Daniel Leadbitter

Daniel William Leadbitter (born 7 October 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays for National League North club Gloucester City on loan from Newport County. He is primarily a right-back and he is also capable of operating all across the defence. Leadbitter is a product of the Newcastle United youth system having joined at the age of 9 but left for Torquay United in 2011 to sign a two-year deal, in pursuit of first team football.

Daniel Leadbitter
Leadbitter playing for Bristol Rovers in 2015
Personal information
Full name Daniel William Leadbitter[1]
Date of birth (1990-10-07) 7 October 1990[1]
Place of birth Newcastle upon Tyne,[1] England
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Position(s) Defender
Club information
Current team
 Gloucester City
(on loan from Newport County)
Youth career
1998–2011 Newcastle United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2013 Torquay United 15 (0)
2013–2014 Hereford United 38 (0)
2014–2019 Bristol Rovers 115 (1)
2019– Newport County 3 (0)
2020–2021 → Yeovil Town (loan) 10 (0)
2021– → Gloucester City (loan) 0 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:42, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Career

Newcastle United

Leadbitter joined local club Wide Open Juniors aged seven. He first played for Newcastle United's academy a year later.[2] Initially a centre-back, Leadbitter was converted to a right-back aged 15 due to being shorter than most of his peers; reflecting on the positional change in 2012, he said: "I was too small to stay at centre-back, so I switched to right-back and I've found a home there now." He signed a contract with Newcastle in July 2007, having made his debut for the Newcastle Academy U18s against Middlesbrough in March of that year. His first goal for the academy arrived in October, in a match against Leeds United.[3] He went on to play for Newcastle's reserve side after graduating from the club's Little Benton Academy,[4] However, he was released in June 2011 without making a first-team appearance.[5]

Torquay United

Torquay United manager Martin Ling became aware of Leadbitter after watching him playing for Newcastle's Reserves whilst scouting for Hibernian and Walsall.[6] Upon his release from Newcastle, Ling signed him on a two-year contract on 28 June 2011,[7]

Leadbitter's league debut for Torquay was delayed due to a hamstring injury and he missed most of the first few months, but finally made his debut for Torquay on 8 October 2011 at the Valley Parade in the Gulls' 1–0 loss to Bradford City. He made his first league start for Torquay in the 2–1 victory over Gillingham.[8][9] Despite Oastler being available for selection after his suspension expired, Leadbitter retained his place for United's 1–0 win over Morecambe F.C on 27 October 2012; he was voted Man of the match by the match sponsors.[10] The defender was restored to Torquay's starting line-up for the 1–0 loss at Bradford City on 8 December 2012 due to Oastler's suspension; the fixture came a year and two months to the day after Leadbitter's club debut at the same ground, with an identical scoreline.[11] Leadbitter played in United's 1–0 defeat against Fleetwood Town on 9 February 2013; assistant manager Shaun Taylor later claimed Leadbitter's performance was "probably his best game for the club."[12][13] The right-back retained his place for the 3–1 loss to Rotherham United on 12 February and went on to make 11 more appearances before his release in May 2012.

Hereford United

On 1 August 2013, Leadbitter signed a one-year deal with Hereford.[14][15] The right-back made his debut for Hereford on the opening day of the season against Braintree Town on 10 August, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw.[16] He made a good start to his Hereford career, quickly establishing himself as a first-team regular, and by October a Sky Sports publication claimed that "a number of clubs from the Football League have been keeping tabs on Daniel...he is really flourishing under the management of Martin Foyle."[17]

Bristol Rovers
Leadbitter playing for Bristol Rovers in 2016

Leadbitter joined relegated Conference Premier side Bristol Rovers prior to the 2014–15 season. He scored his first professional goal on 13 September 2014 in a 2–3 away win at Lincoln. The team went on to miss out on the Conference Premier league title on the final day by 1 point but earned promotion via the playoffs, triumphing on penalties against Grimsby Town, securing a return to the football league at the first time of asking.[18]

He was offered a new contract by Bristol Rovers at the end of the 2017–18 season.[19]

On 8 May 2019, Leadbitter was announced to be one of 9 players who wouldn't be retained at the end of their contracts bringing his five-season spell at the club, during which he gained two promotions to an end.[20][21]

Newport County

On 20 June 2019, Leadbitter joined Newport County on a two-year contract.[22] He made his debut for Newport on 13 August 2019 in the starting line up for the EFL Cup first round win against Gillingham.[23]

Yeovil Town loan

On 4 September 2020, Leadbitter joined National League side Yeovil Town on loan until the end of the 2020–21 season.[24] On 18 January 2021, Leadbitter's loan was terminated early and he returned to Newport having made 12 appearances for Yeovil.[25]

Gloucester City loan

On 2 February 2021, Leadbitter signed for National League North side Gloucester City on loan until the end of the 2020–21 season.[26]

Personal life

Leadbitter was born in Newcastle with a mixed English / Jamaican background. He attended Gosforth High School prior to playing for hometown club Newcastle United. At school, he excelled at athletics, reaching the finals of the 400m event at the English Schools Championships.[27] The defender comes from a family of footballers: his uncle, Roger Palmer, played for Manchester City before becoming Oldham Athletic's all-time leading goalscorer, while his cousins Marcus Wood (currently with Southport)[28] and Tyrell Palmer played in the English Lower League Pyramid after coming through the Academy at Bolton Wanderers.[29]

Career statistics
As of match played 26 December 2020
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Torquay United 2011–12[30] League Two 2000000020
2012–13[31] League Two 13010001[lower-alpha 1]0150
Total 150100010170
Hereford United 2013–14[32] Conference Premier 38020—1[lower-alpha 2]0410
Bristol Rovers 2014–15[33] Conference Premier 24100—1[lower-alpha 2]0251
2015–16[34] League Two 33010101[lower-alpha 1]0360
2016–17[35] League One 30010203[lower-alpha 3]0360
2017–18[36] League One 17010202[lower-alpha 3]0220
2018–19[37] League One 11020104[lower-alpha 3]0180
Total 115150601101371
Newport County 2019–20[38] League Two 3000102[lower-alpha 3]060
2020–21[39] League Two 0000000000
Total 3000102060
Yeovil Town (loan) 2020–21[39] National League 10020—00120
Gloucester City (loan) 2020–21[32] National League North 00——0000
Career total 1811100701502131
  1. Appearance in the Football League Trophy
  2. Appearance in the FA Trophy
  3. Appearances in the EFL Trophy

References
  1. "Daniel Leadbitter". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  2. Wideopen Juniors: Roll of Honour Wideopen Juniors F.C. 31 December 2010. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  3. Greater London Online: Daniel Leadbitter looking to impress Archived 12 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  4. Newcastle United FC – Dan's the man for Gulls Archived 2 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Newcastle United F.C. 29 June 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  5. Torquay United – Team Profiles – Daniel Leadbitter Torquay United F.C.. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  6. This Is South Devon – Oastler and Leadbitter clinch 1 year deals Archived 31 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 August 2011
  7. Daniel Leadbitter at Soccerbase. Retrieved 11 August 2011
  8. Leadbitter poised to make first Torquay start against league leaders ThisisCornwall.co.uk. 23 October 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  9. Match Stats: Torquay United 2–1 Gillingham The Guardian. 23 October 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  10. United 1 Morecambe 0 Torquay United F.C. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
  11. Step Forward Danny: Leadbitter replaces suspended Oastler Archived 10 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine Torquay United F.C. 7 December 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
  12. League Two – Torquay 0–1 Fleetwood BBC Sport. 9 February 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  13. Danny's Best Game Archived 10 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine Torquay United F.C. 12 February 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  14. Trialists Trio Sign For Bulls Archived 5 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine Hereford United F.C. 31 July 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  15. Hereford United: James, Evans, Leadbitter, Artus and Gwynne join BBC Sport. 31 July 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  16. Conference – Hereford 1–1 Braintree Town BBC Sport. 10 August 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  17. Hereford's Leadbitter watched by several clubs Sky Sports. 28 October 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  18. Bristol Rovers Twitter. 27 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  19. "Bristol Rovers: Ryan Broom, Jonny Burn and Byron Moore released". BBC Sport. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  20. "Retained List". www.bristolrovers.co.uk. 8 May 2019.
  21. "Bristol Rovers: Chris Lines heads list of nine players to leave League One club". BBC Sport. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  22. Leadbitter joins Newport
  23. Leadbitter Newport debut
  24. "Transfer | Leadbitter signs on loan". ytfc.net. Yeovil Town F.C. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  25. "Player News | Daniel Leadbitter returns to Exiles from Yeovil Town". Newport County F.C. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  26. "Player News | Daniel Leadbitter joins Gloucester City on loan". Newport County F.C. 2 February 2021. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  27. Newcastle United FC – Daniel Leadbitter profile. Retrieved 11 August 2011
  28. "thefootballarchives.com". www.thefootballarchives.com. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  29. What Happened To Roger Palmer? BBC Football – 606 Phone-In. 1 January 2008. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  30. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  31. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  32. Daniel Leadbitter at Soccerway. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  33. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  34. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  35. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  36. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  37. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  38. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  39. "Games played by Daniel Leadbitter in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2020.


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