 Loach withRotherham United in 2014 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Scott James Loach[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-05-27)27 May 1988 (age 36)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Nottingham, England | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[3] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper[4] | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2000 | Ipswich Town | ||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Southwell United | ||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Lincoln City | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004–2006 | Lincoln City | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004 | →Bourne Town (loan) | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004 | →Radcliffe Olympic (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | →Boston Town (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | →Spalding United (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | →Lincoln United (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005 | →Boston Town (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | →Grantham Town (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006–2012 | Watford | 154 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | →Stafford Rangers (loan) | 11 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | →Morecambe (loan) | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008 | →Bradford City (loan) | 20 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | Ipswich Town | 28 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Rotherham United | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014 | →Bury (loan) | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015 | →Peterborough United (loan) | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015 | →Yeovil Town (loan) | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Notts County | 17 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017 | →York City (loan) | 9 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Hartlepool United | 92 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | Barnet | 59 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Chesterfield | 44 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022–2024 | Derby County | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2025 - | Wakefield A.F.C. | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 455 | (0) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | England U21 | 14 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022 | England C | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Scott James Loach (born 27 May 1988) is an English former professionalfootballer who played as agoalkeeper.
Loach played forIpswich Town,Watford andHartlepool United. He had also spentloan spells with non-LeagueStafford Rangers andYork City, andFootball League clubsMorecambe,Bradford City,Bury,Peterborough United,Yeovil Town andNotts County. He dropped into non-league withBarnet andChesterfield before returning to league football withDerby County. He played for England atunder-21 level and in August 2010 was called up to thesenior squad for the first time.
Loach was born inNottingham, Nottinghamshire[5] and grew up inHalstead, Essex.[6]
Loach was a member of the academy atIpswich Town from 1997 to 2000.[6] Loach moved toSouthwell, Nottinghamshire, attendingSouthwell Minster School and playing for local club Southwell United from 2002 to 2003.[6] Loach joinedLincoln City's Centre of Excellence in April 2003, before signing a three-year scholarship in summer 2004.[6]
In August 2004, he joinedBourne Town onloan,[7] making two appearances.[8] In October 2004, he played on loan forRadcliffe Olympic.[9] He joinedBoston Town in January 2005 on loan,[10] which was extended until the end of the 2004–05 season,[11] making 18 appearances.[12] In August 2005, Loach was loaned toSpalding United.[13] In November 2005, he had a one-match spell withLincoln United.[14] He returned to Boston Town later that month,[15] before a period atGrantham Town in March 2006.[16]
Despite not being offered professional terms at Lincoln City, Loach joinedWatford in April 2006. He signed professional terms for Watford in June, with Lincoln City receiving a transfer fee of £50,000.[17] In pre-season 2007 he was on trial atLeeds United with a view to a loan move. Although he played in several pre-season friendlies, the move did not come to fruition due to a transfer embargo as a result of Leeds entering administration.[18]
In September 2007, Loach joinedConference Premier clubStafford Rangers on an initial one-month loan. It was later extended to three months, and Loach made 11 appearances for Stafford.[19] He joinedMorecambe on loan in January 2008, making his debut on 1 January in a 2–1 defeat toStockport County.[20] He made only one more league appearance for Morecambe, during which he saved a penalty fromMacclesfield Town'sMartin Gritton, before he returning to Watford after just two weeks.[19][21] At the end of the month he joinedBradford City, anotherLeague Two club, on loan until the end of2007–08 as replacement forDonovan Ricketts, who was expected to move toQueens Park Rangers until he was refused a work permit.[22][23] Loach made his debut a day after joining Bradford, conceding twice in their 4–2 victory overShrewsbury Town.[24] He followed it up five days later with a clean sheet against Macclesfield Town after he saved a second penalty atMoss Rose in as many months.[25] Loach played the remainder of the season with Bradford, making 20 appearances for the club, who finished in 10th place in League Two.[26]
Loach returned to Watford and made his debut in the 1–0 League Cup win overBristol Rovers.[27] He made his league debut as a substitute on 20 September 2008 when he came on to replaceMart Poom in the fourth minute of a match againstReading. Loach conceded his first Watford goal when the referee and linesman gave a goal instead of a corner, an incident described as aghost goal.[28] The match finished in a 2–2 draw.[29][30] Loach remained a regular in the Watford team for the rest of2008–09, under the management ofAidy Boothroyd,Malky Mackay and laterBrendan Rodgers.[26]
In August 2009,FourFourTwo magazine said Loach was the 'Key Player' in Watford's season and that fans should expect a good season from the young goalkeeper. Newspaper reports linked Loach toTottenham Hotspur as backup toHeurelho Gomes, however asCarlo Cudicini's alleged move toPortsmouth did not go through, no deal was ever made. Loach made a good start to2009–10 including a match winning performance against Plymouth where Watford won 1–0.[31] Loach featured in all 46 Watford league matches that season, and on 5 March 2010 extended his contract with Watford until 2013.[26][32]
Loach retained his place in the team for2010–11, and once again played all 46 league fixtures. However, he subsequently admitted that his form had dipped towards the end of that season.[33] After 130 consecutive league appearances, Loach missed a Championship match for the first time since 2008 on 27 September 2011. He regained the place fromRene Gilmartin a few weeks later. Loach remained in the team until 18 February 2012,[34][35] when he was replaced by loan playerTomasz Kuszczak.[36] Loach returned to the Watford team on their final day of2011–12, in their 2–1 win againstMiddlesbrough.[36][37]
Loach completed what he called his "dream move" by returning to his boyhood club for an undisclosed fee on 19 July 2012.[38][39] He made his debut on 14 August in a 3–1 win againstBristol Rovers in theLeague Cup.[40] He kept his first clean sheet in a 1–0 win against former clubWatford on 21 August.[40]
Ipswich released Loach following2013–14 where he had been replaced in the first team byDean Gerken, having made only 33 appearances for Ipswich.[41]
Loach signed for newly promoted Championship clubRotherham United on 5 June 2014.[42] On 10 November 2014, after only having made four appearances for Rotherham, Loach was loaned out to League One clubBury until 17 January 2015.[43]
On 2 March 2015, following an injury toArtur Krysiak, Loach joined League One clubYeovil Town on a one-month emergency loan.[44]
On 15 July 2015, Loach signed for newly relegated League Two clubNotts County on a two-year contract.[45]
On 23 March 2017, Loach joinedNational League clubYork City on loan until the end of 2016–17,[46] to replace the injuredKyle Letheren.[47] He made his debut two days later, starting in a 1–0 away defeat toDagenham & Redbridge.[48] Loach remained in goal after Letheren returned to fitness,[49] making nine appearances.[50] His final appearance came in a 2–2 home draw withForest Green Rovers on 29 April 2017,[50] which saw York relegated to theNational League North with a 21st-place finish in the National League.[51] He returned to Notts County after this match, as he was not eligible to play for York in the2017 FA Trophy Final.[52] He was subsequently released by Notts County,[53] and ruled out joining York permanently.[54]
On 9 June 2017, Loach signed for newly relegatedNational League clubHartlepool United.[55] At the end of the2017–18 season, Loach won both Fans Player and Players' Player of the Year Awards.[56]
He also won the Players' Player of the Year Award in the2018–19 season.[57]Loach played his 100th consecutive appearance in all competitions for Hartlepool during their 3–2 victory overSalford City in April 2019.[58]
At the end of the 2018–19 season, Loach left Hartlepool following the expiry of his contract.[59]
Loach signed for National League clubBarnet on 14 June 2019.[60] He played 72 times in two seasons before leaving the club at the end of the 2020-21 season.[61]
On 11 June 2021, Loach joined fellow National League clubChesterfield.[62] He was the regular first choice keeper during his only season at the club making 48 appearances.[50]
On 13 July 2022, Loach joined League One clubDerby County on a free transfer.[63] He was used as a back-up keeper as he made three appearances during the2022–23 season, all in theEFL Trophy.[50] He was offered a new contract in May 2023.[64] Loach signed a one-year contract extension on 21 June 2023.[65] Loach spent the2023–24 season as third choice keeper and failed to make a first team appearance, he did feature as an unused substitute when second choice keeperJosh Vickers was unable to play.
On 18 May 2024, it was announced that Loach would leave Derby at the end of his contract on 30 June 2024, after three appearances over two seasons.[66]
On 18 June 2024, Loach announced his retirement from professional football after a twenty-year career and over 500 appearances, Loach retired to concentrate on a coaching career.[67]
On 31 March 2025, Loach signed for Northern Counties East League Division One Wakefield AFC for the remainder of the season.[68]
In February 2009, Loach's good form at club level earned him his firstEngland under-21 international call-up by managerStuart Pearce for afriendly match againstEcuador's senior team in Malaga.[69] Loach made his international debut when he came on as a late replacement forTom Heaton, as England lost 3–2.[70]
In May 2009, Loach was named in the England Under-21 squad for the Under-21 Championships that take place in Sweden in June 2009.[71] He only played in one match asJoe Hart was first choice. He started in goal for England in the 4–0 defeat to Germany in the final of the Under-21 Championships in place of the suspended Hart and was highly culpable for the second German goal.[72] With Hart andJoe Lewis ineligible for the under-21s, Loach began to play regularly thereafter.[73]
On 10 August 2010, afterBen Foster andPaul Robinson withdrew from the squad, Loach received his first call up to the full England squad for the friendly against Hungary.[74] The following month, afterScott Carson withdrew from the England squad due to a bereavement, he received a second call up to the full England squad for the Euro 2012 qualifiers against Bulgaria and Switzerland.[75]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Lincoln City | 2004–05[76] | League Two | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005–06[77] | League Two | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Bourne Town (loan) | 2004–05[8] | United Counties League Premier Division | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| Lincoln United (loan) | 2005–06[78] | Northern Premier League Premier Division | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Grantham Town (loan) | 2005–06[78] | Southern League Premier Division | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Watford | 2006–07[79] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2007–08[80] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2008–09[81] | Championship | 31 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 38 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10[82] | Championship | 46 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 47 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11[83] | Championship | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 46 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12[84] | Championship | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | ||
| Total | 154 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 163 | 0 | ||
| Stafford Rangers (loan) | 2007–08[85] | Conference Premier | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| Morecambe (loan) | 2007–08[80] | League Two | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Bradford City (loan) | 2007–08[80] | League Two | 20 | 0 | — | — | — | 20 | 0 | |||
| Ipswich Town | 2012–13[40] | Championship | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 25 | 0 | |
| 2013–14[86] | Championship | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | ||
| Total | 28 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 33 | 0 | |||
| Rotherham United | 2014–15[87] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |
| Bury (loan) | 2014–15[87] | League Two | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Peterborough United (loan) | 2014–15[87] | League One | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Yeovil Town (loan) | 2014–15[87] | League One | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| Notts County | 2015–16[88] | League Two | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| 2016–17[89] | League Two | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 23 | 0 | ||
| York City (loan) | 2016–17[50] | National League | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| Hartlepool United | 2017–18[50] | National League | 46 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1[c] | 0 | 49 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[50] | National League | 46 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 2[c] | 0 | 51 | 0 | ||
| Total | 92 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 100 | 0 | ||
| Barnet | 2019–20[50] | National League | 35 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 7[d] | 0 | 45 | 0 | |
| 2020–21[50] | National League | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 27 | 0 | ||
| Total | 59 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 72 | 0 | ||
| Chesterfield | 2021–22[50] | National League | 44 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2[e] | 0 | 48 | 0 | |
| Derby County | 2022–23[90] | League One | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2023–24[91] | League One | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 455 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 507 | 0 | ||
England U21
Individual
{{cite news}}:Missing or empty|title= (help)
