Liam Graham

Liam Matthew Graham (born 14 August 1992) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays for Auckland City and the New Zealand national team.

For the South African cricketer, see Liam Graham (cricketer).

Liam Graham
Personal information
Full name Liam Matthew Graham
Date of birth (1992-08-14) 14 August 1992
Place of birth Melbourne, Australia
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Right back
Youth career
2010–2012 Vicenza
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2013 Ascoli 1 (0)
2014–2015 Monza 0 (0)
2014–2015 → Pro Patria (loan) 5 (0)
2015–2017 Chesterfield 4 (0)
2016 →Whitehawk (loan) 15 (0)
2017 Auckland City 4 (0)
National team‡
2011 New Zealand U20 1 (0)
2016– New Zealand 4 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 09:36, 9 April 2018 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 8 October 2016

Graham was born in Melbourne, Australia. He played youth football with Vicenza before making his professional debut with Ascoli in 2013. In 2014, Graham signed with Monza and subsequently played for Pro Patria on loan.

Early life

Graham was born in Melbourne, Australia, but spent his youth moving throughout Australia, Singapore, New Zealand and Japan.[1] He started playing football aged five.[2]

Club career

Vicenza

Graham signed for Serie B club Vicenza in 2010 after an eight-day trial with the side.[3] He played two seasons for the side's youth team in the Campionato Nazionale Primavera.[1]

Ascoli

On 10 August 2012, Graham signed a senior contract with Ascoli.[4] He made his competitive debut for the side in a loss to Hellas Verona in the 2012–13 Serie B, coming on for Róbert Feczesin after 77 minutes.[5]

Graham missed the 2013–14 season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament at the beginning of the season and was left without a contract. After his recovery, he spent the final months of the season training with Savona.

Monza

In 2014, Graham signed with Monza before being loaned out to Pro Patria in the Lega Pro.[2] Graham's debut came in September 2014, starting in a 2–0 loss to Südtirol.[6]

Chesterfield

In October 2015, Graham joined Football League One club Chesterfield.[7] He joined National League South Whitehawk on loan in March 2016.[8] Graham suffered another anterior cruciate ligament knee injury in November 2016, which kept him out for the remainder of the season.

Auckland City

Graham returned to New Zealand in September 2017, signing with Auckland City.[9]

International career

In April 2011, Graham was called up to the New Zealand U-20 squad for the 2011 OFC U-20 Championship.[3] He made his debut off the bench in a group stage win over Solomon Islands, coming on for Marco Rojas after 79 minutes.[10] New Zealand won the tournament, beating Solomon Islands in the final and qualifying for the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup.[11]

In September 2016, Graham received his first call-up to the New Zealand national team for a tour of North America.[12] He made his debut in a 2–1 friendly loss to Mexico.[13]

Career statistics
As of match played 27 September 2016[14]
Club Season Division League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Ascoli2012–13Serie B 10----0010
Monza2014–15Lega Pro 00----0000
Pro Patria (loan)2014–15Lega Pro 50----0050
Chesterfield2015–16League One 0000000000
2016–17League One 5010001070
Whitehawk (loan)2015–16National League South 150000000150
Career total260100010280

Honours

International
New Zealand national football team

See also

References
  1. Adam Howard (1 August 2013). "Liam's Italian Job". RobbieStriker.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  2. "Liam Graham "My injury made me stronger and better"". Genova International Soccer School. 11 December 2014.
  3. Michael Brown (17 April 2011). "Soccer: A professional approach". The New Zealand Herald.
  4. "August signings: Liam Graham at Ascoli Calcio". Genova International Soccer School. 11 August 2012. Archived from the original on 9 March 2015.
  5. "Ascoli Picchio vs. Hellas Verona 0 – 5". Soccerway. 14 March 2014.
  6. "Südtirol vs. Pro Patria 2 – 0". Soccerway. 27 September 2014.
  7. "Spireites: Kiwi defender signs after trial". Derbyshire Times. 26 October 2015. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  8. "Graham Heads to Whitehawk". Chesterfield FC Official website. 14 March 2016. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  9. "Auckland City sign All Whites defender Liam Graham". Stuff.co.nz. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  10. "Solomon Islands – New Zealand 0:3" (PDF). Oceania Football Confederation. 23 April 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2011.
  11. "Soccer: Junior All Whites reach World Cup". The New Zealand Herald. 29 April 2011.
  12. "Football: Winston Reid returns for All Whites". The New Zealand Herald. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  13. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. "L. Graham". Soccerway. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  15. "Solomon Islands – New Zealand 1:3" (PDF). Oceania Football Confederation. 29 April 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2011.
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