Introduction
Marley Joseph Watkins (born 17 October 1990) is an English footballer who plays for Barnsley, as a midfielder on the left or right wing.
Personal life
Born in Lewisham in London, Watkins grew up in Swansea in Wales.
Through his parents, he qualifies to play for Wales and France.
Career
Watkins started his career as a youth player at Swansea City but was released and he joined Cheltenham Town in 2008. On 9 August 2008, he made his first senior appearance for the club, playing in the last ten minutes of the 4–2 defeat at Northampton Town. In doing so, he became Cheltenham Town's youngest ever league player. He scored his first professional goal after coming on as a substitute against Northampton in the 2009–10 season.
In September 2010, Watkins joined Conference National side Bath City on loan. He subsequently signed for Bath on a permanent basis in January 2011 after his successful loan spell.
At the start of the 2012–13 season, Watkins signed a one-year deal at Hereford United. Watkins enjoyed a successful start to his Hereford career by winning a 'Player of the Month' award in his first month at the club. He ultimately played 34 league games and scored five goals in his season at Hereford.
In June 2013 it was announced that Watkins would be joining Inverness Caledonian Thistle for the 2013–2014 season. He made his Scottish Premiership debut at Celtic Park on 24 August, coming on as a substitute in a 2–2 draw with Celtic. On 30 May 2015, he opened the scoring for Inverness in the Scottish Cup Final at Hampden Park, as the club secured a 2–1 victory against Falkirk. During Marley's time at Inverness Caledonian Thistle, the club finished in the top 3 to qualify for Europe for the first time in their history, got to the final of the Scottish League Cup and won football's oldest cup competition, the Scottish Cup. Marley scored and assisted one other in the final to help Inverness lift the cup.
Watkins was recently named on standby for the Wales squad to play against Belgium in a Euro 2016 Qualifier.
On 5 June 2015, Watkins signed for League One club Barnsley. In his first season with Barnsley, the club won the Johnstone Paint Trophy against Oxford, and won promotion via the play offs to gain promotion to the Championship. Marley scored 8 and got 9 assists in 42 games during his debut season with Barnsley. Additionally, Watkins scored in his Championship debut against Ipswich and assisted another with Barnsley losing the game, 4–2.
Career statistics
- As of 30 May 2015
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| Cheltenham Town | 2008–09 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| 2009–10 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1 | |
| 2010–11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Subtotal | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 1 | |
| Bath City (loan) | 2010–11 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 3 |
| Bath City | 2011–12 | 37 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 5 |
| Hereford United | 2012–13 | 34 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 5 |
| Inverness CT | 2013–14 | 26 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 1 |
| 2014–15 | 33 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 9 | |
| Subtotal | 59 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 10 | |
| Total | 178 | 22 | 13 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 196 | 24 | |
Honours
- Inverness Caledonian Thistle
- Scottish Cup : 2014–15
- Barnsley F.C.
- Football League Trophy: 2015–16
- League One play-offs: 2015–16
- name = "cup win"
- Cartwright, Phil (3 April 2016). "Barnsley 3–2 Oxford United". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
- Stevens, Rob (29 May 2016). "Barnsley 3–1 Millwall". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 May 2016.