Wikipedia

Matthew Saunders

Matthew Saunders (born 12 September 1989) is a retired professional English footballer. He is currently the assistant head coach of Notts County.

Matthew Saunders
Personal information
Full name Matthew Saunders[1]
Date of birth (1989-09-12) 12 September 1989 (age 35)[2]
Place of birth Chertsey, England
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Notts County (assistant head coach)
Youth career
0000–2009 Fulham
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2011 Fulham 0 (0)
2010 → Lincoln City (loan) 18 (3)
2012–2014 Dagenham & Redbridge 41 (4)
2014 Whitehawk 1 (0)
2014 Dover Athletic 1 (0)
2014–2015 Hemel Hempstead Town 10 (0)
2015 Aldershot Town 8 (0)
2016–2018 Hemel Hempstead Town 44 (3)
2019 Wealdstone 0 (0)
Total 123 (10)
Managerial career
2021–2024 Wealdstone (assistant)
2024– Notts County (assistant)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:26, 11 February 2021 (UTC)

Playing career

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Saunders graduated from Fulham's academy.[3] Despite never making an official first team appearance, he spent pre-season 2009 with the first team squad as they toured Australia, making three appearances.

On 1 January 2010, he joined League Two club Lincoln City on a one-month loan deal along with teammate Michael Uwezu.[4][5] He made his professional debut a day later, on 2 January, for Lincoln in their 4–0 away loss to Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup Third Round.[6][7] Saunders returned to Fulham on 1 February 2010, after appearing twice for Lincoln in the league.[8] Saunders later rejoined Lincoln City on loan[9] and made a total of 18 appearances for the Imps, scoring three goals, including a brace against Hereford United[10] and scored against Northampton Town in the next game.[11] After one season at Fulham, Saunders failed to make a single appearance for Fulham and at the end of the 2010–11 season, he was released.[12]

On 10 February 2012, Saunders joined League Two side Dagenham & Redbridge on an 18-month contract.[13] Just four days later since joining the club, he made his debut in a 2–1 loss against Oxford United. On 28 February 2012, he made a start against Morecambe and he set up a goal for Medy Elito to put Dagenham in the lead and eventually won 2–1.[14] Soon after, Saunders scored his first goal, from a free-kick, in a 1–0 win over Bradford City.[15] After the game, Manager John Still praised Saunders performance and said "The goal was worthy of winning a very tight game. It was a fantastic goal. He's got terrific quality. He was a player we wanted to sign at the start of the season, but he got injured. At the moment it's okay, but between now and the end of the season there will be tough games and we have to maintain this level of performance. We're on decent form and we just have to maintain that and, if we do, there are enough games for us to get points from."[16]

Towards the end of the season, Saunders was used less after suffering an ankle injury[citation needed] and made only five appearances. The next season for Saunders role in midfield increased. On 6 November 2011, Saunders provided a double assist for Sam Williams and Luke Wilkinson, who scored a winner, in a 3–2 win over Oxford United and on 1 December, he scored his first of the season in a 2–1 loss against Torquay United. After the game, Saunders said he expected to score and said: "I feel in previous games I've come close to scoring with a few strikes and it was a relief to be honest to get on the scoresheet, Hopefully now I've got one I'll start to get a few more. When you score and don't get anything out of the game it kind of gets forgotten but if it's a goal that gets you a point or a goal which wins a game or helps win a game, you get more recognition for it."[17] That did happen when followed up by his second on 5 January 2013, in a match against Accrington Stanley and set up a goal for Luke Howell in a 2–0 win. Three days after scoring his second, Saunders, along with Elito, signed a new contract, keeping both Saunders and Elito until 2016.[18]

In May 2014, Saunders departed Dagenham & Redbridge by mutual consent, a year before his original contract expiry date.[19] He then moved to Whitehawk, making two appearances before cancelling his contract to sign for Conference side Dover Athletic in September 2014.

On 1 October 2014, Dover announced Saunders had been released by mutual consent to travel to India to play football. In November 2014, he signed for Hemel Hempstead Town, making his debut on 22 November against Basingstoke Town. Saunders went on to make five appearances before agreeing a deal until the end of the season with Conference Premier club Aldershot Town.

In July 2019, Saunders signed for Wealdstone in the National League South.[20]

Coaching career

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Saunders didn't make a single league appearance at Wealdstone, instead taking up a role on the coaching staff and with the Wealdstone academy. In October 2020 it was announced that he had been cut from the Wealdstone coaching in order to add to the playing budget.[21] Following the departure of manager Dean Brennan, Saunders was temporarily reappointed to the coaching staff,[22] before being permanently appointed as Stuart Maynard's assistant manager on 11 March 2021.[23]

On 18 January 2024, Saunders left Wealdstone alongside Maynard as the duo were appointed by League Two club Notts County, Saunders taking the role of assistant head coach.[24]

Career statistics

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Lincoln City (loan) 2009–10[25] League Two 18 3 1 0 — — 19 3
Dagenham & Redbridge 2011–12[26] League Two 5 1 — — — 5 1
2012–13[27] League Two 32 3 1 0 0 0 1[a] 0 34 3
2013–14[28] League Two 4 0 0 0 0 0 2[a] 0 6 0
Total 41 4 1 0 0 0 3 0 45 4
Whitehawk 2014–15[29] Conference South 1 0 — — — 1 0
Dover Athletic 2014–15[29] Conference Premier 1 0 — — — 1 0
Hemel Hempstead Town 2014–15[29] Conference South 10 0 — — 3[b] 0 13 0
Aldershot Town 2014–15[29] Conference Premier 8 0 — — — 8 0
Hemel Hempstead Town 2015–16[30] National League South 1 0 — — — 1 0
2016–17[30] National League South 29 3 6 0 — 2[b] 0 37 3
2017–18[30] National League South 14 0 0 0 — 1[c] 0 15 0
Total 44 3 6 0 — 3 0 53 3
Career totals 123 10 8 0 0 0 9 0 140 10
  1. ^ a b Appearances in Football League Trophy
  2. ^ a b Appearances in FA Trophy
  3. ^ Appearances in National League South play-offs

References

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  1. ^ "Professional retain lists & free transfers 2012/13" (PDF). The Football League. May 2013. p. 60. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Matt Saunders". 11v11. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  3. ^ "Profile: Matthew Saunders". Fulham F.C. Archived from the original on 17 July 2009. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  4. ^ "Quartet join Lincoln". Fulham F.C. 31 December 2009. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  5. ^ "Lincolnshire Echo exclusive: Imps set to land Fulham duo Michael Uwezu and Matthew Saunders". Lincolnshire Echo. 31 December 2009. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  6. ^ "Bolton 4 – 0 Lincoln". BBC Sport. 2 January 2010. Retrieved 11 January 2010.
  7. ^ Baxter, Trevor (2 January 2010). "Bolton 4 Lincoln 0". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  8. ^ "Fulham duo return". Lincoln City F.C. 1 February 2010. Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  9. ^ "Double deal for Imps". Sky Sports. 16 February 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  10. ^ "Lincoln City 3 – 1 Hereford". BBC. 12 March 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  11. ^ "Lincoln City 1 – 1 Northampton". BBC. 27 March 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  12. ^ "FULHAM ANNOUNCE PLAYERS TO BE RELEASED". Fulham Web. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  13. ^ "Daggers Sign Saunders". Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  14. ^ "Morecambe 1–2 Dag & Red". BBC Sport. 28 February 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  15. ^ "Dag & Red 1–0 Bradford". BBC Sport. 3 March 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  16. ^ "Still heaps praise on Saunders". Sky Sports. 4 March 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  17. ^ "Saunders hoping to kick on". Sky Sports. 4 December 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  18. ^ "Daggers pair pen new contracts". Team Talk. 8 January 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  19. ^ "Midfielder Exits Daggers". Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  20. ^ "Matty Saunders signs for Wealdstone FC". 26 July 2019.
  21. ^ "Wealdstone axe first-team coach Matt Saunders for financial reasons". 13 October 2020.
  22. ^ "Statement from the Board". 4 February 2021.
  23. ^ "Maynard announced as Manager". 11 March 2021.
  24. ^ "Head coach: Stuart Maynard". www.nottscountyfc.co.uk. 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  25. ^ "Games played by Matthew Saunders in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  26. ^ "Games played by Matthew Saunders in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  27. ^ "Games played by Matthew Saunders in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  28. ^ "Games played by Matthew Saunders in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  29. ^ a b c d "M. Saunders – Soccerway". Soccerbase. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  30. ^ a b c "M. Saunders – Aylesbury United". Aylesbury United FC. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
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