Marcus Harness

Marcus Harness

Marcus Harness with Ipswich Town in August 2023
Personal information
Full name	Marcus Anthony Myers-Harness [1]
Date of birth	(1996-02-24) 24 February 1996 (age 28) [2]
Place of birth	Coventry, England [3]
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.82 m) [4]
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Derby County (on loan from Ipswich Town)
Number	18
Youth career
	Coventry City
2010–2013	Burton Albion
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2019	Burton Albion	68	(5)
2015	→ Ilkeston (loan)
2015–2016	→ Aldershot Town (loan)	2	(0)
2017–2018	→ Port Vale (loan)	35	(1)
2019–2022	Portsmouth	111	(23)
2022–	Ipswich Town	76	(10)
2024–	→ Derby County (loan)	13	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:14, 1 December 2024 (UTC)

Marcus Anthony Myers-Harness (born 24 February 1996) is an Irish-English footballer who plays as a winger for EFL Championship club Derby County, on loan from Premier League club Ipswich Town.

He made his competitive first-team debut for Burton Albion at age 17 in September 2013. He helped the club to win the League Two title in the 2014–15 season and then had loan spells at Ilkeston and Aldershot Town, before he helped Burton to win promotion out of League One in 2015–16. He joined Port Vale on loan for the 2017–18 season. He signed for Portsmouth in July 2019 and played for the club on the losing side of the 2020 EFL Trophy final. He switched to fellow League One side Ipswich Town in July 2022 and helped the club to secure back-to-back promotions into the Premier League in the 2022–23 and 2023–24 seasons. He debuted in the Premier League before joining Derby County on loan for the 2024–25 season.

Club career

Burton Albion

Harness spent time in the youth team at Coventry City before switching to Burton Albion. ^[5] He made his first competitive appearance for Burton in a 1–0 defeat to Notts County at Meadow Lane in a Football League Trophy tie on 3 September 2013. ^[6] He made his league debut on 22 March 2014, coming on for Alex MacDonald 68 minutes into a 1–0 defeat to Scunthorpe United at Glanford Park. ^[7] He made his first league start on 3 May, in a 1–0 defeat to Southend United at Roots Hall; this was his fourth and final appearance of the 2013–14 campaign. ^[8]

He signed a two-year professional contract in May 2014. ^[9] Speaking two months later, manager Gary Rowett said that Harness had "bulked up" over the summer and "he's one of those players who can go past people. Whether he can do that over a sustained period, we'll only know when he gets opportunities." ^[10] On 27 August 2014, he was voted man of the match in Burton's 1–0 win over Premier League side Queens Park Rangers in a League Cup tie at the Pirelli Stadium; he won a free kick on the edge of the box that was scored by Adam McGurk. ^[11] He played 22 games throughout the 2014–15 season as Burton won promotion as champions of League Two. However, he featured in just four games in the second half of the campaign, despite manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink saying he was "doing really, really well in training". ^[12]

On 7 August 2015, he joined Northern Premier League Premier Division side Ilkeston on a one-month loan. ^[13] He was sent off during injury-time in a 4–3 win over Stourbridge on 23 August. ^[14] Manager Gavin Strachan extended his loan spell at the Robins until the new year after he made a positive start to the season. ^[15] However, Burton recalled him to allow him a chance to play higher-level football, and caretaker manager Andy Watson said that "we were delighted to have had Marcus here and his loan deal wasn't far from ending". ^[16] On 27 November 2015, Harness joined National League club Aldershot Town on a five-week loan. ^[17] However, he made just two substitute appearances for Barry Smith's Shots during his spell at the Recreation Ground. He went on to make five substitute appearances for Burton as the club achieved promotion out of League One, and he "impressed with his pace and direct running" during these games and was named as Burton's 'Most Improved Young Player' for the 2015–16 season, after which his contract was extended for a further year. ^{[18] [19] [20]} He played ten Championship matches in the 2016–17 season, and Albion took up a one-year extension to Harness's contract in May 2017. ^[21]

On 18 July 2017, he joined League Two side Port Vale on loan for the 2017–18 season. ^[22] Manager Neil Aspin played Harness just behind striker Tom Pope, in an attacking midfield role that demanded a lot of hard work. ^[23] He scored his first goal for the "Valiants" on 12 December, in a 3–2 defeat at Yeovil Town in the FA Cup, and said "it was good to finally get a goal, it has been a long time coming". ^[24] He scored his first league goal 11 days later to secure a point away at Colchester United, leading Aspin to say "he can only go from strength to strength now he is starting to chip in with goals". ^[25] He signed a new two-and-a-half-year contract with the "Brewers" in January. ^[26]

He scored his first goal for Burton in a 2–1 EFL Trophy defeat to Walsall on 4 September 2018. ^[27] On 5 January, he scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 win at Rochdale. ^[28] Having successfully broken into Nigel Clough's first-team during the 2018–19 season, he totalled six goals in 39 games. ^[29]

Portsmouth

On 18 July 2019, Harness joined League One rivals Portsmouth on a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee. ^[30] He scored his first goal for Pompey in a 2–1 defeat at Sunderland on 17 August. ^[31] He scored a total of three goals in four games before being sidelined with a thigh strain picked up in a 1–1 draw at Blackpool a fortnight later. ^[32] He disappointed manager Kenny Jackett with his performances upon returning to fitness. ^[33] He was dropped in favour of Ronan Curtis and Ryan Williams, before regaining his first-team spot in December. ^[34] He finished the 2019–20 season strongly, scoring none goals and providing seven assists in 37 games, often making a big impact from the bench; he earned himself praise from Jackett, who said "he has got a very, very good future ahead of him". ^[35] Portsmouth qualified for the play-offs after finishing fourth, but lost on penalties following a 2–2 aggregate draw with Oxford United; he had scored Portsmouth's goal in the second leg, which would have been the winner if not for Oxford's equaliser. ^[36]

Having scored a brace against Colchester United in the EFL Trophy, Harness scored a hat-trick playing as a number ten in a 4–2 win at former club Burton Albion on 3 October 2020. ^[37] His third strike of the game, a "deft clip into the far bottom corner", would win him the League One Goal of the Month award; the goal was described by pundit Don Goodman as "nothing short of sublime". ^[38] On 13 March 2021, he played in the 2020 EFL Trophy final, which had been postponed from the previous year due to the COVID-19 pandemic; he entered the game as a half-time substitute for Jordy Hiwula, which ended as a 0–0 draw, with Salford City winning the penalty shoot-out. ^[39] He was a regular in the 2020–21 league season and was watched by Ireland manager Stephen Kenny. ^[40] He achieved new manager Danny Cowley's target of ten goals for the season, however, Portsmouth missed out on the play-offs after finishing in eighth-place. ^[41]

In January 2022, Cowley said the club's priority would be to extend Harness' contract as he was the stand-out performer in scoring ten goals from midfield in the first half of the season. ^[42] Harness was though sent off for the first time in his career for fouling Ross Sykes in "a clear act of petulance" during a 4–0 win over Accrington Stanley at Fratton Park on 5 March. ^[43] Portsmouth extended his contract as Cowley rated him as a Championship quality player. ^{[44] [45]} He scored 12 goals from 44 appearances in the 2021–22 season. However, Portsmouth again fell short of the play-offs. ^[46]

Ipswich Town

Harness signed for Ipswich Town on a three-year deal (with the club retaining a further 12-month option) on 15 July 2022 after Ipswich paid Portsmouth an undisclosed fee (later revealed to be £750,000); ^[47] striker Joe Pigott went the other way on a season-long loan as part of the deal. ^[48] Town boss Kieran McKenna said that Harness was a good fit for the club and was entering his prime years. ^[49] Harness was named as the club's Player of the Month for August after scoring five goals. ^[47] He underwent minor knee surgery on a small meniscus tear in November. ^[50] He scored eight goals in 47 games in the 2022–23 campaign as Ipswich secured promotion out of League One as runners-up to Plymouth Argyle. ^[51] On 4 November 2023, he came off the bench to score both Ipswich's goals in a 2–2 draw at Birmingham City and said he hoped to earn more starts as a result. ^[52] He scored four goals and provided two assists in 39 games as the club secured promotion into the Premier League with a second-place finish at the end of the 2023–24 Championship season. ^{[53] [54]}

He played two Premier League games, making substitute appearances against Liverpool and Manchester City. On 30 August 2024, Harness returned to the Championship, joining Derby County on a season-long loan deal. ^[55] Harness made his Derby debut against Cardiff City on 14 September. ^[56] He made his first start for Derby at Sunderland on 1 October ^[57] and scored his first goal for Derby in a 2–0 win over Queens Park Rangers on 5 October. ^[58]

International career

Harness declared his intention to represent the Republic of Ireland in July 2019. ^[59]

Style of play

Burton Mail reporter Joshua Murray described Harness as a pacey and skilful winger, who is right-footed but able to play on either flank or even at wing-back. ^[60]

Career statistics

As of match played 1 December 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Burton Albion	2013–14 [61]	League Two	3	0	0	0	0	0	1 [a]	0	4	0
	2014–15 [62]	League Two	18	0	1	0	2	0	1 [a]	0	22	0
	2015–16 [63]	League One	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	2016–17 [64]	Championship	10	0	1	0	2	0	—		13	0
	2017–18 [65]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2018–19 [66]	League One	32	5	0	0	4	0	3 [b]	1	39	6
	Total		68	5	2	0	8	0	5	1	83	6
Aldershot Town (loan)	2015–16 [29]	National League	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
Port Vale (loan)	2017–18 [65]	League Two	35	1	3	1	1	0	3 [b]	0	42	2
Portsmouth	2019–20 [67]	League One	25	5	4	0	2	1	6 [c]	3	37	9
	2020–21 [68]	League One	46	7	3	1	2	0	2 [b]	2	53	10
	2021–22 [46]	League One	40	11	2	1	0	0	2 [b]	0	44	12
	Total		111	23	9	2	4	1	10	5	134	31
Ipswich Town	2022–23 [51]	League One	40	6	3	0	1	0	3 [b]	2	47	8
	2023–24 [53]	Championship	34	4	0	0	4	0	—		38	4
	2024–25 [69]	Premier League	2	0	0	0	1	0	—		3	0
	Total		76	10	3	0	6	0	3	2	88	12
Derby County (loan)	2024–25 [69]	Championship	13	1	0	0	—		—		13	1
Career total [d]			305	40	17	3	19	1	23	6	362	53

1. Appearances in the Football League Trophy
2. Appearance(s) in the EFL Trophy
3. 4 appearances and 2 goals in the EFL Trophy and 2 appearances and 1 goal in the play-offs
4. Statistics for Ilkeston not known.

Honours

Burton Albion

• Football League Two: 2014–15 ^[29]
• Football League One second-place promotion: 2015–16 ^[29]

Portsmouth

• EFL Trophy runner-up: 2019–20 ^[39]

Ipswich Town

• EFL League One second-place promotion: 2022–23 ^[70]
• EFL Championship second-place promotion: 2023–24 ^[54]

References

1. "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2018: Burton Albion" (PDF). English Football League. p. 11. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
2. Marcus Harness at Soccerbase
3. "FootballSquads - Port Vale - 2017/2018". www.footballsquads.co.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
4. "First Team - Midfielder - Marcus Myers-Harness". Ipswich Town F.C. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
5. Sloan, Tom (7 October 2014). "Burton Albion winger Marcus Harness relishing his chance at the Pirelli". Burton Mail. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
6. "Notts County 1-0 Burton Albion". burtonalbionfc.co.uk. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
7. Leach, Sean (22 March 2014). "Report: Iron 1-0 Burton Albion". Scunthorpe United F.C. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
8. "Southend United 1-0 Burton Albion". BBC Sport. 3 May 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
9. "Burton Albion deals for Lee Bell, Phil Edwards and Dean Lyness". BBC Sport. 29 May 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
10. Broome, David (23 July 2014). "Burton Albion boss Gary Rowett encouraged by Brewers youngster Marcus Harness". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
11. "Burton's Adam McGurk cuts mighty QPR down to size". The Guardian. 27 August 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
12. Sloan, Tom (18 April 2015). "Burton Albion boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has grand ideas for Matty Palmer". Burton Mail. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
13. Wilkinson, Ashley (7 August 2015). "Burton Albion youngster Marcus Harness joins Ilkeston on one-month loan". Burton Mail. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
14. "Ilkeston FC: Marcus Harness sees red as Robins win seven-goal thriller". Derby Telegraph. 24 August 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
15. "Strachan: We're learning so much from every game". Ilkeston Advertiser. 2 September 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
16. "Watson: Naivety proved costly at Workington". Ilkeston Advertiser. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
17. "Marcus Harness: Aldershot Town sign Burton winger on loan". BBC Sport. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
18. Wilkinsons, Ashley (4 April 2016). "Marcus Harness making an impact for Burton Albion". Burton Mail. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
19. Wilkinson, Ashley (4 May 2016). "Burton Albion: Stuart Beavon is Brewers Player of the Year, again". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
20. "Burton Albion: Robbie Weir & Shane Cansdell-Sherriff among players released". BBC Sport. 16 May 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
21. "Jon McLaughlin: Burton goalkeeper among five released by Brewers". BBC Sport. 10 May 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
22. Baggaley, Mike (18 July 2017). "Deal done! Port Vale sign Marcus Harness from Burton Albion". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
23. Baggaley, Michael (14 November 2017). "Marcus Harness determined to make hard work pay off at Port Vale". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
24. Baggaley, Michael (16 December 2017). "Marcus Harness says he needs to earn a regular Port Vale place". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
25. Baggaley, Michael (24 December 2017). "Port Vale boss Neil Aspin says Marcus Harness can go from strength to strength". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
26. "Marcus Harness: Burton Albion winger signs new contract". BBC Sport. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
27. "Burton 1-2 Walsall". Walsall F.C. 4 September 2018. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
28. "Rochdale 0-4 Burton Albion: Marcus Harness scores hat-trick for Brewers". BBC Sport. 5 January 2019. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
29. Marcus Harness at Soccerway
30. "Marcus Harness: Portsmouth sign Burton Albion winger". BBC Sport. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
31. "Sunderland 2-1 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. 17 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
32. Rooney, Will (1 September 2019). "Pompey boss lifts lift on Marcus Harness' injury he picked up at Blackpool". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
33. Mason, Lewis (4 November 2019). "Kenny Jackett keen for Marcus Harness to hit previous Portsmouth heights". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
34. Rooney, Will (21 November 2019). "Marcus Harness ready to take his next Pompey chance after injury 'killed' his early-season momentum". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
35. "Kenny Jackett gives verdict on Marcus Harness' maiden Pompey season - and his next challenge". www.portsmouth.co.uk. 6 June 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
36. "Oxford United 1-1 Portsmouth (agg: 2-2, 5-4 on pens): U's reach play-off final". BBC Sport. 6 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
37. Allen, Neil (4 October 2020). "Hat-trick hero Marcus Harness: I can end Portsmouth hunt for a number 10". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
38. "Goal of the Month winners: October". www.efl.com. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
39. Williams, Adam (13 March 2021). "Portsmouth 0–0 Salford City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
40. Cross, Jordan (1 May 2021). "Portsmouth pair Marcus Harness and Ronan Curtis stake international claim in front of Republic of Ireland boss Stephen Kenny in AFC Wimbledon win". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
41. Colman, Jonty (20 March 2021). "Marcus Harness challenged by Danny Cowley to score more goals after Pompey win". hampshirelive. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
42. Warlow, Rob (7 January 2022). "Danny Cowley keen to get Marcus Harness' contract agreed after Pompey form". hampshirelive. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
43. McMahon, Mark (5 March 2022). "Portsmouth boss Danny Cowley reveals why Marcus Harness' team-mates bailed him out following red card against Accrington". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
44. "Option Taken On Harness Contract". www.portsmouthfc.co.uk. 12 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
45. Allen, Neil (17 March 2022). "Pompey boss Danny Cowley on why Championship clubs should be looking to sign ex-Blackburn target Marcus Harness". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
46. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
47. McMahon, Mark (26 November 2022). "Former Pompey winger provides update on his surgery following injury picked up in Ipswich's PJT defeat to Blues". The News. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
48. Henderson, Jacob (15 July 2022). "Town sign Marcus Harness". Ipswich Town F.C. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
49. "Town Sign Harness as Pigott's Pompey Loan Confirmed - Ipswich Town News". TWTD.co.uk. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
50. "Ipswich boss relieved despite Harness surgery". BBC Sport. 25 November 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
51. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
52. "Harness targets more league starts for Ipswich". BBC Sport. 6 November 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
53. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
54. "Cork's Marcus Harness promoted to Premier League with Ipswich Town". Echo Live. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
55. "TRANSFER NEWS: Attacker Harness Joins Derby On Loan". Derby County FC. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
56. "MATCH REPORT: Derby County 1-0 Cardiff City". Derby County F.C. 14 September 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
57. "Paul Warne springs quartet of surprises as he names Derby County team to face Sunderland". Derby Telegraph. 1 October 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
58. "Derby County 2–0 Queens Park Rangers". BBC Sport. 5 October 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
59. "Scouting Report: Harness to declare for Ireland | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
60. Baggaley, Mike (18 July 2017). "Scouting report: Port Vale's signing from Burton Marcus Harness". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
61. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
62. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
63. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
64. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
65. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
66. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
67. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
68. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
69. "Games played by Marcus Harness in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
70. "Fleetwood Town 2 - 2 Ipswich Town". BBC Sport. 7 May 2023. Retrieved 9 May 2023.

External links

• Profile at the Ipswich Town F.C. website