Ethan Craig Brierley (born 23 November 2003) is an English footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Premier League club Brentford.
| 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) | |||
Early life
editBrierley 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
editBrierley 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.