Kidsgrove Athletic FC - Meet the players
Goal statistics correct as at 25th October 2011. Captioned photos courtesy of Hampton Productions.
 | MARK BEESTON (midfield)DoB:Mark rejoined the club at the beginning of the season from Congleton Town. Comfortable playing either in defence or the centre of midfield, he was a trainee at Crewe Alexandra. Possesses the useful ability to be in the right place at the right time in the opposition's area which has led to him gathering a number of key goals and assists. He has also represented Hyde United, Newcastle Town and Nantwich Town. Debut: 2006; Goals 6 |
 | STEVE BRANNAN (midfield)DoB: 07/09/1986Experienced player who had previously been with Biddulph Victoria before they folded in the summer of 2011. Played against Kidsgrove as an emergency goalkeeper in and FA Cup tie last season and kept a clean sheet in the first game before Athetic triumphed in the replay. He started his career in the youth side at Hednesford Town before progressing through the ranks to the first team in 2004. He has also featured for Leek Town, Stafford Rangers and Willenhall Town. Debut: 13/08/2011 v Stamford; Goals 6 |
 | ASHLEY CARTER (midfielder)DoB:Profile to follow. Debut: ; Goals 0 |
 | KARL CHARLTON (midfielder)DoB:Highly-prized capture from Stone Dominoes in October 2010, Karl made an immediate impact at the higher level scoring nine times from midfield in his debut season. Uses his height well to win the ball and his keen eye for the goal makes him a key element of Kidsgrove's attacking force. Debut: 12/10/2010 v Leek Town; Goals 9 |
| JONATHAN CROMPTON (defender)DoB:Former Port Vale youth and reserve centre back, who signed for Kidsgrove in December 2011, providing some assured performances in the centre back position. He had previously spent eight years at Manchester United's academy. Debut: 03/12/2011 v Belper Town; Goals 0 |
 | ROSS DAVIDSON (midfielder)DoB: 06/09/1989Ross is a former professional with Port Vale, having made 28 first-team appearances between 2008 and 2009. While at Vale Park he spent time on loan with Stafford Rangers and Nantwich Town. Directly before signing for Athletic in June 2011, he had been with Hednesford Town, helping them reach the Southern Premier League play-off finals, where they missed out on promotion to Salisbury City. He scored on debut for Kidsgrove, and his experience at higher levels should be a valuable asset. Click here to view Ross Davidson's Wikipedia profile Debut: 13/08/2011 v Stamford; Goals 2 |
 | CRAIG DOVE (defender)DoB: 06/08/1983Born in Hartlepool, Craig started his career at Middlesbrough, coming through the youth system and making two first team appearances. After a spell on loan at York City, he moved to Rushden and Diamonds in July 2004 where he spent a season, before transferring to Chester City. He joined Kidsgrove in July 2008, and his experience has proved a valuable asset to a very young squad. In his time at Kidsgrove, he has alternated between playing in defence and midfield and has reverted to a more advanced role this season, which saw him write himself into Kidsgrove fokelore with a stunning goal to help knock Boston out of the FA Cup. Craig is also team captain. Debut: 16/08/2008 v Goole; Goals 7 |
 | DANNY GRIGGS (midfield/forward)DoB:Vastly experienced player who joined from Congleton Town in June 2011. He has spent the majority of his career at Nantwich Town having first appeared for the Dabbers in 1998 and was part of the team that won the FA Vase fnal in 2006. In addition to this, he has played in the Conference with Northwich Victoria and also counts Mossley among his former clubs. Debut: 13/08/2011 v Stamford; Goals 1 |
 | SAM HALL (midfield)DoB:Young midfielder who signed from Hednesford Town in June 2009. A skilful and strong player, who has already attracted the attention of clubs much higher up in the pyramid, he really began to establish himself as a key player during the second half of the 2009/10 season, with a series of strong performaces. He carried this forward into the following season, winning admiration from fans and officials alike, resulting in him being awarded Manager's Player of the Year for 2010/11. As well as being assured on the ball, he possesses a potent long throw which the team has been able to use to great effect. He started his career at Burton Albion and progressed through their youth system. He spent most of the 2007/08 season on loan at Hednesford Town, before signing for them in June 2008 on his release from Burton. Debut: 18/08/2009 v Sheffield; Goals 7 |
 | STEVE HODGSON (goalkeeper)DoB:Highly-rated goalkeeper who signed from local rivals Leek Town in January 2011. Having started his career at Manchester City, before moving on to Macclesfield Town and Nuneaton Borough. He first signed for Leek in February 2003, but then moved on to Stocksbridge Park Steels in September 2004. After a break from the game, he returned to Harrison Park in March 2008 where he remained until joining Kidsgrove. Debut: 15/01/2011 v Quorn; Goals 0 |
| ANDY KINSEY (forward)DoB: 08/11/1978Experienced and popular striker who rejoined Kidsgrove for his third spell from Witton Albion in June 2011. He made his debut for Kidsgrove back in 1999, scoring the winner against Salford City in the North West Counties League. Over the coming seasons he netted 47 times for Atheltic before moving on to join Leek Town. Andy then enjoyed a highly successful spell at Nantwich Town, helping them secure promotion into the Northern Premier League. He also scored two of the three goals and won the Man of the Match Award in The Dabbers 2006 FA Vase Final triumph. Debut: 05/10/1999 v Salford City; Goals 57 |
 | AIDEN MATRANGA (midfield)DoB: 30/11/1986Pacey winger who moved to Kidsgrove in June 2006 after his release from Macclesfield Town whom he had represented at Youth and Reserve levels. He started to contribute goals regularly towards the end of his debut season including a memorable strike in the 6-1 Staffordshire Senior Cup final triumph over Rushall Olympic. Has gone on to be a valuable and popular member of the team and is currently the longest-serving player at the club, having now made in the region of 200 appearances. Unfortunately, his sixth season at Kidsgrove has not been a happy one, and he is unlikely to play again this year due to a serious knee injury. Debut: 19/08/2006 v Clitheroe; Goals 32 |
 | LIAM SHOTTON (forward)DoB:Popular striker who first joined Kidsgrove from North West Counties side Norton United. After scoring a hat-trick on his home debut against Alsager he went on to score six goals in ten games at the end of the 2007/08 season. He had a brief spell at Nantwich Town but came back to Clough Hall in December 2008, scoring on his first game back. He spent a large part of the 2009/10 season on the bench due to the prolific Dave Walker and Matt Haddrell partnership, but still found the net 15 times to maintain an impressive goals to games return. He departed for Stafford Rangers in July 2011, but returned to the Seddon Stadium in December 2011. Debut: 22/03/2008 v Goole; Appearances; Goals 49 |
 | DANNY SMITH (defender)DoB: 13/10/1986Right back who signed from Rocester in July 2008, where he had spent nearly a year having previously been with Nantwich Town. His assurance on the ball under pressure averts many a difficult situation for Kidsgrove at the back, often with a calm back pass to the keeper, while his forward runs provide an attacking outlet for the team. His popularity with the fans is evident as he has won the Supporters' Player of the Year award for the past three seasons. Debut: 16/08/2008 v Goole; Goals 5 |
| ANDY TAYLOR (defender)DoB:Strong-tackling defender signed from Leek Town in August 2011. He started his career at Port Vale before moving on to Stone Dominoes, and then moved onto Nantwich Town where he spent three seasons and collected an FA Vase Winners medal in 2006. After leaving The Dabbers, he joined Leek, eventually becoming captain before moving on to Atheltic. Debut: 27/08/2011 v Ilkeston; Goals 0 |
| PAUL TAYLOR (defender)DoB:Profile to follow. Debut: ; Goals 0 |
 | DAVE WALKER (forward)DoB:Signed from Nantwich Town in June 2009, where he scored 29 goals during the 2008/09 season, forging a productive partnership with ex-Kidsgrove frontman Michael Lennon. His impact at the Seddon Stadium was instant as he found the net seven times during the pre-season programme despite missing half the games with an ankle injury. He scored on his competitive debut for Kidsgrove and followed that up two matches later by scoring all the goals in a 5-0 thrashing of Spalding United, a feat he remarkably repeated later in the season in a 5-2 win over Leek Town. Despite missing a large number of games through injury, he was the top goalscorer in all the Northern Premier League divisions in 2009/10 with 38 goals. He then went even better last year, finding the net 40 times. Dave has previously represented Stone Dominoes, Alsager Town and Stafford Rangers and also played two years for Canterbury FC in New Zealand. Debut: 15/08/2009 v Quorn; Goals 91 |