David Atkinson (footballer)

David Atkinson

Personal information
Full name	David Atkinson [1]
Date of birth	(1993-04-27) 27 April 1993 (age 31) [1]
Place of birth	Shildon, [1] England
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) [2]
Position(s)	Defender
Youth career
20??–2014	Middlesbrough
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014–2015	Middlesbrough	0	(0)
2015	→ Hartlepool United (loan)	0	(0)
2015	→ Carlisle United (loan)	7	(0)
2015–2017	Carlisle United	25	(0)
2016–2017	→ Blyth Spartans (loan)
2017	Blyth Spartans
2017	ÍBV	10	(0)
2017–2018	Blyth Spartans	21	(0)
2018	ÍBV	16	(0)
2019	Blyth Spartans	9	(0)
2019–2021	Darlington	12	(0)
2021–	Shildon	50	(2)
International career
2008–2009	England U16	4	(0)
2010	England U17	2	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 15:10, 6 March 2023 (UTC)

David Atkinson (born 27 April 1993) is an English footballer who plays as a defender for Northern League Division One club Shildon. He played in the Football League for Carlisle United.

Club career

Atkinson joined Middlesbrough's academy as an under-nine. ^[3] He was a member of the Middlesbrough under-15 squad that won the English qualifying competition for the 2007–08 Manchester United Premier Cup, ^[4] and took up a two-year scholarship with the club in 2009. ^[5] After the first twelve months, he was given his first professional contract, of four years; at that time, he was recovering from a stress fracture in his back, ^[4] and his progress was later disrupted by a serious knee injury. ^[6] He went on to captain Middlesbrough's under-21 team, ^[7] and in the second half of the 2013–14 season, was a regular member of the first-team squad. After eight consecutive Championship matches on the bench, Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka said that Atkinson was training well and was in his thoughts for a debut, but would not force him into a "difficult game" that might adversely affect his confidence. ^[8] He remained unused, and in September 2014, still without having played first-team football for Middlesbrough, joined League Two club Hartlepool United on a month's loan. ^[9] He lost time to a hamstring injury, the manager who signed him, Colin Cooper, resigned in the middle of his loan spell, and he made no senior appearances. ^{[10] [11]}

He spent time on trial with League One club Walsall in February 2015, brought in by manager Dean Smith to check him out ahead of a possible summer signing –according to Smith, "He is someone [Middlesbrough] have thought highly of, but has not quite burst onto the first team scene as they would have liked. ^[12]  –before signing for Carlisle United of League Two on loan on 26 March. ^[13] It was with Carlisle that he finally made his Football League debut, on 28 March in a 2–1 loss away to Oxford United, and he made six more appearances. ^[11] At the end of a 2014–15 season in which Middlesbrough's under-21s won the U21 Premier League Second Division title and added the North Riding Senior Cup, beating Guisborough Town in the final, Atkinson was not offered a new contract. ^[14]

On 4 June 2015, Atkinson signed a short-term deal with Carlisle United. ^[7] Six months later, he extended his contract until June 2017. ^[15]

On 1 December 2016, Atkinson joined Blyth Spartans on loan for a month. ^[16] The loan was initially extended, and then made permanent when Atkinson left Carlisle by mutual consent. ^[17] He also spent time playing in Iceland for ÍBV, with which he won the 2017 Icelandic Cup and played in the UEFA Europa League. ^{[18] [19]}

Atkinson joined Darlington for the 2019–20 season, ^[20] but ankle ligaments damaged during pre-season restricted his appearances. ^[21] He left the club after the abandoned 2020–21 National League North season, ^{[22] [23]} and signed for Shildon. ^[24]

International career

Atkinson made his debut for the England under-16 team on 28 November 2008. ^[25] He played the first half of the 2–0 win against Scotland that confirmed England as winners of that year's Victory Shield. ^[26] Although not originally selected for the Montaigu Tournament in 2009, he came into the squad after Nico Yennaris withdrew, ^[27] and started two of the three group matches and played the whole of the final, in which England U16 beat Germany on penalties to successfully defend their title. ^{[25] [28]}

Atkinson was named in the England under-17 squad for matches against France, Ukraine and hosts Portugal at the Algarve Tournament in February 2010. ^[29] He played in two matches to help England finish as runners-up. ^[30] He was placed on standby for the England under-18s' friendly against Italy in April 2011, but was not needed. ^{[31] [32]}

Career statistics

As of match played 4 March 2023

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [lower-alpha 1]		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Middlesbrough	2013–14 [33]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2014–15 [11]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
Hartlepool United (loan)	2014–15 [11]	League Two	0	0	—		—		0	0	0	0
Carlisle United (loan)	2014–15 [11]	League Two	7	0	—		—		—		7	0
Carlisle United	2015–16 [34]	League Two	24	0	4	0	1	0	0	0	29	0
	2016–17 [35]	League Two	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
	Total		32	0	4	0	2	0	0	0	38	0
Blyth Spartans	2016–17	Northern Premier League (NPL) Premier Division
ÍBV	2017 [19]	Úrvalsdeild	10	0	2	0	—		—		12	0
Blyth Spartans	2017–18 [2]	National League North	21	0			—				21	0
ÍBV	2018 [19] [2]	Úrvalsdeild	16	0	1	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 2]	0	19	0
Blyth Spartans	2018–19 [2]	National League North	9	0			—				9	0
Darlington	2019–20 [2]	National League North	7	0	0	0	—		0	0	7	0
	2020–21 [2] [36]	National League North	5	0	3	0	—		0	0	8	0
	Total		12	0	3	0	—		0	0	15	0
Shildon	2021–22 [37]	NPL East Division	29	1	3	1	—		4 [lower-alpha 3]	0	36	2
	2022–23 [38]	NPL Division One East	21	1	2	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 4]	0	26	1
	Total		50	2	5	1	—		6	0	61	3
Career total			150	2	15	1	2	0	8	0	175	3

1. Includes FA Cup, Icelandic Cup
2. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
3. Two appearances in FA Trophy, one in Durham Challenge Cup, one in Northern Premier League play-offs
4. One appearance in FA Trophy, one in Durham Challenge Cup

References

1. "David Atkinson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
2. "D. Atkinson". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
3. "Future's bright for new recruits". Middlesbrough F.C. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012.
4. "Boro sign up six teens". Teesside Live. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
5. "West Ham step up chase for Boro defender Bates". Teesside Live. 4 June 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
6. "David Atkinson". Middlesbrough F.C. Archived from the original on 24 February 2013.
7. Taylor, Jonathon (4 June 2015). "David Atkinson signs for Carlisle United after being released by Boro". Teesside Live. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
8. "Aitor Karanka: No rush for David Atkinson's Middlesbrough debut". BBC Sport. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
9. Taylor, Jonathon (25 September 2014). "Boro Under-21s captain David Atkinson joins Hartlepool United on loan". Teesside Live. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
10. "Caretaker duo to ring changes". ESPN. PA Sport. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
11. "Games played by David Atkinson in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
12. "Walsall trio declared fit for Bradford trip". Express & Star. Wolverhampton. 19 February 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
13. "Carlisle United sign David Atkinson and Jeffrey Monakana". BBC Sport. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
14. Taylor, Jonathon (27 May 2015). "Five players who could be released by Boro this summer". Teesside Live. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
15. "Contracts: Defender signs contract extension". Carlisle United F.C. 30 December 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
16. Maxwell, Glen (1 December 2016). "Arrival: Spartans secure Atkinson loan deal". Blyth Spartans A.F.C. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
17. "Defender moves on by mutual consent". Carlisle United F.C. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
18. "David Atkinson: Europa League football was a big factor in my return to Iceland". English Players Abroad. 3 September 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
19. "Leikmaður: David Atkinson" [Player: David Atkinson] (in Icelandic). Football Association of Iceland. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
20. Simpson, Ray (5 June 2019). "David Atkinson: a move to Darlington is perfect for me". Darlington F.C. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
21. Stoddart, Craig (31 January 2020). "Darlington's Atkinson relieved to be back in action". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
22. "National League North and South clubs vote to null and void season but National League to continue". Sky Sports. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
23. Simpson, Ray (4 May 2021). "Luke Charman agrees extension to his current contract". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
24. "David Atkinson joins the Railwaymen". Shildon A.F.C. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
25. "Match results under 17: 1982–2010". England Football Online. Chris Goodwin & Glen Isherwood. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
26. Lavery, Glenn (1 December 2008). "Fans come out in force". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 20 April 2009.
27. "England U16 Squad". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 20 June 2009.
28. Veevers, Nicholas (13 April 2009). "England retain Montaigu title". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 20 June 2009.
29. "Boro duo on England duty in Algarve". League Football Education. 5 February 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
30. "Match results under 17: 1982–2010". England Football Online. Chris Goodwin & Glen Isherwood. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
31. Fraser, Paul (29 March 2011). "McDonald believes Boro are on the up". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
32. "Match results under 18: 2010–2020". England Football Online. Chris Goodwin & Glen Isherwood. 26 June 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
33. "Games played by David Atkinson in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
34. "Games played by David Atkinson in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
35. "Games played by David Atkinson in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
36. For FA Cup 2nd qualifying round: Simpson, Ray (3 October 2020). "Quakers win penalty shootout to go through in Cup". Darlington F.C. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
37. "Shildon – Appearances – David Atkinson – 2021–2022". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
38. "Shildon – Appearances – David Atkinson". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 6 March 2023.

External links

• David Atkinson at Soccerbase
• David Atkinson at Soccerway