Ethan Brierley
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ethan Craig Brierley[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 23 November 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Rochdale, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Central midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Brentford B | ||
| Number | 38 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2010–2020 | Rochdale | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2023 | Rochdale | 32 | (2) |
| 2022 | → Spennymoor Town (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2023– | Brentford | 0 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:53, 15 May 2023 (UTC) | |||
Ethan Craig Brierley (born 23 November 2003) is an English footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Premier League club Brentford.
Early life
[edit]Brierley was born in Rochdale.[2] He attended Oulder Hill Community School in Rochdale.[3] Brierley was a childhood Rochdale supporter, having attended matches from the age of three onwards.[4]
Career
[edit]Brierley started playing junior football for local team Roach Dynamos in Heywood and after trials at the academies of Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City, Brierley joined Rochdale's academy aged seven.[3] Brierley was named on Rochdale's bench for a FA Cup match against Newcastle United in January 2020, at the age of 15. Because of his age, Brierley had to get changed separately to the rest of Rochdale's first team.[5] He made his professional debut for Rochdale on 5 September 2020 in a 1–0 EFL Cup victory away to Huddersfield Town.[6] He signed his first professional contract with the club on 26 November 2020, having turned 17 earlier that week.[7] He made his league debut as a late substitute in a 2–0 defeat away to Ipswich Town on 26 September 2020, and made a further four league appearances across the 2020–21 season as Rochdale were relegated to EFL League Two after finishing 21st.[8][9]
Having made just three cup appearances for Rochdale during the 2021–22 season,[10] Brierley joined National League North side Spennymoor Town on loan for the remainder of the season on 24 March 2022.[11] On 29 April 2022, Brierley was recalled from this loan spell by parent club Rochdale,[12] and started Rochdale's final two matches of the season.[10] He was nominated for the LFE League Two Apprentice of the Season award, but lost out to Junior Tchamadeu of Colchester United.[13][14]
In July 2022, Brierley agreed an extension to his contract with Rochdale until summer 2024.[15] He scored his first senior goal for the club in a 3–3 EFL Trophy draw away to Accrington Stanley on 30 August 2022.[16] In January 2023, Brierley spent time on trial at both Sheffield United and Blackburn Rovers. Brierley was unable to sign for Sheffield United due to the club being under a transfer embargo, whilst a deadline day transfer to Blackburn fell through after the English Football League rejected their application to register the player. Blackburn appealed this decision unsuccessfully, and Brierley returned to first-team action for Rochdale in late February.[17][18][19] With Rochdale embroiled in a relegation battle, Brierley registered three assists in his first four games back as Dale picked up five points.[18] However, Rochdale were eventually relegated after finishing bottom on 38 points,[20] with Brierley having made 25 league appearances.[21]
On 2 June 2023, it was confirmed that Brierley had signed for Brentford for an undisclosed fee on a three-year deal.[22][23]
Career statistics
[edit]- As of 2 June 2023
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Rochdale | 2020–21[8] | League One | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 2021–22[10] | League Two | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2022–23[21] | League Two | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 1 | 31 | 3 | |
| Total | 32 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 44 | 3 | ||
| Spennymoor Town (loan) | 2021–22[2] | National League North | 7 | 1 | — | — | — | 7 | 1 | |||
| Brentford | 2023–24[24] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 39 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 51 | 4 | ||
- ^ a b c Appearances in EFL Trophy
References
[edit]- ^ "Notification of shirt numbers: Rochdale" (PDF). English Football League. 11 September 2020. p. 59. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ a b Ethan Brierley at Soccerway. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ^ a b "Q&A with Rochdale AFC's Ethan Brierley". Rochdale Style Magazine (winter 2020 ed.). Retrieved 25 February 2024 – via issuu.
- ^ "A Proud Moment For Me". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ^ Walker, Michael (15 January 2020). "Bruce has Newcastle on the crest of a wave as Rochdale fail to repeat heroics". i. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- ^ "Match Report – Huddersfield Town 0–1 Rochdale". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. 5 September 2020. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley Signs First Professional Contract". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. 26 November 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Games played by Ethan Brierley in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
- ^ "League One (Sky Sports)". SkySports. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ a b c "Games played by Ethan Brierley in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley joins Spennymoor Town on loan". Rochdale AFC. 24 March 2022. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley recalled". Rochdale AFC. 29 April 2022. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley Nominated For LFE League Two Apprentice Of The Season". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Davis, Joe (24 April 2022). "LFE Apprentice of the Season 2022 Winners Announced". League Football Education (LFE). Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley Signs Extended Deal". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Match Report | Accrington Stanley 3-3 Rochdale (4-3 Penalties)". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Holt, Chris (2 June 2023). "Highly-rated Sheffield United trialist joins Premier League side after embargo scuppered move". The Star. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ a b Sharpe, Rich (28 March 2023). "Ethan Brierley has 'come back a man' after Rovers experience". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Sharpe, Rich (1 March 2023). "Arbitration panel rejects Rovers' appeal in bid to sign Lewis O'Brien". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "League Two (Sky Sports)". SkySports. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Games played by Ethan Brierley in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley Joins Brentford B". Brentford FC. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
- ^ "Ethan Brierley: Brentford B sign Rochdale midfielder for undisclosed fee". BBC. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
- ^ "Games played by Ethan Brierley in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 September 2020.