Anthony Malbon

Anthony Jordan Malbon (born 14 October 1991) is an English footballer who plays for Northern Premier League Division One South club Kidsgrove Athletic.

Anthony Malbon
Personal information
Full name Anthony Jordan Malbon[1]
Date of birth (1991-10-14) 14 October 1991
Place of birth Sneyd Green, Stoke-on-Trent, England
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Club information
Current team
 Kidsgrove Athletic
Youth career
Derby County
2008–2009 Port Vale
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2010 Port Vale 3 (0)
2010 → Leek Town (loan) 3 (2)
2010 → Newcastle Town (loan) 3 (2)
2010–2011 Leek Town 25 (10)
2011–2012 Newcastle Town 26 (17)
2012–2014 Kidderminster Harriers 96 (33)
2014 Stalybridge Celtic 4 (0)
2014– Kidsgrove Athletic
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:04, 8 January 2015 (UTC)

He played for Port Vale between 2009–10, before he signed with Leek Town in summer 2010. He moved on to Newcastle the following year. He also played on loan for both Leek and Newcastle during his time at Vale. In January 2012, he moved up three divisions to play for Conference side Kidderminster Harriers. He was called up to the England C squad in May 2012, but did not win a cap. He was named on the Conference Team of the Year for the 2012–13 season. He switched to Stalybridge Celtic in June 2014, and the joined Kidsgrove Athletic in December 2014.

Club career

Early career

Malbon joined Port Vale as a youngster from Derby County in February 2008.[3] He made his Football League debut as a substitute in a 2–1 win over Barnet on 2 May 2009.[4] This came after picking up the club's Youth Player of the Year award the previous week.[5] During the 2008–09 season, he scored 23 goals in the Youth league,[6] and he was voted Youth Player of the Year by the Port Vale management.[7] In February 2010 Malbon Joined Leek Town of the Northern Premier League Division One South for three games on a work experience deal.[8] He scored a brace on his debut.[9] He was offered his first (one year) professional contract at Vale Park at the end of the season.[10]

In the 2010–11 pre-season, manager Micky Adams was pleased with Malbon's development, having witnessed the youngster score in two successive friendlies.[11] However Malbon purposefully avoided a pre-season trip to Ireland by failing to produce a passport as he did not want to take part in the intense running sessions Adams had planned for the squad; this led to him being dropped form the squad by Adams.[12] The "Valiants" denied Leek the opportunity to sign the youngster permanently.[13] In October 2010, Malbon went on loan to Newcastle Town,[14] and impressed enough to earn an extension to the loan.[15] In November 2010, Malbon left Port Vale by mutual consent.[16] He immediately signed with Leek Town, rather than Newcastle Town.[17] His scoring record at Leek attracted attention from Conference clubs.[18] However a trial at Stockport County was ended after manager Ray Mathias was replaced by Dietmar Hamann.[19] Malbon subsequently signed a one-year deal with Newcastle Town.[19][20]

Kidderminster Harriers

Boasting a prolific scoring record with Newcastle in 2011–12, Malbon was signed by Conference National side Kidderminster Harriers on an eighteen-month contract in January 2012; Kidderminster paid Newcastle Town an initial £7,000 for his services.[21] Manager Steve Burr thanked the "Castle" for allowing the deal, and stated that "he comes across as a lad who really wants the opportunity to come and succeed here, and who is hungry to do that."[22] He made his debut from the bench on 21 January, netting the first goal of a 2–0 win at Alfreton Town.[23] On 28 April, he had to be airlifted from the pitch at Aggborough after he "suffered a significant blow to his head and neck and was unconscious for a couple of minutes."[24]

He signed a new two-year contract in March 2013, having hit a streak of 11 goals in 12 games to send Harriers to the top of the table.[25] Malbon and strike partner Michael Gash finished the 2012–13 season as the division's joint-third highest scorers with 19 goals, helping Kidderminster to secure a play-off place with a second-place finish.[26] At the end of the season he was voted onto the Conference Team of the Year, alongside teammates Lee Vaughan and Josh Gowling.[27] He found goals more difficult to come by in the 2013–14 season as new manager Andy Thorn switched to a one striker system, leaving Malbon to sometimes feature from the bench or in midfield.[28]

Stalybridge to Kidsgrove

Malbon signed with Conference North club Stalybridge Celtic after having his contract with Kidderminster Harriers mutually terminated in June 2014.[29] He made five appearances, scoring once, before he was released and joined Kidsgrove Athletic in December 2014. The "Grove" finished 20th in the Northern Premier League Division One South in 2014–15, 15th in 2015–16, and 12th in 2016–17. He rejected a move up a division to join Nantwich Town in February 2016.[30] He scored 25 goals in the 2016–17 season.[31] However he missed large parts of the 2017–18 season due to injury, whilst also began to adapt his game to become more of a target-man forward.[32] Kidsgrove finished tenth in the 2018–19 season, with Malbon scoring 32 goals.[33] He agreed a new two-year deal with the club in March 2020, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in England.[33] At that stage he was on 147 goals for Kidsgrove, making him the highest goalscorer in the club's history.[34]

International career

He was called up to the England C squad for the game against Russia on 5 June 2012.[35] He was again called up by Paul Fairclough for the England C game against Bermuda on 10 May 2013.[36] However he never won a cap as he pulled out of both trips to go on 'lad's holidays' to Magaluf and Benidorm; he made an excuse to miss the Russia game and e-mailed Fairclough to inform him he was retired from international duty for the trip to Bermuda.[37]

Statistics
As of 1 January 2015.
Club Season Division League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Port Vale2008–09[38]League Two1000000010
2009–10[38]League Two0000000000
2010–11[39]League Two2000000020
Total 3000000030
Leek Town2009–10Northern Premier League Division One South3200000032
2010–11Northern Premier League Division One South25100000002510
Total 28120000002812
Newcastle Town2010–11Northern Premier League Division One South3200000032
2011–12Northern Premier League Division One South26173700663530
Total 29193700663832
Kidderminster Harriers2011–12[40][41]Conference National178000000178
2012–13[41][42]Conference Premier461921002[lower-alpha 1]05020
2013–14[41][43]Conference Premier33641001[lower-alpha 1]0387
Total 963362001010335
Stalybridge Celtic2014–15[41]Conference North4011000051
Career total[lower-alpha 2] 160641010007617780
  1. Appearance/s in the FA Trophy.
  2. Statistics for Kidsgrove Athletic not recorded.

Honours
Individual
  • Conference Premier Team of the Year: 2012–13

References
  1. "Anthony Malbon". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  2. "FootballSquads - Port Vale - 2010/11". www.footballsquads.co.uk. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  3. "Chelsea end Vale Youth Cup dream". BBC Sport. 27 February 2008. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
  4. "Barnet 1–2 Port Vale". BBC Sport. 2 May 2009. Retrieved 2 May 2009.
  5. "Player of the Year – Winners". Official Port Vale website. 27 April 2009. Archived from the original on 30 April 2009. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  6. Shaw, Steve; Daniel Milligan (30 November 2010). "Port Vale: We're happy to be top dogs now, says hot-shot Richards". The Sentinel. Retrieved 30 November 2010.
  7. "Player of the Year Awards". port-vale.co.uk. 10 May 2011. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
  8. "Football: Rutter proves he has class to make higher grade". The Sentinel. 5 February 2010. Retrieved 7 February 2010.
  9. Reynolds, Steve (6 February 2010). "Carlton Crash to Malbon Magic". Leen Town. Retrieved 12 February 2010.
  10. "Trio Awarded Pro Contracts". Port Vale Official Website. 28 April 2010. Archived from the original on 3 May 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  11. "Port Vale manager Micky Adams happy with youngsters". BBC Sport. 12 July 2010. Archived from the original on 15 July 2010. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  12. "Anthony Malbon: Why the end of Port Vale spell started to make him hate football". VAVEL. 15 April 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  13. "Football: Leek Town fail in bid to reinforce struggle squad". The Sentinel. 24 September 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  14. "Football: Castle boss banking on another cup shock". The Sentinel. 12 October 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  15. Shaw, Steve (13 November 2010). "Port Vale: Micky Adams plays down concerns over Vale's lack of goals". The Sentinel. Retrieved 13 November 2010.
  16. "Malbon Released by Mutual Consent". port-vale.co.uk. 19 November 2010. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2010.
  17. "Malbon Back at Harrison Park". pitchero.com. 20 November 2010. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
  18. "Non-league football: Fitton signs on for Leek Town". The Sentinel. 21 June 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  19. Smith, Peter (11 July 2011). "Port Vale: Big Ben strikes again to earn Vale victory". The Sentinel. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  20. "Stoke City: Potters prepare to face neighbours Newcastle for 30th time". The Sentinel. 19 July 2011. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  21. "Kidderminster Harriers sign striker Anthony Malbon". BBC Sport. 20 January 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  22. "Burr: Malbon Wants His Chance". harriers.co.uk. 20 January 2012. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  23. "Alfreton Town 0 – 2 Kidderminster". BBC Sport. 21 January 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  24. "Injured Kidderminster Harriers player airlifted from pitch". BBC News. 28 April 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
  25. "Kidderminster Harriers: Top scorer Anthony Malbon signs new deal". BBC Sport. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  26. "English Conference Stats: Top Goal Scorers - 2012-13". ESPN. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  27. "Conference Premier Awards & News from the AGM". footballconference.co.uk. Archived from the original on 19 April 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
  28. "Sneyd Green forward Ant Malbon is heading to Sunderland". The Sentinel. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  29. "Anthony Malbon leaves Kidderminster Harriers to join Stalybridge Celtic". Express & Star. 30 June 2014. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  30. Hannah, Jim (18 February 2016). "Evo-Stik League: Kidsgrove Athletic striker Anthony Malbon turns down move to Premier Division". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  31. "Scorers 2016/17". KAFC ONLINE. Archived from the original on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  32. Popat Popat, Shahed. "Anthony Malbon hoping for cup success and improvements in team - News - Kidsgrove Athletic FC". www.kidsgroveathleticfc.com. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  33. Hannah, Jim (23 March 2020). "Anthony Malbon agreed new deal with Kidsgrove Athletic". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  34. Hannah, Jim (26 March 2020). "Kidsgrove Athletic striker looking forward to working with new manager". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  35. "England honours for ex-Vale striker Malbon". The Sentinel. 7 May 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  36. Coney, Steven (10 May 2013). "16 Lions Named For Bermuda Trip". The Non League Football Paper - Daily football news. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  37. "Grassroots Gossip: Episode 6 - Anthony Malbon - Grassroots Gossip Podcast". Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  38. "Games played by Anthony Malbon in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  39. "Games played by Anthony Malbon in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  40. "Games played by Anthony Malbon in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
  41. Anthony Malbon at Soccerway
  42. "Games played by Anthony Malbon in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
  43. "Games played by Anthony Malbon in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
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