Dominic Ball

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Dominic Ball
Dominic Ball 26122024 (5).jpg
Personal information
Full name Dominic Martin Ball [1]
Date of birth (1995-08-02) 2 August 1995 (age 29) [2]
Place of birth Welwyn Garden City, England
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.84 m) [2]
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Leyton Orient
Number 15
Youth career
Watford
2011–2013 Tottenham Hotspur
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2013–2016 Tottenham Hotspur 0 (0)
2015 → Cambridge United (loan) 11 (0)
2015–2016 → Rangers (loan) 21 (0)
2016–2019 Rotherham United 13 (0)
2017 → Peterborough United (loan) 6 (1)
2017–2019 → Aberdeen (loan) 47 (0)
2019–2022 Queens Park Rangers 90 (3)
2022–2024 Ipswich Town 26 (0)
2024– Leyton Orient 17 (0)
International career
2010 Northern Ireland U15 1 (0)
2010–2011 Northern Ireland U16 9 (1)
2011–2012 Northern Ireland U17 8 (2)
2012 Northern Ireland U19 4 (4)
2013 Northern Ireland U21 2 (0)
2014 England U19 1 (0)
2014–2015 England U20 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 February 2025

Dominic Martin Ball (born 2 August 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays for League One club Leyton Orient. He plays primarily as a defensive midfielder but can also play as a centre-back or at full-back.

Contents

Club career

Tottenham and loan moves

A Tottenham Hotspur youth graduate, he joined the club's youth setup in 2011 from Watford [3] and appeared in 17 matches during his first campaign, scoring one goal. [4]

Ball appeared with the under-18s and with the under-21s in 2013–14, and was also named on the bench in a 2–2 UEFA Europa League away draw against Benfica on 20 March 2014. [5] He was also an unused substitute in two further matches for Spurs in 2014–15, a 1–0 home win against Partizan and a 2–1 away win against Hull City.

On 22 January 2015, Ball was loaned to League Two side Cambridge United until the end of the season. [6] He made his professional debut five days later, starting in a 1–1 home draw against Dagenham & Redbridge. [7] He was used mainly as a right-back, making two assists in his time at the club. [8] [9]

On 14 August 2015, Ball signed a season-long loan deal with Scottish Championship club Rangers, reuniting with his Watford academy manager Mark Warburton. [3] At Rangers, he helped them return to the Scottish Premiership as they won the Championship and also picked up honours when they won the Scottish Challenge Cup. [10]

Rotherham United

On 12 August 2016, Ball signed for Championship side Rotherham United on a three-year deal. [11] He was released from his contract at the end of the 2018–19 season, having spent all but five months of his three-year deal out on loan. [12]

Peterborough United loan

On 3 January 2017, Ball joined Peterborough United on loan until the end of the season. He scored his first goal for Peterborough against Shrewsbury on 14 February. [13] The loan ended early on 2 March 2017, after Ball had a disagreement with staff at Peterborough United. [14]

Aberdeen loan

On 31 August 2017, Ball moved on loan to Aberdeen until the end of the season. [15] [16] He joined again for a second season-long loan spell on 18 July 2018. [17]

Queens Park Rangers

Ball signed a two-year deal with Queens Park Rangers on 2 July 2019 upon expiry of his Rotherham United contract. [18]

Ipswich Town

Ball joined Ipswich Town on 1 June 2022 on a two-year deal after the expiration of his contract with Queens Park Rangers. [19] In November 2022, a ruptured meniscus ruled Ball out for a large part of the 2022–23 season. [20] On 3 June 2024, Ipswich announced he would be leaving in the summer when his contract expired. [21]

Leyton Orient

On 10 September 2024, Ball joined League One club Leyton Orient on a deal until the end of the season. [22]

International career

After being capped by Northern Ireland in the under-15, under-16, under-17, under-19, and under-21 levels, Ball switched his allegiance to England in 2013. [4] He has represented England up to U-20 level, making six appearances at that level.

Personal life

Ball was born in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. Ball has an older brother, Matt, who is also a footballer, while his father Tim was academy business manager at Watford. [23] Ball graduated from the Open University in 2021 with a degree in business studies, having studied part-time for six years. [24]

In April 2022, Ball released a book called From Winning Teams to Broken Dreams about the football academy system in England. All proceeds from the book go the charity Sarcoma UK. [25]

Career statistics

As of match played 13 April 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueNational CupLeague CupOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Tottenham Hotspur 2014–15 [26] Premier League 0000000000
2015–16 [27] Premier League0000000000
Total0000000000
Cambridge United (loan) 2014–15 [26] League Two 110000000110
Rangers (loan) 2015–16 [27] Scottish Championship 21050103 [a] 0300
Rotherham United 2016–17 [28] Championship 1300000—130
2017–18 [29] League One 0000101 [b] 020
2018–19 [30] Championship000000—00
Total130001010150
Peterborough United (loan) 2016–17 [28] League One6100000061
Aberdeen (loan) 2017–18 [29] Scottish Premiership 160201000190
Aberdeen (loan) 2018–19 [30] Scottish Premiership31030402 [c] 0400
Queens Park Rangers 2019–20 [31] Championship3112020—351
2020–21 [32] Championship3911010—411
2021–22 [33] Championship2011020—231
Total903405000993
Ipswich Town 2022–23 [34] League One16010002 [b] 1191
2023–24 [35] Championship1002040—160
Total260304021351
Career Total2054160150812555
  1. ↑ Appearances in Scottish Challenge Cup
  2. 1 2 Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
  3. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

Honours

Rangers

Aberdeen

Ipswich Town

References

  1. ↑ "Notification of shirt numbers: Queens Park Rangers" (PDF). English Football League. p. 58. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  2. 1 2 "Dominic Ball". 11v11. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 McCarthy, David (15 August 2015). "Rangers boss Mark Warburton set to seal third loan signing as Ibrox men miss out on Scott Allan". Daily Record. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Dominic Ball". Tottenham Hotspur FC. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "Benfica squeeze past valiant Spurs". UEFA.com. 20 March 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Spurs youngster joins U's". Cambridge United FC. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  7. ↑ "Cambridge 1–1 Dagenham & Redbridge". BBC Sport. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "Cambridge United vs. Mansfield Town - 18 April 2015 - Soccerway". Soccerway. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  9. ↑ "Cheltenham Town vs. Cambridge United - 14 April 2015 - Soccerway". Soccerway. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  10. 1 2 English, Tom (10 April 2016). "Rangers 4–0 Peterhead". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  11. ↑ "Ball rolls into Rotherham". Rotherham United F.C. 12 August 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  12. ↑ "Rotherham United: Jon Taylor & Ryan Williams among five players in talks with Millers". BBC Sport. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  13. ↑ "Ball makes Peterborough Switch". Rotherham United F.C. 3 January 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  14. ↑ "Dominic Ball: Rotherham United defender leaves Peterborough loan after 'disagreement'". BBC Sport. 2 March 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  15. ↑ "Dominic Ball joins The Dons on loan". Aberdeen F.C. 1 September 2017. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  16. ↑ Gilfeather, Frank (9 September 2017). "Aberdeen new boy Dominic Ball insists Scottish top flight is a step up from the English Championship". Daily Record. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  17. ↑ "Ball Rejoins On Season Long Loan". Aberdeen F.C. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  18. ↑ "QPR complete signing of Dominic Ball". QPR Official Site. 2 July 2019.
  19. ↑ "Ball is a Blue". Ipswich Town F.C. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  20. ↑ "Dominic Ball: Ipswich Town midfielder set to miss rest of season with knee injury". BBC Sport. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  21. ↑ FC, Ipswich Town (3 June 2024). "RETAINED LIST CONFIRMED". Ipswich Town FC. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  22. ↑ "Experienced midfielder Dom Ball signs for Leyton Orient". www.leytonorient.com. 10 September 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  23. ↑ Green, Chris (2009). Every Boy's Dream. Bloomsbury. p. 127. ISBN   978-1-4081-1216-8.
  24. ↑ Louis, Nathan (14 April 2021). "QPR footballer Dominic Ball graduates from the Open University". Watford Observer. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  25. ↑ "'I was numb': the pain of release by an academy and what football can learn". The Guardian. 2 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  26. 1 2 "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  27. 1 2 "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  28. 1 2 "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  29. 1 2 "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  30. 1 2 "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  31. ↑ "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  32. ↑ "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  33. ↑ "Dominic Ball | Football Stats | Queen's Park Rangers | Season 2021/2022 | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  34. ↑ "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  35. ↑ "Games played by Dominic Ball in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  36. ↑ "Rangers 1-0 Dumbarton". BBC Sport. 5 April 2016.
  37. ↑ "Rangers 2-3 Hibernian". BBC Sport. 21 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  38. ↑ "Celtic 1-0 Aberdeen". BBC Sport. 2 December 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  39. ↑ "Fleetwood Town 2 - 2 Ipswich Town". BBC Sport. 7 May 2023. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  40. ↑ "We Are Premier League!". 4 May 2024.
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