Jon Mellish

Jon Mellish

Mellish in 2025.
Personal information
Full name	Jon James Alexander Mellish [1]
Date of birth	(1997-09-19) 19 September 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth	South Shields, England
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) [2]
Position(s)	Defender, midfielder
Team information
Current team	Milton Keynes Dons (on loan from Wigan Athletic)
Number	22
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2016–2019	Gateshead	57	(1)
2017	→ Newcastle Benfield (loan)
2019–2025	Carlisle United	213	(27)
2025–	Wigan Athletic	23	(1)
2025–	→ Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	1	(0)
International career
2018–2019	England C	2	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 14:36, 31 August 2025 (UTC)

Jon James Alexander Mellish (born 19 September 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays for EFL League Two club Milton Keynes Dons, on loan from EFL League One club Wigan Athletic, as a defender and midfielder.

Early and personal life

Born in South Shields, ^[2] Mellish attended Gateshead College. ^[3]

Career

Mellish began his career with Gateshead, making his senior debut during the 2016–17 season. ^[2] He moved on loan to Newcastle Benfield in November 2017. ^[4]

Carlisle United

He signed for Carlisle United in May 2019. ^{[5] [6] [7]} He scored his first goal for Carlisle in a 1–0 win against Barrow on 3 October 2020. ^[8] He signed a new contract with the club later that month. ^[9] He was a prolific scorer for the club in the 2020–21 season. ^[10] Mellish played in the 2023 EFL League Two play-off final at Wembley Stadium as Carlisle defeated Stockport County on penalties. ^[11] After having scored an own goal in the final, Mellish would later convert his penalty in the shootout. ^[11] On 29 March 2024, Mellish scored his first career hat-trick in a 3–1 away win over promotion-chasing Peterborough United. ^[12]

Wigan Athletic

On 11 January 2025, Mellish signed for League One club Wigan Athletic on a three-and-a-half year deal for an undisclosed fee. ^{[13] [14]}

In August 2025 he signed on loan for Milton Keynes Dons for the rest of the season. ^[15]

Playing style

Originally a defender, Mellish was converted into a midfielder in February 2020. ^{[16] [17]}

Career statistics

As of match played 30 August 2025

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Gateshead	2016–17 [2]	National League	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	2017–18 [2]	National League	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	10	0
	2018–19 [2]	National League	46	1	2	1	0	0	0	0	48	2
	Total		57	1	2	1	0	0	0	0	59	2
Carlisle United	2019–20 [18]	League Two	15	0	4	0	0	0	3 [a]	0	22	0
	2020–21 [19]	League Two	44	11	2	3	1	0	2 [a]	2	49	16
	2021–22 [20]	League Two	42	3	1	0	1	0	2 [a]	0	46	3
	2022–23 [21]	League Two	43	6	2	0	1	0	4 [b]	0	50	6
	2023–24 [22]	League One	46	5	1	0	1	0	3 [a]	0	51	5
	2024–25 [23]	League Two	23	2	1	0	1	0	2 [a]	0	27	2
	Total		213	27	11	3	5	0	16	2	245	32
Wigan Athletic	2024–25 [23]	League One	21	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	21	1
	2025–26 [24]	League One	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	Total		23	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	23	1
Milton Keynes Dons (loan)	2025–26 [24]	League Two	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Career total			294	29	13	4	5	0	16	2	327	35

1. Appearance(s) in the EFL Trophy.
2. Three appearances in the EFL Trophy, one appearance in the play-offs.

Honours

Carlisle United

• EFL League Two play-offs: 2023 ^[11]

References

1. "Notification of shirt numbers: Carlisle United" (PDF). English Football League. p. 15. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
2. Jon Mellish at Soccerway . Retrieved 4 January 2020.
3. Carruthers, Mark (15 May 2019). "Hartlepool transfer target Jon Mellish reveals why he turned down National League move". Hartlepool Mail. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
4. Whitney, Steve (17 November 2017). "Gateshead Youngster Heads Joins Neighbours On Loan". thenationalleague.org.uk. National League. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
5. "Carlisle United: Tommy Wright & Paul Murray leave coaching roles, Jon Mellish signs". BBC Sport. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
6. Varley, Hugo (15 May 2019). "Carlisle bring in Gateshead's Jon Mellish". The Non-League Paper. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
7. Colman, Jon (20 July 2019). "Carlisle Utd's new defender Jon Mellish: 'This was my goal...I cannot wait for it'". News and Star. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
8. "Carlisle 1–0 Barrow". BBC Sport. 3 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
9. "CONTRACT: Midfielder commits to the Blues". carlisleunited.co.uk. Carlisle United F.C. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
10. "Revealed: Carlisle United midfielder Jon Mellish's remarkable goalscoring feat". News and Star.
11. Matthew Newsum (28 May 2023). "Carlisle United 1–1 Stockport County (5–4 pens)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
12. "Peterborough United 1-3 Carlisle United". BBC News . 29 March 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
13. "Latics sign Jon Mellish from Carlisle United". wiganathletic.com. 11 January 2025. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
14. "Jon Mellish: Wigan Athletic sign defender from Carlisle United". BBC Sport. 11 January 2025.
15. "Jon Mellish: MK Dons sign defender on season-long loan from Wigan". BBC Sport. 26 August 2025.
16. Colman, Jon (18 August 2020). "Carlisle Utd boss reveals why Jon Mellish will remain in the Cumbrians' midfield". News and Star. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
17. Robertson, Gregor. "How Jon Mellish made leap from liability to lethal" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
18. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
19. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
20. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
21. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
22. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
23. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 17 August 2024.
24. "Games played by Jon Mellish in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 August 2025.