Zach Jeacock

Zachary Anton John Jeacock (born 8 May 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Championship club Birmingham City. He previously spent time on loan at Stourport Swifts of the Midland League Premier Division and National League North club Gloucester City. In international football, he has represented England at under-19 level.

Zach Jeacock
Personal information
Full name Zachary Anton John Jeacock[1]
Date of birth (2001-05-08) 8 May 2001[2]
Place of birth Birmingham, England
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Club information
Current team
 Birmingham City
Number 38
Youth career
2006–2009 West Hagley
2009–2018 Birmingham City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018– Birmingham City 1 (0)
2018 → Stourport Swifts (loan) 2 (0)
2019–2020 → Gloucester City (loan) 13 (0)
National team‡
2019– England U19 2 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:47, 12 September 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 14:47, 12 September 2020 (UTC)

Early life and club career

Jeacock was born in Birmingham[2] and lived in Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire, where he attended Winterfold House preparatory school before moving on to nearby Bromsgrove School.[3][4] He played football as an attacking midfielder or striker for West Hagley F.C. before, a few days after his eighth birthday in May 2009, becoming the then youngest boy to sign for Birmingham City.[3] He went on to compete for Birchfield Harriers as a sprinter,[5] and played football as a defender, only converting to goalkeeper at the age of 14.[4]

Birmingham City

Jeacock took up a two-year scholarship with Birmingham City's Academy in July 2017.[1] He went on to make ten appearances for Birmingham's development squad team in the 2018–19 season as they finished as runners-up in the Professional Development League northern section and lost out to Leeds United on penalties for the overall title.[6][7] He was offered a three-year deal in March 2019,[8] and signed it in May.[9] His apprenticeship went well off the field as well: he achieved top grades in his BTEC course, was selected in League Football Education's Team of the Year, and was described by Birmingham City's Head of Education and Welfare, Mark Sinclair, as "an excellent ambassador for the football club, and somebody who has embraced all aspects of his apprenticeship, with him maximising his opportunities to continually develop himself and others."[10]

In August 2019, Jeacock joined National League North club Gloucester City on loan for the season.[6] He went straight into the starting eleven and in his fourth appearance, after his team came back from 2–0 down to lead 3–2 at Kidderminster Harriers, he saved a late penalty and was named man of the match.[11] He started in 10 of the first 12 matches of the league season – he was away on international duty for the other two – but then a broken hand kept him out until January 2020. After a couple of games for Birmingham U23s, he rejoined Gloucester City and made three more appearances in January before he was recalled by Birmingham to "explore other loan opportunities".[12][13] No such opportunities occurred before the season was abandoned because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He played in the first team's pre-season friendlies before the arrival of Andrés Prieto,[14] who started the first competitive fixture of the season, in the 2020–21 EFL Cup at home to Cambridge United, with Jeacock on the bench.[15] He was selected ahead of the injured Prieto and the newly arrived Neil Etheridge to start the opening match of the Championship season, at home to Brentford on 12 September.[16] He kept a clean sheet as Birmingham won the match 1–0.[17]

International career

Jeacock's first inclusion in an England squad came at under-19 level, for friendly matches in September 2019 in preparation for the Euro qualifiers later that year.[18] He made his debut in the starting eleven for a 3–1 win against Greece on 5 September,[19] and remained an unused substitute for the 1–0 defeat to Germany four days later.[20] He was again part of the squad for friendlies against France and Belgium in October, and started in the second game, a 4–2 win in which he was dispossessed in his area for Belgium's first goal.[21][22] A broken hand prevented him being considered for the qualifiers in November.[23]

Career statistics
As of match played 12 September 2020
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup EFL Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Birmingham City 2018–19[24] Championship000000—00
2019–20[25] Championship000000—00
2020–21[17] Championship100000—10
Total 100000—10
Stourport Swifts (loan) 2018–19[26] Midland League Premier Division2010——30
Gloucester City (loan) 2019–20[12] National League North13000—00130
Career total 16010—00170

    References
    1. "List of Players Registered as Scholars in Accordance with Rule C.3 Between 01/07/2017 and 31/07/2017" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 53. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    2. "Zach Jeacock". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 12 September 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
    3. "Eight-year-old is singing the Blues". Kidderminster Shuttle. 21 May 2009. Archived from the original on 12 September 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    4. Dick, Brian (20 March 2019). "Who are the players retained and released by Birmingham City – the lowdowns". Birmingham Mail. Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    5. "Impressive B&RAC excel in Worcester". Redditch Advertiser. 24 May 2012. Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    6. Gibbon, Tom (18 July 2019). "'Highly rated' Birmingham City goalkeeper signs for Gloucester". GloucestershireLive. Archived from the original on 19 July 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    7. "Report: Leeds United Under-23s 0 Blues Under-23s 0 – Leeds win 4–2 on penalties". Birmingham City F.C. 6 May 2019. Archived from the original on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
    8. "Deals for Blues scholars". Birmingham City F.C. 20 March 2019. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
    9. "First professional contracts for Blues quartet". Birmingham City F.C. 24 May 2019. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    10. Wylie, Jack (10 June 2019). "The 11 – June 2019 (in depth)". League Football Education. Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
    11. Townley, John (14 August 2019). "Birmingham City loan keeper praised as Gloucester City defy odds with comeback win at Kidderminster Harriers". GloucestershireLive. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    12. "Z. Jeacock". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
    13. "Jeacock returns to Blues". Birmingham City F.C. 4 February 2020. Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
    14. "Blues snap up Prieto". Birmingham City F.C. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
    15. "Birmingham City v Cambridge United". BBC Sport. 5 September 2020. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
    16. Dick, Brian (12 September 2020). "Aitor Karanka makes shock goalkeeper selection as Birmingham City take on Brentford". Birmingham Mail. Archived from the original on 12 September 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
    17. "Games played by Zach Jeacock in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
    18. Veevers, Nicholas (30 August 2019). "Young Lions begin U19 EURO preparations with games against Greece and Germany". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 30 August 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    19. Walker, Andy (5 September 2019). "The Young Lions kick-off new season with a win over Greece at St. George's Park". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 5 September 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    20. Veevers, Nicholas (9 September 2019). "Paul Simpson's Young Lions suffer 1–0 defeat against Germany in Haiger". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 6 October 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    21. Veevers, Nicholas (4 October 2019). "England MU19s squad selected for games with France and Belgium in Spain this October". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 7 October 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    22. Veevers, Nicholas (12 October 2019). "Paul Simpson's side end Spainish trip with a good win over Belgium in Marbella". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 13 October 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
    23. "Match Preview: Gloucester City v Bradford (Park Avenue)". Gloucester City A.F.C. 18 October 2019. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
    24. "Games played by Zach Jeacock in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
    25. "Games played by Zach Jeacock in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
    26. "Midland Football League: Stourport Swifts: 2018–19". FA Fulltime. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
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