Brad Young (footballer)

Brad Young

Personal information
Full name	Bradley Jamie Ethan Young [1]
Date of birth	(2003-01-06) 6 January 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth	Solihull, England
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.76 m) [2]
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	The New Saints
Number	23
Youth career
	West Bromwich Albion
2017–2021	Aston Villa
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2021–2023	Aston Villa	0	(0)
2021–2022	→ Carlisle United (loan)	14	(0)
2022–2023	→ Ayr United (loan)	11	(2)
2023–	The New Saints	25	(22)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:57, 21 April 2024 (UTC)

Bradley Jamie Ethan Young (born 6 January 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Cymru Premier club The New Saints.

Young is a product of the Aston Villa Academy, being part of the side that won the 2020-21 FA Youth Cup, he also spent time with West Bromwich Albion as a junior. He made one senior appearance for Aston Villa in the FA Cup in 2021 and played senior football on loan at Carlisle United and Ayr United before moving to The New Saints in 2023.

Career

Early career

Having been on the books of West Bromwich Albion before being released at age 12, he joined Aston Villa after a spell playing MJPL football for FDC academy and became a regular at U18 and then U23 level. ^{[3] [2]} He made his senior debut as a substitute in a 4–1 FA Cup defeat to Liverpool on 8 January 2021. ^[4]

Young was a part of the Aston Villa team that won the 2020-21 FA Youth Cup - scoring a penalty in the 2–1 final victory over Liverpool U18s on 24 May 2021, he scored six goals across the tournament, only bettered by his teammate Carney Chukwuemeka's seven. ^{[5] [6]}

On 7 July 2021, he was one of several young players who signed a new contract with Aston Villa. ^[7]

Loans

On 16 August 2021, Young joined League Two team Carlisle United on a season-long loan. ^[8] He made his football league debut the following day, as a substitute in a goalless draw against Port Vale. ^[9] On 28 September 2021, Young scored his first goals for Carlisle United - scoring twice in a 2–0 victory over Everton U21 in the EFL Trophy. ^[10] Young returned to Aston Villa from his loan early on 4 January 2022, after the two clubs mutually agreed that Young would not be guaranteed enough playing time in the upcoming months. ^[11]

On 1 September 2022, Young joined Scottish Championship club Ayr United on a season-long loan. ^[12] Young scored his first professional league goal on 17 September, in a 3–2 defeat to Raith Rovers. ^[13] On 17 January 2023, Young's loan was cut short and he returned to Aston Villa. ^[14]

On 16 June 2023, Young was released by Aston Villa. ^[15] In July 2023, Young had a trial with EFL League One club Exeter City, however the club opted against offering him a contract. ^{[16] [17]}

The New Saints

On 2 September 2023, Young signed for Cymru Premier club The New Saints. ^[18] On 8 September, Young made his debut for the club, coming off the bench to score in a 3–0 win over Hibernian U21 in the Scottish Challenge Cup. ^[19] He made his Welsh league debut on 13 September, in a 0–0 draw against Bala Town. ^[20] On 22 September, Young scored his first league goals for the club, scoring twice in a 5–1 away victory over Cardiff Metropolitan University. ^[21]

On 21 October 2023, Young scored his first career hattrick in a 6–2 league victory over Barry Town United, meaning he had scored 9 goals in his first 10 games in Welsh football. ^[22] On 20 January 2024, Young won the first senior trophy of his career, scoring a goal in a 5–1 victory over Swansea City U21s in the final of the Welsh League Cup. ^[23] On 21 April 2024, The New Saints completed an unbeaten season to win the Cymru Premier. ^[24] Young won the Cymru Premier Golden Boot despite joining the league one month into the season. ^[25] On 9 June, Young was awarded the Cymru Premier Young Player of the Season award. ^[26]

On 9 July 2024, Young scored two goals on his European debut, in a 3–0 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round first leg victory over Dečić. ^[27]

Personal life

Young was seriously injured in June 2020, at the age of 17, after being stabbed three times during a mugging in Elmdon Park, Solihull. ^[28] Young told that doctors were unsure he would survive the stabbing, with them later discussing the possibility that he would have to use a colostomy bag. He made a full recovery and was able to play again for the Aston Villa academy the following season. ^{[29] [30]}

Career statistics

As of match played 9 July 2024 ^[31]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Aston Villa	2020–21	Premier League	0	0	1	0	0	0	–		2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	3	0
	2021–22		0	0	0	0	0	0	–		0	0	0	0
	2022–23		0	0	0	0	0	0	–		1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	1	0
	Total		0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	4	0
Carlisle United (loan)	2021–22	League Two	14	0	2	1	0	0	–		4 [lower-alpha 1]	2	20	3
Ayr United (loan)	2022−23	Scottish Championship	11	2	1	0	1	0	–		1 [lower-alpha 2]	0	14	2
The New Saints	2023–24	Cymru Premier	25	22	3	3	2	1	–		5 [lower-alpha 2]	5	35	29
	2024–25		0	0	0	0	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 3]	2	0	0	1	2
	Total		25	22	3	3	2	1	1	2	5	5	36	31
Career total			50	24	8	4	3	1	1	2	13	7	74	36

1. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
2. Appearances in Scottish Challenge Cup
3. Appearance in UEFA Champions League

Honours

Aston Villa U18

• FA Youth Cup: 2020–21

The New Saints

• Welsh League Cup: 2023–24 ^[23]
• Cymru Premier: 2023–24 ^[24]

Individual

• Cymru Premier Player of the Month: January 2024 ^[32]
• Cymru Premier Golden Boot: 2023–24 ^[25]
• Cymru Premier Young Player of the Season: 2023–24 ^[26]

References

1. "2020/21 Premier League squads confirmed". www.premierleague.com. Premier League. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
2. "Brad Young". www.avfc.co.uk. Aston Villa F.C. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
3. Evans, Gregg. "How Aston Villa built a youth team to 'win it all'". The Athletic . Retrieved 16 August 2021.
4. Chowdhury, Saj (8 January 2021). "Liverpool overcome inexperienced Villa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
5. "Table of top scorers FA Youth Cup 2021". www.besoccer.com. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
6. Preece, Ashley (24 May 2021). "Aston Villa vs Liverpool FA Youth Cup final LIVE updates". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
7. "Young Lions sign new contracts". Aston Villa Football Club. 7 July 2021. Archived from the original on 7 July 2021. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
8. "Brad Young joins Carlisle United on loan". Aston Villa Football Club. 16 August 2021. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
9. Colman, Jon (17 August 2021). "Carlisle United extend unbeaten start with goalless draw at Port Vale". The Cumberland News. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
10. Colman, Jon (28 September 2021). "Carlisle United 2 Everton U21s 0: Aston Villa loanee Brad Young on target twice in front of 875 crowd in Papa John's Trophy". News and Star. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
11. "LOAN: Forward returns to Villa". www.carlisleunited.co.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
12. "Brad Young Joins on Loan". Ayr United FC. 1 September 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
13. "Brown late winner gives Raith win over Ayr United". BBC Sport. 17 September 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
14. "Indiana Vassilev completes MLS move". Aston Villa Football Club. 17 January 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
15. "Premier League clubs publish 2022/23 retained lists". www.premierleague.com. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
16. "Match Report: Tiverton Town 0 City 1". www.exetercityfc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
17. Mail, Harry (13 July 2023). "Exeter City decide not to sign departed Coventry City and Aston Villa pair after trials". The72. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
18. Wood, Sam (2 September 2023). "More deadline day business, as Brad Young puts pen to paper on a deal with The New Saints". TNSFC. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
19. "Hibernian U21 0 The New Saints FC 3". Sky Sports. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
20. "Bala Town 0-0 The New Saints (13 Sep, 2023) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
21. "Cardiff MU vs. The New Saints - 22 September 2023 - Soccerway". uk.soccerway.com. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
22. Bennett, George (23 October 2023). "More to come from TNS striker Brad Young insists Craig Harrison". www.shropshirestar.com. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
23. "TNS clinch cup final victory over Swansea U21s". BBC Sport. 20 January 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
24. "The New Saints complete unbeaten Welsh league season with 30 wins, two draws". The Straits Times. 22 April 2024. ISSN   0585-3923 . Retrieved 21 April 2024.
25. "Cymru Premier Top Scorers". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
26. "Cymru Premier: Sion Bradley wins player of the season award". BBC Sport. 9 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
27. UEFA.com. "The New Saints vs Dečić: UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Qualif. 1". UEFA.com. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
28. "Promising Aston Villa player stabbed in Solihull park". Scorers. 2 June 2020. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
29. Preece, Ashley (9 January 2021). "Louie Barry and his teenage teammates could save Aston Villa millions". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
30. Wathan, Chris (26 April 2024). "Brad Young: Golden Boot who almost lost his life in knife attack". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
31. Brad Young at Soccerway. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
32. "January's Player and Manager of the Month winners". Cymru Football. 13 February 2024. Retrieved 23 February 2024.