Josh Gowling

Josh Gowling

Gowling in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Joshua Anthony Isaac Gowling
Date of birth	(1983-11-29) 29 November 1983 (age 40)
Place of birth	Coventry, England
Position(s)	Centre-back
Youth career
1998–2002	West Bromwich Albion
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2002–2003	West Bromwich Albion	0	(0)
2003–2005	Herfølge	30	(0)
2004–2005	→ Ølstykke FC (loan)	13	(0)
2005–2008	AFC Bournemouth	83	(1)
2008	Carlisle United	4	(0)
2008–2009	→ Hereford United (loan)	13	(0)
2009	→ Gillingham (loan)	4	(0)
2009–2011	Gillingham	52	(4)
2010	→ Lincoln City (loan)	4	(0)
2011–2012	Lincoln City	37	(0)
2012–2015	Kidderminster Harriers	106	(6)
2015	→ Grimsby Town (loan)	3	(1)
2015–2017	Grimsby Town	58	(3)
2017–2018	Torquay United	25	(0)
2018	→ Alfreton Town (loan)	10	(0)
2018–2020	Hereford	38	(3)
Total		398	(17)
Managerial career
2020–2023	Hereford
2023	Darlington
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Joshua Anthony Isaac Gowling (born 29 November 1983) is an English football manager and former professional footballer, who played as a centre-back. He most recently managed Darlington.

Gowling began his career with West Bromwich Albion and saw action on the continent when he moved to Danish side Herfølge, where he also took in a loan spell with Ølstykke FC. He returned to England in 2005 and played professionally for AFC Bournemouth, Carlisle United, Hereford United, Gillingham, Lincoln City, Kidderminster Harriers and Grimsby Town. In 2017 he joined Torquay United and had a spell on loan with Alfreton Town before joining Hereford. He was appointed manager in January 2020 and left the role in February 2023.

Playing career

Early career

Gowling with The Gills

A central defender, Gowling began his career as a trainee at West Bromwich Albion aged just 14 under the guidance of Richard O'Kelly. ^[1]

Following his release from Albion, he signed for Danish Premier Division club Herfølge Boldklub, making 17 appearances in 2003–04 and 13 appearances in 2004–05. He soon became disillusioned with life in Denmark, and returned to England. ^[1]

AFC Bournemouth

He joined AFC Bournemouth on a trial basis to begin with in the 2005 close season, and signed a one-year contract after impressing in various pre-season friendlies. ^[2] He began the 2005–06 season in good form before rupturing his knee ligaments after about a minute's play in the away match to Brentford  – this serious injury ruled him out for the rest of the season. ^[3] Having gradually returned to full fitness following his injury, Gowling featured in over 30 league games during the 2006–07 season, scoring his first professional goal in the process in a game against Rotherham United. ^[4]

His performance in the 2–0 home win against Yeovil Town on 15 March 2008 saw him named in the League One Team of the Week. ^[5] In 2007–08 he made 39 league appearances as Bournemouth were relegated to League Two.

Carlisle United

On 19 June 2008 Gowling, whose contract with Bournemouth had run out, signed for Carlisle United on a free transfer. He agreed a two-year contract with the club, who had lost in the League One play-offs the previous season, ^[6] but spent most of that season on loan at Hereford, against whom he had made his league debut for Carlisle. ^[7]

Gillingham

In July 2009 Gowling joined Gillingham on loan, initially for a month, ^[8] and made his debut on 8 August in a 5–0 home win over Swindon Town. On 26 August 2009, Gowling transferred to Gillingham on a two-year contract, just two days after extending the loan deal for another month. ^[9]

On 28 October 2010 he agreed to join Lincoln City on a month-long loan deal ^[10] with the paperwork being completed the following day. ^[11] He returned to Gillingham at the end of his loan deal. ^[12]

In July 2011, he joined Crewe Alexandra on trial playing seventy minutes in the club's 4–0 friendly victory at Congleton Town on 11 July 2011 ^[13] but was not offered a contract. ^[14]

Lincoln City

On 14 July 2011, he agreed a two-year contract to return to Lincoln City. ^[15] On 31 August 2012 he left Lincoln City by mutual consent ^[16]

Kidderminster Harriers

On the same day he agreed a deal to sign for Kidderminster Harriers. ^[17] Gowling became a key figure in the Harriers defence, ending the 2012–13 season in the Conference team of the year alongside teammates Lee Vaughan and Anthony Malbon, ^[18] a season where Harriers finished 2nd, behind Mansfield Town. Gowling took the captain's armband for the 2014–15 season and also took a player/coach role within the club. ^[19]

Grimsby Town

On 26 March 2015, Gowling joined Grimsby Town on loan till the end of the season. ^[20] He scored on his debut for the Mariners on 6 April 2015, from a corner he fired in Jack Mackreth's cross in the 69th minute, breaking the deadlock in the 0–2 victory over Alfreton Town, with a right footed shot 3 yards out from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. ^[21]

On 28 May 2015, Gowling signed a permanent two-year deal with the club. ^[22] Gowling played in Grimsby's 3–1 victory over Forest Green Rovers in the 2016 National League play-off final at Wembley, seeing Grimsby promoted to League Two after a six-year absence from the Football League. ^{[23] [24]} His efforts over the season earned him a place in the 2015–16 National League team of the year, alongside the league's outstanding players. ^[25]

After making 21 appearances for Grimsby in the 2016–17 season he was released by the club on 9 May 2017. ^{[26] [27]}

Torquay United

He then signed for Torquay United on 13 June 2017. ^[28] Gowling made 25 appearances for The Gulls as they were relegated from the National League. ^[29]

He was transfer-listed by Torquay at the end of the 2017–18 season. ^[30]

Alfreton Town

On 13 August 2018, Gowling joined Alfreton Town on loan, ^[31] making 10 league appearances in the National League North. ^[29]

Hereford

Gowling signed for National League North club Hereford on 7 December 2018. ^[32]

Managerial career

Hereford

On 21 January 2020, he was appointed as interim manager, following the departure of Russell Slade. ^[33] Hereford encountered mixed form in Gowling's first months as interim manager, with the 2019–20 National League North season eventually curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In June 2020, he was given the job on a permanent basis, appointing Steve Burr as his assistant. ^[34]

On 5 February 2023, Gowling left Hereford by mutual consent. ^{[35] [36]}

Darlington

Gowling was appointed manager of National League North club Darlington on 19 September 2023, but was dismissed from the role three months later. ^{[37] [38]}

Career statistics

As of end of 2017–18 season ^{[39] [40]}

Club	Season	League			National cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
West Bromwich Albion	2002–03	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Herfølge	2003–04	Danish Superliga	17	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0
	2004–05	Danish Superliga	13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	0
	Total		30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	30	0
Ølstykke FC (loan)	2004–05	Danish 1st Division	13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	0
AFC Bournemouth	2005–06 [41]	League One	13	0	0	0	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	15	0
	2006–07 [42]	League One	33	1	1	0	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	36	1
	2007–08 [43]	League One	37	0	3	0	1	0	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	42	0
	Total		83	1	4	0	3	0	4	0	94	1
Carlisle United	2008–09 [44]	League One	4	0	1	0	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	6	0
Hereford United (loan)	2008–09 [44]	League One	13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	0
Gillingham	2009–10 [45]	League One	30	1	3	0	2	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	36	1
	2010–11 [46]	League One	22	2	0	0	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	24	2
	Total		52	3	3	0	3	0	2	0	60	3
Lincoln City	2010–11 [46]	League Two	4	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
	2011–12 [47]	Conference Premier	37	0	0	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 2]	0	39	0
	Total		41	0	2	0	0	0	2	0	45	0
Kidderminster Harriers	2012–13 [48]	Conference Premier	40	4	2	0	—		4 [lower-alpha 3]	0	46	4
	2013–14 [49]	Conference Premier	36	2	7	0	—		0	0	42	2
	2014–15 [50]	Conference Premier	30	0	0	0	—		1 [lower-alpha 2]	1	31	1
	Total		106	6	9	0	0	0	5	1	120	7
Grimsby Town	2014–15 [50]	Conference Premier	3	1	0	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 4]	0	5	1
	2015–16 [51]	National League	37	2	3	0	—		6 [lower-alpha 5]	0	46	2
	2016–17 [26]	League Two	18	0	1	0	0	0	2 [lower-alpha 6]	0	21	0
	Total		58	3	4	0	0	0	10	0	72	3
Torquay United	2017–18 [52]	National League	25	0	0	0	—		0	0	25	0
Career total			425	13	23	0	6	0	24	1	478	14

1. Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy
2. Appearance(s) in FA Trophy
3. Two appearances in FA Trophy, two in Football Conference play-offs
4. Appearances in Football Conference play-offs
5. Three appearances in FA Trophy, three in National League play-offs
6. Appearances in EFL Trophy

Managerial statistics

As of 16 December 2023

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	From	To	Record					Ref
			G	W	D	L	Win %
Hereford	21 January 2020	5 February 2023	112	43	27	42	038.39	[53]
Darlington	19 September 2023	26 December 2023	16	3	4	9	018.75	[54]
Total			128	46	31	51	035.94	—

Honours

As a player

Grimsby Town

• National League play-offs: 2016 ^{[23] [24]}
• FA Trophy runner-up: 2015–16 ^[55]

Individual

• Conference Premier Team of the Year: 2012–13 ^[18]
• National League Team of the Year: 2015–16 ^[25]

As a manager

Individual

• National League North Manager of the Month: October 2022 ^[56]

References

1. "Josh: I'll Prove Baggies Wrong". Daily Echo. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
2. "Gowling signs Cherries contract". BBC Sport. 2 August 2005. Retrieved 14 August 2007.
3. "Gowling will miss rest of season". BBC Sport. 1 November 2005. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
4. "Bournemouth 1-3 Rotherham". BBC. 21 October 2006. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
5. "Coca-Cola League One Team of the Week (17/03/2008)" (PDF). The Football League. 17 March 2008. Retrieved 16 April 2008.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
6. "Gowling makes Carlisle switch". BBC Sport. 19 June 2008. Retrieved 19 June 2008.
7. "Hereford sign Weale and Gowling". BBC Sport. 27 November 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
8. "Josh Gowling signs on loan". Gillingham F.C. 20 July 2009. Retrieved 8 August 2009.
9. "Gowling signs two-year Gills deal". BBC Sport. 26 August 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
10. "Centre-back agrees loan deal". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 28 October 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
11. "Gowling loan move finalised". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 29 October 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
12. "Duo agree loan extensions". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 25 November 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
13. "Gowling survives clash of heads". Crewe Alexandra F.C. Official Website. 12 July 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
14. "Alex let go trialists but keeper remains". Crewe Alexandra F.C. Official Website. 13 July 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
15. "Gowling returns on two-year deal". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 14 July 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
16. "Gowling departs". Lincoln City F.C. Official Website. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
17. "Kidderminster Harriers sign Josh Gowling and Manny Panther". BBC Sport. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
18. "Conference Premier team of the season". BBC Sport. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
19. "Defender Josh Gowling heads into player-coach position at Aggborough". Kidderminster Harriers F.C. 21 May 2014. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
20. "Grimsby Town sign Kidderminster defender". BBC Sport. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
21. "Alfreton 0–2 Grimsby". BBC Sport. 6 April 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
22. "Grimsby Town complete double signing of Jack Mackreth and Josh Gowling". Grimsby Telegraph. 28 May 2015. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
23. "Forest Green 1–3 Grimsby". BBC Sport. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
24. "Grimsby secure promotion back to Football League at Wembley". Sky Sports. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
25. "Town Trio Named in Top National League Team". Grimsby Town F.C. 11 June 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
26. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
27. Findlater, James; Green, Trevor (9 May 2017). "Craig Disley and Josh Gowling confirm departures". Grimsby Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 May 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
28. http://www.torquayunited.com/news/article/2016-17/united-complete-move-for-gowling-3730554.aspx ^{[ dead link ]}
29. "Career and titles won by J. Gowling". besoccer.com. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
30. "Torquay United release five players and transfer list three more after National League relegation". BBC Sport. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
31. "Gowling Leaves The Gulls on Loan As Alfreton Town Act". The National League. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
32. "NEWS Josh Gowling Joins The Bulls". Hereford F.C.. 7 December 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
33. "NEWS Gowling Takes Interim Charge of Bulls". 21 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
34. "NEWS Hereford FC sticking with Josh Gowling and Steve Burr for new season". 13 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
35. Rogers, Paul (5 February 2023). "Bulls News: Gowling leaves Hereford". Bulls News. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
36. "STATEMENT | Gowling Leaves by Mutual Consent | Hereford FC – The Official website of Hereford FC". herefordfc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
37. Simpson, Ray (19 September 2023). "Quakers appoint Josh Gowling and Danny Rose". Darlington F.C. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
38. Wilson, Scott (26 December 2023). "Darlington part company with Josh Gowling after Scarborough defeat". The Northern Echo. Darlington. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
39. Josh Gowling at Soccerbase
40. Josh Gowling at Soccerway
41. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
42. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
43. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
44. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
45. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
46. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
47. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
48. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
49. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
50. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
51. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
52. "Games played by Josh Gowling in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
53. "Hereford FC: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
54. "Darlington FC: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
55. Alan Smith (22 May 2016). "Scott McManus strikes for Halifax to beat Grimsby in FA Trophy final". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
56. "Josh Is Top Boss As Phillips Pips The Rest To Player Award". thenationalleague.org.uk. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 14 November 2022.

External links

• Josh Gowling player profile at carlisleunited.co.uk
• Josh Gowling at Soccerbase
• Josh Gowling at Soccerway