Sam Tickle

Sam Tickle

Personal information
Full name	Samuel Lloyd Tickle [1]
Date of birth	(2002-03-31) 31 March 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth	Warrington, England
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team	Wigan Athletic
Number	1
Youth career
2012–2018	Wigan Athletic
2019–2021	Wigan Athletic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2018–2019	Pilkington	21	(0)
2021–	Wigan Athletic	57	(0)
2022	→ Nantwich Town (loan)	7	(0)
2022	→ Warrington Rylands (loan)	6	(0)
International career‡
2024–	England U21	1	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10:17, 9 October 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13:01, 27 March 2024 (UTC)

Samuel Lloyd Tickle (born 31 March 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for EFL League One club Wigan Athletic.

Club career

Sam Tickle is a youth product of Wigan Athletic, having joined their youth academy in 2012. He was released at the end of the 2018 season. He then signed for Pilkington, making 21 league appearances ^[2] and was named player of the season as they won the Cheshire Football League. ^[3] During the 2018–19 season he was also selected as the number one for England Schoolboys FA & represented his country making five appearances, conceding only once. In 2019, he rejoined Wigan Athletic, joining as a scholar. ^[4]

He made his professional debut with Wigan in a 2–0 EFL Trophy loss to Crewe Alexandra on 5 October 2021. ^[5]

On 19 March 2022, Tickle joined Northern Premier League Premier Division side Nantwich Town on a youth loan until 14 April 2022. ^[6]

In July 2022, he joined Northern Premier League side Warrington Rylands on loan until January 2023. ^[7] He made two appearances for the club, ^[8] but was recalled by Wigan following an injury to first-choice goalkeeper Ben Amos. He was named on the bench against Birmingham City on 20 August 2022. He returned to Warrington Rylands on loan until January, but after four appearances was recalled again due to injuries to Jones and then Amos. He was named on the bench against Hull City and for the consecutive 10 games. ^[9]

Despite off-the-field issues within the club, Tickle signed a new contract with Wigan Athletic in April 2023. ^[10] On 8 May 2023, the final day of the 2022–23 season, Tickle was handed his league debut, keeping a clean sheet as already relegated Wigan held Rotherham United to a goalless draw. ^[11]

Ahead of the 2023–24 season, Tickle was handed the number one shirt, manager Shaun Maloney revealing that he had known since his arrival that the goalkeeper would be his first-choice. ^{[12] [13]} Following a highly impressive debut season that saw him labelled the best goalkeeper in the English Football League by his manager, ^[14] Tickle was named Wigan's Player of the Year, the first goalkeeper to win the award in thirteen years. ^[15] Following the conclusion of the season, he signed a new four-year contract amid reported interest from a number of Championship clubs. ^{[16] [17]}

International career

In September 2023, Tickle was called up to the England under-21 squad for the first time. ^[18] He made his U21 debut on 26 March 2024, playing the duration of a 7–0 win 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification win over Luxembourg at the Toughsheet Community Stadium. ^[19]

Career statistics

As of match played 27 April 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		EFL Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Wigan Athletic	2020–21	League One	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2021–22	League One	0	0	0	0	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	1	0
	2022–23	Championship	1	0	0	0	0	0	–		1	0
	2023–24	League One	46	0	3	0	1	0	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	52	0
	Total		47	0	3	0	1	0	3	0	54	0
Nantwich Town (loan)	2021–22	Northern Premier Division	7	0	—		—		0	0	7	0
Warrington Rylands (loan)	2022–23	Northern Premier Division	6	0	—		—		0	0	6	0
Career total			60	0	3	0	1	0	3	0	67	0

1. Appearances in EFL Trophy

Honours

Individual

• Wigan Athletic Player of the Year: 2023–24 ^[20]
• Wigan Athletic Players' Player of the Year: 2023–24 ^[20]

References

1. "EFL Professional retain list 2019-20" (PDF). EFL.com. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
2. "Samuel Lloyd Tickle Player Stats". fulltime.thefa.com. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
3. @Pilkingtonfc (18 May 2019). "PLAYER OF THE YEAR & PLAYERS PLAYER OF THE YEAR Congratulations to @SamTickle3 on winning the double!" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 September 2023– via Twitter.
4. @youthhawk (7 August 2019). "Wigan Athletic first year scholars 2019-20" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 September 2023– via Twitter.
5. FC, Wigan Athletic (5 October 2021). "Wigan Athletic FC - Sam Tickle | "It is a dream come true."". Wigan Athletic FC.
6. "Sam Tickle joins Nantwich Town on loan". Wigan Athletic FC. 19 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
7. "Academy | Sam Tickle Joins Warrington Rylands On Loan Until January". Wigan Athletic. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
8. "Warrington Rylands – Appearances – Sam Tickle". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
9. "Report: Blues 0-1 Wigan Athletic". Birmingham City Football Club. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
10. "Academy | Three U21s agree contract extensions". wiganathletic.com. 14 April 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
11. "Wigan 0–0 Rotherham: Latics and Millers play out goalless draw on final day". BBC Sport. 8 May 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
12. Kendrick, Paul (6 August 2023). "Wigan Athletic boss 'made big Sam Tickle decision six months ago'". Wigan Today. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
13. "Latics confirm squad numbers for 2023/24 Sky Bet League One campaign". wiganathletic.com. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
14. Kendrick, Paul (21 January 2024). "Wigan Athletic boss insists his Young England star is 'best in the EFL'". Wigan Today. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
15. "SAM TICKLE VOTED THE 2023/24 WIGAN ATHLETIC PLAYER OF THE YEAR!". wiganathletic.com. 25 April 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
16. "Sam Tickle commits long-term future to Wigan Athletic". wiganathletic.com. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
17. Jones, Jordan (3 April 2024). "Preston North End face new transfer rival for 'best goalkeeper' outside the Premier League". Lancashire Evening Post. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
18. "England MU21s squad named for Luxembourg". englandfootball.com. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
19. "Report: England MU21s 7-0 Luxembourg". englandfootball.com. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
20. "2023/24 End of Season Awards". Wigan Athletic FC. 25 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.

External links

• Sam Tickle at Soccerway
• Warrington Rylands stats