in the town of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, who play in the Football League One....

 out of the Play Off semi finaland thus giving them the task of overcoming Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth is an English football club currently playing in Football League One. The club plays at Dean Court in Kings Park, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset and have been in existence since 1899....

 in the final at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...

. Lincoln lost the match 5-2, with Ben amongst the City scorers. For the next two years, Futcher was at the heart of the Lincoln defence and unfortunately faced two more Play Off defeats: losing out in the semi finals to Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...

 in 2003/2004 and going down 2-0 after extra time against Southend United
Southend United F.C.
Southend United Football Club is an English football club based at Roots Hall Stadium, Prittlewell, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, who play in Football League Two. Their home ground is Roots Hall, and the club plan to move into a new 22,000-seater stadium located at Fossetts Farm.-Stadium:The club has had...

 the following season in yet another final at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...

.

Boston United

In a shock move in the summer of 2005, Futcher announced he would be leaving Lincoln, to sign for county rivals Boston United
Boston United F.C.
Boston United Football Club are an association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. They currently play in the Conference North. The club is known as 'the Pilgrims' in reference to the Pilgrim Fathers, who fled from Boston to the USA and founded Boston, Massachusetts. The club's...

. The Imps supporters questioned his ambition in moving to a somewhat smaller club, who was regarded as having a less chance of success than themselves. Futcher called the move a "footballing decision" but it was clear to some Lincoln supporters that money could have been a factor in his decision. With United boasting such ex-Premiership stars as Julian Joachim
Julian Joachim
Julian Jostin Joachim is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Coalville Town Football Club....

 and Noel Whelan
Noel Whelan
Noel Whelan is a former English professional footballer who last played for Darlington. He has previously played for a number of league clubs including Leeds United, Coventry City and Middlesbrough...

 Bostons squad was arguably equipped to combat the league, but the club struggled to live up to its expectancies, and performances saw them hover around the relegation zone. On the 12th January 2006, Futcher called time on his Boston career, and moved onto yet another Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

 club.

Grimsby Town

This time he signed with promotion challenging Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

, who bolstered their squad as well with the signing of Curtis Woodhouse
Curtis Woodhouse
Curtis Woodhouse is an English professional footballer and boxer. Woodhouse plays football as a central midfielder for Conference North outfit Eastwood Town, and competes as a light-welterweight boxer. He is the reigning International Masters light-welterweight champion...

 for the final promotion push. Futcher found it rather hard to break into the Grimsby side and often had to play second fiddle to Justin Whittle
Justin Whittle
Justin Whittle is a former English professional footballer who played as a defender from 1994 until 2011.As a player he notably captained Humberside clubs Hull City and Grimsby Town. He also appeared for Celtic where he started his career in 1994 before moving on to Stoke City...

 and Rob Jones
Rob Jones (footballer born 1979)
Robert William "Rob" Jones is an English footballer who currently plays as a centre back for League One club Sheffield Wednesday....

. The Mariners, missed out on automatic promotion on the last day of the season, and this set them up with a Play Off semi final tie against Ben's former team, Lincoln City, who were now in the play off's for the fourth season running. After a 1-0 Grimsby victory at Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank
Sincil Bank is a football stadium in Lincoln, England and has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since the club's 1884 inception. Sincil Bank has an overall capacity of 10,120 and is colloquially known to fans as "The...

, Futcher scored in a 2-1 win in the leg at Blundell Park
Blundell Park
Blundell Park is a football ground in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England and home to Grimsby Town Football Club. The stadium was built in 1898, but only one of the original stands remain. The current capacity of the ground is 9546, though with the introduction of all seating in the late...

 to send Grimsby into the final at Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...

. The Mariners however failed to earn promotion, losing to Cheltenham Town
Cheltenham Town F.C.
Cheltenham Town Football Club is an English football club playing in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. Founded in 1887, the team has played at four different grounds, namely Agg-Gardner's Recreation Ground, Carter's Field and now the Abbey Business Stadium, although it is more...

 in the final, thus meaning Futcher had now been on the losing team in a Coca Cola League Two Play Off Final, 3 times in the past 4 seasons.

Peterborough United

Ben then went and signed a contract with Peterborough United
Peterborough United F.C.
Peterborough United Football Club are a professional English football club based in Peterborough. Peterborough United formed in 1934 and played in the old Midland League, which they won six times; eventually being admitted to the Football League in 1960, replacing Gateshead. Their home ground is...

. Futcher linked up with Keith Alexander, once again but United achieved nothing that season, and with the installation of Darren Ferguson
Darren Ferguson
Darren Ferguson is a Scottish football manager and former player, currently in his second spell as the manager of Peterborough United...

 as manager, following Alexander's departure, Futcher left at the end of that season.

Bury

His next port of call was to sign for Bury
Bury F.C.
Bury Football Club is an association football team based in Bury, Greater Manchester. The team currently play in League One. The club's nickname is The Shakers which was bestowed upon them by club chairman JT Ingham, an industrialist and ironmonger of the late 1890s.-Formation of the club and the...

 where Alexander had just been appointed as the clubs Director Of Football. In Ben's first season, he helped the club to a mid table finish, and scored Bury's first goal in a 2-1 victory over Leeds United in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...

. In the next season he became an integral part of the Bury
Bury F.C.
Bury Football Club is an association football team based in Bury, Greater Manchester. The team currently play in League One. The club's nickname is The Shakers which was bestowed upon them by club chairman JT Ingham, an industrialist and ironmonger of the late 1890s.-Formation of the club and the...

 team and at the end of the season the club activated a clause in his contract for Ben to stay for another year.

On 11 November 2010 Ben signed for fellow Football League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....

 side Oxford United
Oxford United F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...

 on loan. He returned to Bury on 4 January 2011 having played six games during his eight week loan period. After his return he played more regularly for the team, and in May 2011 he signed a new one year contract extension.

In August 2011 he joined Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...

 on loan for an initial month.

Personal life

Ben is the son of ex-Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...

, Oldham Athletic
Oldham Athletic A.F.C.
Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is an English association football club based at Boundary Park, on Sheepfoot Lane in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The club currently competes in the Football League One, the third tier of the English league...

, Luton Town
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...

 and Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

 defender Paul Futcher
Paul Futcher
Paul Futcher is a former professional footballer who had a distinguished career as defender in the English football league, for England under 21s and as manager of several non-league clubs. Futcher is also the father of fellow footballer Ben Futcher.-Playing career:Futcher was the defensive half...

. Other footballing members of Ben's family include his uncles Ron Futcher
Ron Futcher
Ronald Futcher is a former professional soccer centre-forward. He was the fourth highest career scorer of the North American Soccer League, and made over 400 appearances in total for nine different Football League clubs....

 and Graham Futcher
Graham Futcher
Graham Futcher is a former professional footballer who played in the Football League his hometown club Chester. He is best known as the oldest of three brothers to play for the club during this period....

 (both ex-Chester), cousins Danny Murphy (England international) and Stephen Futcher (ex-Wrexham). Futcher is studying part-time for a Bachelor's degree in Sports Performance at the University of Salford
University of Salford
The University of Salford is a campus university based in Salford, Greater Manchester, England with approximately 20,000 registered students. The main campus is about west of Manchester city centre, on the A6, opposite the former home of the physicist, James Prescott Joule and the Working Class...

.

Grimsby Town

  • Coca Cola League Two Play-off runner up: 2005-06
    2005-06 in English football
    The 2005–06 season was the 126th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:*The rebuilt Wembley Stadium was due to open in time for the FA Cup final in May. However, in August 2005, The Football Association reserved the Millennium Stadium as a backup, as there was some doubt whether...


Lincoln City

  • Third Division
    Football League Third Division
    The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...

     Play-off runner up: 2002-03
    2002-03 in English football
    The 2002-03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.-Most Memorable rise:*Wigan Athletic marked their 25th season of Football League membership by winning the Division Two championship and reaching the league's second tier for the very first time.-Most Memorable...

  • Coca Cola League Two Play-off runner up: 2004-05
    2004-05 in English football
    The 2004–05 season was the 125th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:*2004–05 was the first season to feature the rebranded Football League. The First Division, Second Division and Third Division were renamed the Football League Championship, Football League One and Football League...


Career statistics

Club Season League Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals
Oldham Athletic
Oldham Athletic A.F.C.
Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is an English association football club based at Boundary Park, on Sheepfoot Lane in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The club currently competes in the Football League One, the third tier of the English league...

1990-00 5 0 1 0
2000-01 5 0 0 0
2001-02 0 0 0 0
All 10 0 1 0
Stalybridge Celtic
Stalybridge Celtic F.C.
Stalybridge Celtic are an English full time professional football club from Stalybridge, Greater Manchester in North West England. The club, which plays its home matches at Bower Fold, is currently in the Conference North in the sixth tier of the English football league system...

(loan)
2001-02 9 0 1 0
Stalybridge Celtic 2001-02 10 1 0 0
Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers F.C.
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The team currently competes in the Football League Championship, after being promoted via the League One play-offs in 2008, and have remained there since.The club was founded in...

2001-02 2 0 0 0
Lincoln City
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....

2002-03 43 8 6 3
2003-04 43 3 8 0
2004-05 35 3 7 0
All 121 14 21 3
Boston United
Boston United F.C.
Boston United Football Club are an association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. They currently play in the Conference North. The club is known as 'the Pilgrims' in reference to the Pilgrim Fathers, who fled from Boston to the USA and founded Boston, Massachusetts. The club's...

2005-06 14 0 5 1
Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

2005-06 15 2 0 0
Career totals (Football League Only) 160 16 28 4

External links

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