| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Thomas Calveley[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1999-06-22)22 June 1999 (age 26)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Chester, England[2] | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[3] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Chorley | ||
| Number | 8 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Port Vale | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2019 | Port Vale | 3 | (0) |
| 2017 | →Leek Town (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | →Nuneaton Borough (loan) | 38 | (4) |
| 2019–2020 | Curzon Ashton | 21 | (3) |
| 2020– | Chorley | 188 | (25) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 09:10, 9 May 2025 (UTC) | |||
Michael Thomas Calveley (born 22 June 1999) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as amidfielder forNational League North clubChorley.
He turned professional atPort Vale in May 2017 and went on to play onloan atLeek Town andNuneaton Borough. Released in May 2019, he signed forCurzon Ashton four months later. He joined Chorley in July 2020.
Calveley turned professional atPort Vale in May 2017; he signed a one-yearcontract shortly after receiving the club's Youth Player of the Year award.[4] On 13 September 2017, he joinedNorthern Premier League Division One South sideLeek Town on a one-monthloan.[5] ValemanagerMichael Brown said that he sanctioned the loan move because of his respect for "Blues" manager Neil Baker.[6] He scored his first senior goal with a 25 yards (23 m) strike in Town's 4–1FA Trophy victory overLincoln United atHarrison Park on 7 October.[7] He was recalled by new "Valiants" managerNeil Aspin to make his senior debut in a 4–2 victory overCrewe Alexandra in anEFL Trophy group stage match atVale Park on 7 November.[8]
On 19 July 2018, he joinedNational League North sideNuneaton Borough on loan, along with teammateDior Angus.[9] He made his debut for "Boro" on the opening day of the2018–19 season, and went in goal for the last ten minutes of the game after goalkeeper Louis Gray wassent off, managing to keep aclean sheet as his new team recorded a 0–0 draw withAshton United.[10] On 26 December, he scored his first goal for Nuneaton in a 3–1 defeat atAFC Telford United.[11] On 19 January, he scored both of Nuneaton's goals in their 2–2 draw atHereford.[12] He was recalled from his loan spell by new Vale managerJohn Askey in April, having scored four goals in 42 matches for Nuneaton.[13] However, he played just two minutes for Vale as asubstitute and Askey confirmed that he would not be offering Calveley a new contract on 16 May; meanwhile he was voted as Nuneaton's players' Player of the Year.[14][15]
Calveley joined National League North sideCurzon Ashton and made his debut for the "Nash" on 28 September 2019, in a 2–1 defeat atFarsley Celtic.[16] He scored three goals in 22 games during the2019–20 season, which was curtailed early due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in England.
He was signed by National League North rivalsChorley on 8 July 2020.[17] Manager Jamie Vermiglio said that "he'll bring strength and energy to the midfield and our supporters will no doubt appreciate his work ethic".[18] The "Magpies" enjoyed a deep run in theFA Cup, making it through three rounds ofqualification with wins overGateshead andYork City and a bye. In the first round Proper, they came from two goals down to beatWigan Athletic 3–2 afterextra time, with Calveley providing theassist for Elliot Newby in Chorley's first goal of the comeback.[19] They beat anotherLeague One side away from home in the second round,Peterborough United, and Calveley scored the winning goal on 62 minutes.[20] He also scored in the next round as Chorley beatChampionship sideDerby County 2–0 atVictory Park.[21] The cup run came to an end in the fourth round with a 1–0 home defeat toPremier League sideWolverhampton Wanderers.[22] However, the2020–21 season was curtailed early in February due to the pandemic.[23]
He agreed on a one-year contract extension in October 2021, keeping him at Chorley until the summer of 2023.[24] He scored three goals across 42 appearances in the2021–22 campaign, including playing in the play-off quarter-final defeat toYork City.[25][26] He made 46 appearances in the2022–23 season, where Chorley missed out on the play-offs with defeat on the final day.[25][27] He played 44 of Chorley's 46 league games of the2023–24 season, helping the club to the play-offs with a fourth-place finish.[25] They were beaten byBrackley Town at the semi-final stage.[28]
Calveley signed a new long-term contract with Chorley in October 2024 as managerAndy Preece felt he would continue to be a key member of the squad for "the next four or five seasons".[29] He publicly praised the player again for his dependability the following month.[30] Calveley scored 12 goals in 50 games during the2024–25 campaign, including the play-off semi-final defeat atScunthorpe United.[25][31]
Port Valeyouth teamcoach Mick Ede stated that Calveley is "a big midfielder, a destroyer, but when he gets on the ball you know he generally looks for that forwardpass and breaks lines".[32]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Port Vale | 2017–18[33] | League Two | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2018–19[34] | EFL League Two | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Leek Town (loan) | 2017–18[35] | NPL - Division One South | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3[b][c] | 1 | 11 | 1 | |
| Nuneaton Borough (loan) | 2018–19[25][36] | National League North | 38 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 4[d][e][b] | 0 | 42 | 4 | |
| Curzon Ashton | 2019–20[25] | National League North | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 22 | 3 | |
| Chorley | 2020–21[25] | National League North | 15 | 1 | 4 | 2 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 20 | 3 | |
| 2021–22[25] | National League North | 40 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[f] | 0 | 42 | 3 | ||
| 2022–23[25] | National League North | 44 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[b] | 0 | 46 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24[25] | National League North | 44 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | 5[g] | 1 | 49 | 8 | ||
| 2024–25[25] | National League North | 45 | 12 | 0 | 0 | — | 5[h] | 0 | 50 | 12 | ||
| 2025–26[25] | National League North | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 188 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 207 | 28 | ||
| Career total | 262 | 33 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 286 | 37 | ||