| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Scott Benjamin Laird[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1988-05-15)15 May 1988 (age 36)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Taunton, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Left-back /midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Weston-super-Mare (player-assistant manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2000–2006 | Plymouth Argyle | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2006–2008 | Plymouth Argyle | 0 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | →Tiverton Town (loan) | 18 | (4) |
| 2007 | →Torquay United (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2008 | →Stevenage Borough (loan) | 15 | (1) |
| 2008–2012 | Stevenage | 194 | (21) |
| 2012–2015 | Preston North End | 84 | (5) |
| 2015–2017 | Scunthorpe United | 33 | (2) |
| 2016–2017 | →Walsall (loan) | 28 | (3) |
| 2017–2019 | Forest Green Rovers | 35 | (2) |
| 2019 | →Walsall (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| 2019– | Weston-super-Mare | 72 | (22) |
| International career | |||
| 2003–2007 | Scotland U16–U20 | 36 | (6) |
| 2009 | England C | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 00:25, 18 August 2022 (UTC) | |||
Scott Benjamin Laird (born 15 May 1988) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as aleft back andmidfielder forSouthern League Premier Division South clubWeston-super-Mare. He is also the club's assistant manager.
Laird began his football career as a trainee atPlymouth Argyle, progressing through the club'scentre of excellence. He spent eight years at Plymouth, making one first-team appearance for the club. In 2006, he wasloaned out toTiverton Town, scoring four goals in 20 games during his time there. He was later loaned toTorquay United in September 2007, making two appearances for the team. Another loan spell followed, this time toStevenage Borough of theConference Premier in late 2007. After playing regularly during the loan agreement, he signed for Stevenage on a permanent basis in February 2008. During his five years with Stevenage, where he played 245 times in all competitions, Laird helped the club earn back-to-back promotions from the Conference Premier toLeague One. He was named the club's Player of the Year for the2009–10 season.
He left Stevenage when his contract expired in 2012, and signed forPreston North End. He spent three years at Preston, culminating in promotion to theChampionship during the2014–15 season. Laird joined League One clubScunthorpe United in June 2015, spending the2016–17 season on loan atWalsall. In June 2017, he signed forForest Green Rovers, rejoining Walsall on loan in January 2019 for the remainder of the2018–19 season. He left Forest Green in May 2019 and signed for Weston-super-Mare in a player-assistant manager role a month later. Laird also represented Scotland at youth level, captaining theunder-16 team all the way up tounder-20 level. He was selected for theEngland C team in April 2009, earning onecap.
Laird was born inTaunton, Somerset, and grew up inBridgwater.[3] He supportedRangers andIpswich Town as a boy, and singled outBrian Laudrup as a player he always aspired to play like.[4] Laird played football atEast Bridgwater School aged nine, which was a satellite centre forPlymouth Argyle.[5]
At the age of 14, Laird progressed to Plymouth Argyle's centre of excellence inIvybridge.[5][6] He made the one hour journey from hisBridgwater home to train with the club every Tuesday and Thursday.[7] During this time, he played as a left-sidedcentre-back.[5] Laird attracted interest fromRangers in 2003, with theSPL club enquiring about the player after his performances for Scotland in theVictory Shield.[8] No move materialised, and he continued to progress through the youth system atHome Park.[5] He signed an academy scholarship with the club aged 16, before being offered a two-year professional contract at the age of 17 by managerTony Pulis in February 2006, which he signed.[5][9] During his time as an apprentice, Laird lived in a hotel "just for apprentices" withLuke Summerfield,Reuben Reid, andChris Zebroski, and described the experience as a "great way to grow into football".[7]
The following season, Laird joinedTiverton Town of theSouthern Football League on an initial one-month loan on 8 September 2006.[10] He made his debut for the club in Tiverton's 2–1 victory againstWealdstone a day after signing.[11] The loan agreement was extended for a further five months, and Laird scored his first goal for the club in a 4–1 defeat atHemel Hempstead Town on 5 April 2007.[12] Two days later, he scored twice in Tiverton's 3–1 home win againstCirencester Town, scoring both of his goals in the space of four minutes to give Tiverton a two-goal lead.[13] Laird played 21 games for Tiverton during the loan spell, of which 17 were in the league, as he scored four times from a central midfield role.[14] Laird returned to Plymouth ahead of the2007–08 season, and was subsequently handed his Plymouth debut in a 2–1 victory overWycombe Wanderers in theLeague Cup on 14 August 2007, playing the whole match, where he provided the assist for Plymouth's second goal.[15] He did not appear for Plymouth again and was loaned out to nearbyConference Premier clubTorquay United a month later.[16] Laird made his Torquay debut in a 5–2 victory againstKidderminster Harriers atAggborough on 22 September 2007.[17] Although his loan at Torquay was extended on 16 November 2007,[18] he did not make any more first-team appearances for the club,[19] playing just twice for Torquay during the two-month loan spell.[19]
A month after returning to his parent club, Laird was loaned out to anotherConference Premier team in the form ofStevenage Borough on 31 December 2007.[20] He made his Stevenage debut a day later in a 2–1 win overRushden & Diamonds.[21] Laird impressed under managerPeter Taylor and signed on a permanent basis on 1 February 2008, for an undisclosed fee.[22] He played regularly at left-back during the second half of the 2007–08 season,[23] scoring his first goal for Stevenage in a 4–1 victory away atHiston on 4 March 2008, a 35-yard strike into the top right hand corner of the goal.[24] The following season, under the new management ofGraham Westley, Laird played 51 games for theHertfordshire club, scoring three times.[25][26] Laird scored his first goal of the2008–09 season in Stevenage's first win of the season; a 3–1 victory away toBarrow on 30 August 2008.[27] Laird was also a regular in the team'sFA Trophy campaign that season, playing in six FA Trophy matches. He missedthe final atWembley Stadium as a result of being sent-off in the defeat toCambridge United in the Conference Premierplay-off semi-final.[28] In his absence, Stevenage beatYork City 2–0 in the FA Trophy final.[29]
Laird continued to be the club's first-choice left-back throughout the2009–10 season.[30] He scored his first goal of the season in a 2–0 victory over Histon atBridge Road on 31 August 2009.[31] He also scored the winning goal with an 85th-minute strike against local rivalsLuton Town, securing a 1–0 victory atKenilworth Road in the first ever league meeting between the two clubs.[32] His second-half penalty gave Stevenage a 1–0 victory over second-placedOxford United on 30 March 2010; meaning Stevenage moved eight points clear of Oxford at the top of the Conference Premier league table.[33] Laird made 53 appearances as Stevenage won promotion to theFootball League for the first time in their history.[30] The appearance tally was more than any other player for the club during the season,[34] scoring six goals.[34] He was voted as Stevenage's Player of the Year at the end of the season.[35] Upon the conclusion of the season, Laird signed a new two-year contract extension with the Hertfordshire club in May 2010. He was voted as the 2009–10 Young Player of the Year at the National Game Awards.[36] At theFootball Conference's Annual Presentation Dinner, Laird was also named in the Team of the Year, alongside fellow Stevenage defendersRonnie Henry andMark Roberts.[36]
He started in the club's first ever Football League match at the start of the2010–11 season, a 2–2 home draw withMacclesfield Town on 7 August 2010.[37] He scored his first goal of the season in a 2–1 victory againstBurton Albion on 16 October 2010.[38] At the age of 22, Laird captained Stevenage for the first time in their 1–0 loss toHereford United on 8 March 2011.[39] He played 54 games during the 2010–11 season, scoring four goals.[40] This included three appearances in the2010–11 League Two play-offs following Stevenage's sixth-placed finish.[41] Stevenage earned promotion toLeague One aftera 1–0 win against Torquay United atOld Trafford on 28 May 2011, with Laird playing the whole game.[42] Laird's performances in the opening months of the2011–12 season resulted in a "number ofChampionship clubs tracking the player".[43] He finished as the club's second highest goalscorer for the season in their first season in League One, as Stevenage missed out on a third successive promotion following a play-off semi-final defeat.[44] At the end of the season, Laird rejected an improved contract offer and left the club on a free transfer when his contract expired.[45][46] Laird made 245 appearances during his four years with the club, scoring 24 goals.[3]
Laird subsequently signed for League One clubPreston North End on a free transfer on 27 May 2012.[47] The move reunited Laird with manager Graham Westley, who he had been previously managed by at Stevenage.[48] He made his Preston debut in the club's first game of the2012–13 season, playing the whole match in 2–0 home win over Huddersfield Town in the League Cup on 13 August 2012.[49] Laird scored his first goals for the club in a 5–0 win against Hartlepool United atDeepdale on 18 September 2012, scoring twice within the space of three second-half minutes.[50] Described as Preston's "standout performer" in the opening months of the season having scored four times and assisted seven goals from left-back,[5][51] Laird suffered a broken leg following a challenge fromJamal Campbell-Ryce in a home game againstNotts County on 20 November 2012.[52][53] It was later revealed that Laird had broken his left tibia and would miss the remainder of the season.[54] During his recovery, Laird stated that Campbell-Ryce rang him on a weekly basis – "I knew him previously and he's rung me every week to make sure I'm alright. I'm not one to hold grudges anyway and he's been fine. I accept his apology".[55] Laird scored four times in 24 games during his first season with the club.[56]
A year-and-a-half after his sustaining his broken leg, Laird returned to the Preston first-team at the start of the2013–14 season, making his first appearance back when he appeared as a 74th-minute substitute in a 0–0 draw away at Rotherham United on 10 August 2013.[57] He scored his only goal of the season against his former employers, Stevenage, scoring Preston's second goal in a 3–0 win at Deepdale on 14 September 2013.[58] Laird signed a twelve-month contract extension on 17 December 2013, keeping him contracted to the club until the summer of 2015.[59] He made 42 appearances during the season, scoring once, as Preston missed out on promotion back to the Championship after losing in theplay-off semi-finals to Rotherham United.[60][61][62]
Laird remained at Preston for the2014–15 season and was once again a regular at left-back during the season.[63] He scored his first goal of the season in a 2–2 draw withOldham Athletic in the Football League Trophy on 25 November 2014, courtesy of a diving header from ten yards out to open the scoring.[64] Laird scored in Preston's 3–1 home defeat toManchester United in theFA Cup on 16 February 2015, briefly giving Preston the lead when his left-footed shot found the net just after half-time.[65] He played in all three of the club's play-off matches at the end of the season,[63] including in Preston's 4–0 win overSwindon Town inthe final at Wembley Stadium to gain promotion back to the Championship after a four-year absence.[66] At the end of the season, Laird rejected the offer a new contract at Preston,[67] stating – "maybe I felt I would be pushed down the pecking order, maybe I felt I wouldn't have played as often. "There are no hard feelings, the management team have been brilliant to work with".[67] Laird made 108 appearances during his three-year spell at Preston, scoring seven times.[68]
Following his departure from Preston, Laird signed for League One clubScunthorpe United on 11 June 2015, joining on a free transfer and on a three-year deal.[69] He made his Scunthorpe debut on the opening day of the2015–16 season, playing the whole match in a 2–1 defeat away toBurton Albion.[70] Laird scored his first goal for Scunthorpe in a 2–1 victory overShrewsbury Town on 17 October 2015, his header just before the hour mark restoring parity in the match after Scunthorpe had trailed in the first-half.[71] Three days later, on 20 October 2015, he metScott Wiseman's cross with "a powerful left-footed shot" to give Scunthorpe the lead in an eventual 2–1 defeat toGillingham.[72] He made 38 appearances in all competitions that season, scoring twice, as Scunthorpe missed out on the League One play-offs after finishing in seventh position.[73]
Laird did not feature in the majority of Scunthorpe's matches at the start of the2016–17 season,[74] an 85th-minute substitute appearance in a 5–0 home victory against Gillingham served as his only appearance in the opening month of the season.[75] Having found himself out of favour at Scunthorpe, Laird joined fellow League One clubWalsall on loan on 31 August 2016, with the loan agreement initially running until January 2017.[76] He made his Walsall debut in a 2–0 away defeat toNorthampton Town on 10 September 2016.[77] Laird scored his first goal for Walsall in a 2–1 away victory overSheffield United in anEFL Trophy tie on 4 October 2016.[78] His loan deal was extended upon its expiry in January 2017, the new deal running until the end of the season, with Laird stating he was "absolutely delighted" with signing the extension.[79] He added a fourth goal to his season's tally when he scored the winning goal in Walsall's 1–0 victory overChesterfield at theBescot Stadium on 7 March 2017.[80] He made 31 appearances during the loan spell, scoring four goals.[74] Upon his return to Scunthorpe at the end of the season, Laird's contract was terminated by mutual consent in June 2017.[81]
After leaving Scunthorpe United, Laird signed for newly promoted League Two clubForest Green Rovers on 20 June 2017, joining on a two-year contract.[82] He made his Forest Green debut at the start of the2017–18 season, in the club's first ever Football League fixture, a 2–2 home draw withBarnet on 5 August 2017.[83] Laird scored his first goal for Forest Green in a 2–0 win overMorecambe on 20 October 2017, doubling Forest Green's lead with a second-half free-kick.[84] He made 43 appearances in all competitions during the club's first season in League Two, scoring three times.[85]
Having made just one appearance for Forest Green during the first half of the2018–19 season,[86] Laird rejoined League One club Walsall on loan on 17 January 2019.[87] He made his second debut two days later as an 80th-minute substitute in a 3–0 away victory at Gillingham.[88] Laird made seven appearances during the loan spell.[86] He was released by Forest Green Rovers at the end of the 2018–19 season.[89]
Following his departure from Forest Green, Laird joinedSouthern League Premier Division South clubWeston-super-Mare in a player-assistant manager role on 15 June 2019.[90] He made his Weston-super-Mare debut in the club's opening game of the2019–20 season, playing the whole match in a 2–2 draw againstHendon on 10 August 2019.[91] Three days later, Laird scored his first goal for the club, an injury-time penalty to secure Weston-super-Mare a point in a 1–1 away draw atMerthyr Town.[92] He scored his first careerhat-trick in a 6–0 victory overDorchester Town on 12 October 2019.[93] Laird scored 13 times in 30 appearances from a central midfield role before the season was curtailed in March 2020 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[94][95]
Despite being born in England, Laird represented Scotland at youth level, captaining theScotland under-16 team all the way up to under-20 level on 30 occasions.[5][96] He played in all three of Scotland's games in theVictory Shield in 2003, scoring twice, with Scotland finishing as joint winners of the tournament alongside England.[7] He played 36 times across various age groups for Scotland, scoring six goals.[5]
Laird was called up byPaul Fairclough for theEngland C team in April 2009,[97] and subsequently started in England's 1–0 defeat toBelgium under-21 on 19 May 2009.[98]
Laird grew up playing as a left-sidedcentre-back, before being deployed incentral midfield in the early stages of his career.[5] He began playing atleft-back at the start of his time at Stevenage, a position he would ultimately play at for the majority of his professional career.[68] Described as a "marauding, attacking full-back",[51] Laird reached double figures in combined goals and assists in five consecutive seasons from 2008 to 2013.[5][68] After breaking his leg in November 2012, Laird stated he was "never the same player" on his return from injury as he had "lost that injection of pace".[51] He returned to playing in a central midfield role upon playing semi-professionally at Weston-super-Mare.[5]
Laird's father, Craig, was a footballmanager before becoming a college teacher, having previously managedBridgwater Town,Weston-super-Mare andDorchester Town.[99][100][101] He has three brothers, Craig, Jamie and Callum.[102] Craig played soccer at theUniversity of Tampa and also represented England at schoolboy level,[102] whilst both Jamie and Callum have played semi-professional football.[103] Laird'sgrandmother gave him aone pound coin every time he scored a goal.[4]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other[B] | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Plymouth Argyle | 2006–07[104] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007–08[105] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Tiverton Town | SFL Premier Division | 18 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 20 | 4 | ||
| Torquay United | 2007–08[108] | Conference Premier | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Stevenage | 2007–08[23] | Conference Premier | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | |
| 2008–09[25] | Conference Premier | 45 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | 12 | 1 | 60 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10[34][109] | Conference Premier | 44 | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | 58 | 6 | ||
| 2010–11[40] | League Two | 44 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 56 | 4 | |
| 2011–12[110] | League One | 46 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 56 | 9 | |
| Total | 194 | 21 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 1 | 245 | 24 | ||
| Preston North End | 2012–13[111] | League One | 19 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 24 | 4 |
| 2013–14[60] | League One | 34 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 42 | 1 | |
| 2014–15[63] | League One | 31 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7[d] | 1 | 42 | 2 | |
| Total | 84 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 108 | 7 | ||
| Scunthorpe United | 2015–16[73] | League One | 32 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 38 | 2 |
| 2016–17[74] | League One | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 33 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 2 | ||
| Walsall (loan) | 2016–17[74] | League One | 29 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[e] | 1 | 32 | 4 |
| Forest Green Rovers | 2017–18[85] | League Two | 35 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4[e] | 0 | 43 | 3 |
| 2018–19[86] | League Two | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 35 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 44 | 3 | ||
| Walsall (loan) | 2018–19[86] | League One | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Weston-super-Mare | 2019–20[94][95] | SFL Premier Division South | 25 | 11 | 3 | 2 | — | 2 | 0 | 30 | 13 | |
| 2020–21[94][95] | SFL Premier Division South | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 12 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22[94][95] | SFL Premier Division South | 38 | 9 | 4 | 2 | — | 6 | 1 | 48 | 12 | ||
| 2022–23[94][95] | SFL Premier Division South | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 72 | 22 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 93 | 27 | ||
| Career total | 474 | 59 | 45 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 63 | 4 | 591 | 71 | ||
Stevenage
Preston North End
Individual
(data is incomplete for the 2006–07, 2008–09, and 2009–10 seasons)