Ciaran Gilligan

Last updated

Ciaran Gilligan
Ciaran Gilligan 1412024 (1).jpg
Ciaran Gilligan in 2024.
Personal information
Full name Ciaran Patrick Gilligan [1]
Date of birth (2002-02-05) 5 February 2002 (age 23)
Place of birth Derby, England
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) [2]
Position Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Burton Albion
Number 25
Youth career
–2020 Burton Albion
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2020– Burton Albion 60 (1)
2025–2026 → Aldershot Town (loan) 4 (1)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:50, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

Ciaran Patrick Gilligan (born 5 February 2002) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL League One club Burton Albion. Born in England, he has represented the Republic of Ireland as a youth international.

Contents

Club career

Born in Derby, [2] Gilligan signed his first professional contract with Burton in June 2020. [3] Gilligan joined Burton Albion's academy at under-8 level. [4] He broke into the club's first team in the 2020–21 season, and made his full debut for the club in a 3–3 EFL Trophy draw against Peterborough United on 8 September 2020. [5] [6] He made his first League One start on 17 October 2020 against Bristol Rovers. [5] [4] In doing so, he became the first Burton player to progress through every age group of Burton's youth system before appearing in the first team. [7] In November 2020, Gilligan signed a new contract with the club, valid until summer 2022, with the option for a further year. [4] Over the course of the season, he made 22 appearances, 18 of which were in the league. [5] He missed a number of games during the second half of the 2021–22 season through a hamstring injury. [8] In April 2022, he signed a new contract until summer 2024. [9] He made 10 appearances over the 2021–22 season in total. [10] Gilligan picked up a further hamstring injury in September 2022. [11]

On 10 February 2024, he scored his first senior goal with a "looping shot" in a 2–1 win away at Bristol Rovers. [12]

On 17 October 2025, Gilligan joined National League club Aldershot Town on loan for the remainder of the season. [13] On 16 January 2026, it was announced that Gilligan had returned to Burton Albion following the early conclusion of his loan. [14]

International career

Gilligan was called up to a training camp for the Republic of Ireland under-19 team in May 2021. [15] In March 2022, he was called up to the under-20 team for a fixture against an Ireland Amateurs team. [16] [17]

Career statistics

As of match played 8 November 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeague FA Cup EFL Cup OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Burton Albion 2020–21 [5] League One 18000103 [a] 0220
2021–22 [10] League One8000002 [a] 0100
2022–23 [18] League One6000002 [a] 080
2023–24 [19] League One15110102 [a] 0191
2024–25 [20] League One12010003 [a] 0160
2025–26 [21] League One1000101 [a] 030
Total6012030130781
Aldershot Town (loan) 2025–26 [21] National League 4110—1 [b] 061
Career total6423030140842
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Appearances in the EFL Trophy
  2. ↑ Appearance in the National League Cup

References

  1. ↑ "Notification of shirt numbers: Burton Albion" (PDF). English Football League. 11 September 2020. p. 15. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 "FootballSquads - Burton Albion - 2022/2023". footballsquads.co.uk. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  3. ↑ Crawford, Colston (16 June 2020). "Brewers add four more from the academy on contracts for next season". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Crawford, Colston (17 November 2020). "Gilligan's progress marked by new contract with Brewers". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  6. ↑ Crawford, Colston (12 October 2020). "Gilligan's progress a positive for Brewers in recent weeks". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  7. ↑ Crawford, Colston (22 February 2022). "Gilligan's progress an example to all, says JFH". Staffordshire Live. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  8. ↑ Mail, Harry (28 February 2022). "Burton Albion without midfielder Ciaran Gilligan for Sheffield Wednesday clash". The72. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  9. ↑ Wilkinson, Ash (8 April 2022). "Ciaran Gilligan signs new contract until 2024". Burton Albion F.C. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  11. ↑ Large, Matt (22 September 2022). "Maamria set to lose Gilligan for up to four weeks". Burton Albion F.C. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  12. ↑ "Bristol Rovers 1-2 Burton Albion". BBC Sport. 10 February 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  13. ↑ "NEW SIGNING: Ciaran Gilligan". www.theshots.co.uk. 17 October 2025. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
  14. ↑ "Aldershot Town FC on X". www.x.com. 16 January 2026. Retrieved 16 January 2026.
  15. ↑ Wilkinson, Ash; Slater, Rob (26 May 2021). "Parker, Gilligan and Taylor called up for international training camps and qualifiers". Burton Albion F.C. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  16. ↑ "Ireland U20s side to take on Ireland Amateurs". Football Association of Ireland. 11 March 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  17. ↑ Wilkinson, Ash (15 March 2022). "CIaran Gilligan called up to Ireland U20s". Burton Albion F.C. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  18. ↑ "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  19. ↑ "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  20. ↑ "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
  21. 1 2 "Games played by Ciaran Gilligan in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
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