Joe Neal (footballer)

Joe Loram John Neal (born 22 October 2000) is an English footballer who plays for Southern League Premier Division Central side AFC Sudbury, where he plays as a forward.

Joe Neal
Personal information
Full name Joe Loram John Neal[1]
Date of birth (2000-10-22) 22 October 2000
Place of birth Bury St Edmunds, England[2]
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Biggleswade Town
Youth career
2008–2019 Cambridge United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2021 Cambridge United 0 (0)
2019 → Royston Town (loan) 16 (1)
2019 → Needham Market (loan) 19 (1)
2020 → St Neots Town (loan) 4 (2)
2020 → Biggleswade Town (loan) 8 (5)
2021–2022 Biggleswade Town 26 (11)
2022–2023 St Albans City 52 (2)
2023– AFC Sudbury 0 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14:00, 18 September 2023 (UTC)

Playing career

Cambridge United

Neal joined the Cambridge United Academy in 2008 and signed his first two-and-half-year professional contract in February 2019.[3] He was handed the contract after impressing on loan at Southern League Premier Division Central side Royston Town the previous month.[4] He made his debut in first-team football on 19 January, in a 1–0 defeat at Kettering Town and scored a brace on his home debut three days later in a 4–4 draw with Lowestoft Town.[5] In total he scored three goals in 18 games for Steve Castle's "Crows".[5]

He began the 2019–20 season on loan at Needham Market, having scored a brace for the club in a pre-season friendly.[6] He went on to score five goals in 29 appearances for Richard Wilkins's "Marketmen".[5] He played four games on loan at St Neots Town in January 2020; "Saints" manager Barry Corr said that "I expect him to score goals".[7]

He was loaned out to Biggleswade Town and scored a hat-trick in a 7–4 win over Leiston on 29 September 2020.[8] He was recalled to Cambridge after the 2020–21 season was cancelled at Southern League level due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England,[9] having scored five goals in ten games for Chris Nunn's "Waders".[5] He made his first-team debut for Cambridge on 10 November 2020, coming on as a 79th-minute substitute for Harvey Knibbs in a 1–1 draw with Peterborough United in an EFL Trophy game at the Abbey Stadium; Cambridge went on to lose the penalty shoot-out 3–1.[10]

On 17 May 2021, Cambridge United announced they would not be offering Neal a new contract.[11]

Biggleswade Town

Neal signed permanently for Biggleswade Town on 2 August 2021.[12]

St Albans City

Neal signed permanently for St Albans City on 15 February 2022.[13]

AFC Sudbury

Neal signed permanently for AFC Sudbury on 1 July 2023.[14]

Style of play

Neal is a free-kick specialist.[3]

Statistics
As of match played 10 November 2020
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Cambridge United 2018–19[15]EFL League Two0000000000
2019–20[16]EFL League Two0000000000
2020–21[17]EFL League Two0000001010
Total 0000001010
Royston Town (loan) 2018–19[5]Southern League Premier Division Central161002200183
Needham Market (loan) 2019–20[5]Southern League Premier Division Central19131413[lower-alpha 1]2295
St Neots Town (loan) 2019–20[5]Southern League Division One Central4200000042
Biggleswade Town (loan) 2020–21[5]Southern League Premier Division Central8510001[lower-alpha 2]0105
Career total 4794163526215
  1. 2 appearances and 1 goal in the FA Trophy and 2 appearances and 1 goal in the Suffolk Senior Cup.
  2. Appearance/s in the FA Trophy.

References
  1. "Club list of registered players as at 18th May 2019" (PDF). English Football League. 18 May 2019. p. 72. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  2. "Soccerway". Soccerway. 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  3. "Joe Neal Signs His First Professional Deal With The U's". www.cambridge-united.co.uk. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  4. "- Crows welcome Joe Neal". Royston Town Football Club. 21 January 2019. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  5. "Joe Neal Profile | Aylesbury United FC". www.aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  6. Claydon, Russell. "SOUTHERN LEAGUE: Cambridge United teenage striker joins Needham". Suffolk News. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  7. Georgeson, Andrew (23 January 2020). "St Neots boss Corr believes United loanees have Football League potential". CambridgeshireLive. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  8. "Match Details - Biggleswade Town 7-4 Leiston - PISPC - 29th September 2020 | Aylesbury United FC". www.aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  9. Page, Stephen (30 November 2020). "Cambridge United youth prospects Joe Neal and Ben Worman expected to go back out on loan". InYourArea.co.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  10. "Cambridge United vs Peterborough United on 10 Nov 20 - Match Centre - Cambridge United". www.cambridge-united.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  11. "2021 Retained & Released List". Cambridge United F.C. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  12. "Nunn Busy Building New-Look Biggleswade Squad". Southern-Football-League.co.uk. 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  13. "SAINTS SIGN STRIKER NEAL". stalbanscityfc.com. 15 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  14. "AFC Sudbury bring in former Cambridge United forward Joe Neal from St Albans City". suffolknews.co.uk. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  15. "Games played by Joe Neal in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  16. "Games played by Joe Neal in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  17. "Games played by Joe Neal in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
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