Joel Byrom


Joel Alan Byrom is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for League Two club Stevenage.
Byrom started his career at Blackburn Rovers at the age of 14, and spent four and a half years on the club's books, progressing from their centre of excellence to the reserve team. He did not make any first-team appearances for the club, and was subsequently released in summer 2006. He joined League Two club Accrington Stanley before the start of the 2006–07 season, although was released by Accrington in January 2007, and opted to join local side Clitheroe on a short-term basis. Byrom then signed for Southport, before rejoining Clitheroe in August 2007; captaining the side at the age of 20.
He attracted the interest of Northwich Victoria, who subsequently signed him for a small four-figure fee in January 2008. Byrom spent a year and a half at the Cheshire club, before joining Stevenage for a fee of £15,000 in May 2009 – helping them achieve promotion to the Football League for the first time in the club's history. Byrom was also part of the Stevenage side that earned back-to-back promotions to League One during the 2010–11 season. He left Stevenage after three years and joined Preston North End in August 2012. During his time at Preston, he was loaned out to Oldham Athletic and Northampton respectively. The latter move was made permanent in January 2015, and he went on to be part of the side that secured promotion to League One during the 2015–16 season. Byrom joined Mansfield Town in December 2016 and spent a year-and-a-half there before being released in May 2018. A month later, he rejoined Stevenage.
Byrom has also represented the England C team and earned his solitary cap in a game against the Belgium U21 team.

Club career

Early career

Born in Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, Byrom started his career at the Blackburn Rovers centre of excellence after being spotted playing for local junior side Oswaldtwistle United at the age of 14. He progressed through the youth system at Ewood Park, and captained the under–17 side, before graduating into the reserve team after impressing in the FA Youth Cup in 2004. However, he failed to break into the first-team and was subsequently released in 2006. He signed for League Two club Accrington Stanley on a six-month contract ahead of the 2006–07 season, after impressing manager John Coleman whilst on trial, a trial which Byrom had requested. His grandfather Ray Byrom played for the old Accrington Stanley F.C. club in the 1950s. He made his debut for the Lancashire side in a 1–1 draw against Carlisle United in the Football League Trophy in October 2006. However, Byrom found it difficult to break into the first-team, making one further appearance for Stanley, featuring as a substitute in a 3–3 draw with Shrewsbury Town. He was subsequently released in January 2007, after being deemed surplus to requirements at the Crown Ground. Byrom later stated at this stage in his career he "considered just getting a job and playing for fun", and that his time at Accrington "wasn't really a good time for me. I didn't play much".
Shortly after, Byrom joined Northern Premier League First Division side Clitheroe on a short-term contract. He finished the 2006–07 season top scorer with 11 league goals despite only joining the club in January 2007, including a hat-trick against Kidsgrove Athletic. However, Byrom's Clitheroe contract expired and Conference North club Southport took him on non-contract terms for the start of the 2007–08 season, where he scored two goals in two games. Despite being offered a contract by Southport manager Peter Davenport, Byrom opted to re-join Clitheroe in August 2007. On signing a two-year deal with Clitheroe, Byrom said "I thought about giving up football when I left Accrington, but I really enjoyed my time at Clitheroe, they've given me a new lease of life and a licence to do what I want on the park". Clitheroe chairman, Carl Garner, said "this is a big day for Clitheroe. This is one of the biggest signings the club has made. He's a special player and a special talent". In the first half of the 2007–08 season, Byrom scored six goals in all competitions for Clitheroe, which caught the attention of Conference Premier team Northwich Victoria. He played his last game for the Northern Premier League club in a 3–3 draw with local rivals Rossendale United, a game in which he captained the side for the first time.

Northwich Victoria

In January 2008, Northwich Victoria manager Dino Maamria announced the signing of Byrom on a free transfer. He made his debut for Northwich in a 2–1 defeat against Aldershot Town at Victoria Stadium, scoring Northwich's goal. Byrom played in the centre of midfield in Northwich's following match against Burton Albion at the Pirelli Stadium, setting up Northwich's only goal in a 4–1 defeat. He also assisted Northwich's second goal in a 3–2 win away at Woking. Byrom scored his second goal for Northwich two weeks later, scoring Northwich's second as they came back from a one-goal deficit to win 3–1 against Droylsden. He also provided the assist for Mark Roberts to score Northwich's second goal in a 4–3 victory against fellow relegation candidates Stafford Rangers. Byrom also scored in a 1–1 draw away to Histon in early April 2008, netting from 25 yards in the 88th minute to ensure Northwich earned a point. He scored a week later against Exeter City at St James Park; "firing in an unstoppable 30-yard free-kick" to restore parity in the 11th minute, although Northwich went on to lose the match 2–1. Byrom added a fifth goal to end the season, scoring the club's second in a 2–1 away victory at Stevenage, a result that ultimately secured Northwich's Conference Premier status for another season. He played 21 games during the club's 2007–08 campaign, scoring five times from midfield.
Ahead of the 2008–09 season, Byrom featured regularly in Northwich's pre-season campaign, and scored twice in a friendly game against Manchester United reserves in August 2008. During the early stages of the season, Byrom was a permanent fixture in the centre of Northwich's midfield. He created both of Northwich's goals in a 2–1 win at home to newly promoted Barrow, as well as scoring away at Kettering Town, a "25-yard drive into the top corner of the net". He also created both of Northwich's goals in a victory against Grays Athletic in October 2008. However, Byrom had a hernia operation shortly after the club's 4–1 loss to Eastbourne Borough in December, keeping him out of the first-team for a total of ten weeks. He returned to first-team action in February 2009, playing the whole match in a 1–0 defeat to Altrincham. He was a regular until the end of the season, and scored his second career hat-trick against Rushden and Diamonds in a 4–2 victory, although could not prevent the Vics relegation from the Conference Premier in April 2009 despite the club winning their last six games of the campaign. Byrom's last match for Northwich was in the club's 2–1 away win at the Kassam Stadium against Oxford United. He played a total of 52 games during his one and a half-year tenure with Northwich, scoring nine goals.

Stevenage

In May 2009, Stevenage signed Byrom for a fee of £15,000. Byrom was assigned the number 13 shirt ahead of the club's 2009–10 campaign. He made his debut for the Hertfordshire side in a 1–1 draw at home to Tamworth in the opening game of the 2009–10 season, but was sent-off in the 90th minute for a second bookable offence. He scored his first Stevenage goal on his return to the first-team in a 3–0 win against Ebbsfleet United, and also provided the assist for Stevenage's second in a 2–0 victory over Eastbourne Borough. Byrom scored his second goal for Stevenage in a 1–1 draw against Kettering Town in October 2009, curling a free-kick around the wall and into the net. He netted his third of the campaign in March 2010, scoring from just inside Crawley Town's half, lobbing the ball into the net from 45-yards. Shortly after, Byrom added a fourth goal to his tally in Stevenage colours in April 2010, scoring from six yards in a 2–0 win over Forest Green Rovers to ensure Stevenage were just two victories away from promotion. The following week, he scored in the second in a 2–0 win against Kidderminster Harriers in a game that witnessed Stevenage secure promotion to the Football League for the first time in their history. On finishing the season as league champions, Byrom said — "It feels brilliant. Words can't really describe it. It's an unbelievable feeling". He played 48 times in all competitions during his first season with the club, scoring five goals.
Byrom started in Stevenage's first ever Football League game, a 2–2 home draw against Macclesfield Town. He played in Stevenage's televised League Cup loss two days later against Championship side Portsmouth. The following week, Byrom gave away a penalty in a 1–0 defeat at Bradford City, which Gareth Evans converted to score the only goal of the game. After playing the whole game in Stevenage's 1–0 defeat at Cheltenham Town in September 2010, Byrom suffered a number of injuries that kept him out of the first-team for five months. He returned to first-team action in February 2011, coming on as an 89th-minute substitute in a 3–0 loss at Bury. Four days later, he started in a 1–0 defeat at Shrewsbury Town. He was an unused substitute for Stevenage's next five league matches, before starting in the club's 3–3 home draw with Bury on the final day of the 2010–11 season – playing a key role in two of Stevenage's goals to ensure the club reached the play-offs. Byrom scored his first goal of the season in Stevenage's 2–0 home win against Accrington Stanley in the play-off semi-final first leg, reaching the ball before Accrington goalkeeper Alex Cisak to double Stevenage's lead. He played the whole game in the second leg, a 1–0 victory that ensured Stevenage made the play-off final. Byrom started in the final, a 1–0 victory against Torquay United at Old Trafford, a win that meant Stevenage earned back-to-back promotions to League One. Despite ending the season on a positive note, Byrom made just 12 appearances, scoring once, due to a host of injuries interrupting his campaign.
He made his first start of the 2011–12 season in Stevenage's first home win of the campaign, playing the first 76 minutes in a 4–2 victory over Rochdale on 3 September 2011 Byrom scored his first goal of the season in the club's emphatic 6–1 away victory against Colchester United in December 2011, scoring the sixth goal after a fine individual run and finish. The following month, on 14 January 2012, Byrom doubled his goal tally for the season when he scored with a first-time finish from Luke Freeman's cross in Stevenage's 5–1 win over Rochdale at Spotland. Byrom scored in Stevenage's televised FA Cup tie away at Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur in that year, scoring from the penalty spot to give Stevenage a brief lead before Tottenham came back to secure a 3–1 win. He went on to score two further goals during the latter stages of the season; once in a 2–2 draw away at Sheffield United, and the other in a 3–0 win over Bury, on the last day of the regular season as Stevenage secured a play-off place following their sixth-place finish. He played in both play-off semi-final legs, which Stevenage lost 1–0 on aggregate to Sheffield United. He made 40 appearances during the season, scoring five times. Despite appearing regularly under new manager Gary Smith, Byrom rejected the offer of a contract extension, and left Stevenage in May 2012. During his successful three-year spell with the club, he made 100 appearances in all competitions, scoring eleven goals.

Preston North End

After leaving Stevenage, Byrom joined League One club Preston North End, then managed by Graham Westley, who had previously signed him for Stevenage. He signed on a free transfer. Byrom made his competitive debut for Preston in the club's 2–1 away victory over Bury, coming on as a second-half substitute. It took Byrom just three games to open his goalscoring account, scoring the first goal in the club's 5–0 win over Hartlepool United at Deepdale. In the club's following match four days later, on 22 September 2012, he netted in a 3–1 away defeat to Walsall, arriving unmarked in the area to give Preston an early lead in the match. His third and final goal of the campaign came at the beginning of November 2012, scoring from the edge of the area in Preston's 3–0 FA Cup win over Yeovil Town. Byrom made 27 appearances during his first season at Preston, eleven of which as a substitute, scoring three times.
Byrom remained at Preston for the start of the 2013–14 season, making his first appearance of the campaign on 25 August 2013, coming on as an 82nd-minute substitute and scoring five minutes later in an eventual 4–4 draw away at Coventry City. He started in the club's next league match, and scored once again, this time netting courtesy of a free-kick as Preston comfortably secured a 3–0 away win at Walsall. In December 2013, Byrom extended his contract with Preston for a further twelve months, thus keeping him contracted to the club until the summer of 2015.
Despite signing a new deal, Byrom did not feature again for Preston, and on 14 March 2014, he joined fellow League One club Oldham Athletic on an emergency loan until the end of the 2013–14 season. On securing Byrom on loan, Oldham manager Lee Johnson stated "Joel's come in to bolster us and adds a bit of experience at this level, which is something we need". He made his Oldham debut a day after joining the club, playing the whole match in a 1–1 draw at Crewe Alexandra. His loan spell at Oldham was disrupted by injury and he made just four appearances during the two-month spell before returning to parent club Preston in May 2014.

Northampton Town

Having made no appearances for Preston at the beginning of the 2014–15 campaign, Byrom joined League Two club Northampton Town on a four-month loan deal on 21 August 2014. He made his debut for Northampton two days after signing for the club, starting in a 1–1 draw against Shrewsbury Town at Sixfields. Byrom scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 away loss to Cheltenham Town on 18 October 2014, briefly restoring parity shortly after half-time with a neat finish. Byrom was a mainstay in the Northampton midfield during his loan spell, making 23 appearances, and his loan deal was subsequently made permanent on 8 January 2015. He joined Northampton on a short-term contract running until the end of the season after his contract with Preston was terminated by mutual consent. He continued to feature regularly for the remainder of the season, and added two further goals to his tally, both coming in February 2015; firstly scoring after just 26 seconds in a 2–1 victory over Morecambe, before netting Northampton's second as they beat Shrewsbury Town by the same scoreline. Shortly before the end of the season, on 23 April 2015, Byrom signed a new two-year contract with the club. He made 43 appearances in all competitions for Northampton, scoring three times, during a campaign that saw the club finish in mid-table in League Two.
Byrom started in the club's opening match of the 2015–16 season, playing the whole 90 minutes in a 1–0 away win at newly promoted Bristol Rovers on 8 August 2015. He scored his first goal of the season when his free-kick from the right touchline sailed straight in as Northampton secured a 4–2 win at Morecambe on 19 September 2015. He also scored an own goal in the same match. Byrom doubled his goal tally for the season in the club's 2–1 win at Crawley Town on 24 November 2015, following up on the rebound to score after Marc Richards penalty had been initially saved. He was once again a regular starter for the club throughout the season, making 40 appearances and scoring twice, in what was a successful campaign for Northampton as they secured promotion to League One after finishing as League Two champions. This meant it was the second time Byrom had won promotion from the fourth tier of English football, having achieved the same feat, but via the play-offs, at Stevenage five seasons earlier.
Despite having been a regular first-team starter at Northampton over the previous two seasons, Byrom made just four appearances in the opening four months of the 2016–17 season, of which two were in the EFL Trophy. In December 2016, with Byrom having not played for close to two months, the club released a statement announcing that Byrom's contract had been terminated. During his two-and-a-half years at Northampton, he made 83 appearances and scored five times.

Mansfield Town

On the same day as his Northampton departure was announced, on 31 December 2016, Byrom joined League Two club Mansfield Town. He made his Mansfield debut just three days later in the club's 1–0 away win at Blackpool. Byrom featured regularly in the centre of midfield for the remainder of the season, making 22 appearances. The 2017–18 season saw Byrom score his first goal for Mansfield, coming on as a half-time substitute and scoring four minutes later to give Mansfield the lead in an eventual 1–1 draw with Lincoln City on 6 March 2018. Having been in and out of the first-team all campaign, making 23 appearances, Byrom was released by Mansfield upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the season.

Return to Stevenage

Following his exit from Mansfield, Byrom rejoined League Two club Stevenage on 21 June 2018. The move meant he would be playing under manager Dino Maamria for the fourth time; Maamria previously signed Byrom for Northwich Victoria, as well as coaching him at Stevenage and Preston North End respectively. Byrom made his second Stevenage debut in the club's opening match of the 2018–19 season, scoring the club's second goal in an eventual 2–2 draw with Tranmere Rovers at Broadhall Way. He scored against his former club, Oldham Athletic, in a 3–2 home victory on 3 November 2018. Byrom was ever-present in the centre of midfield for Stevenage during the season, playing in all of the club's League Two, FA Cup and EFL Cup matches. He made 48 appearances during the season, scoring twice, as Stevenage finished in tenth position in League Two, one point off of the play-off places. He signed a one-year contract extension with the club on 25 June 2019.

International career

Byrom was called up to the England C team in May 2009, for the International Challenge Trophy final against a Belgium U21 side. Byrom started the match, as England were beaten 1–0 at the Kassam Stadium.

Style of play

Byrom is a midfielder, and is more comfortable in the centre of midfield. He is left-footed, although the left side is not his natural position, and he is rarely deployed as a winger. In 2007, Clitheroe chairman, Carl Garner, said that Byrom has "tremendous skill and potential", adding "Joel is a quality player. He can do things with the ball that players on the television can't. In May 2009, Stevenage manager Graham Westley believed that the acquisition of Byrom would "give the squad more balance", and has also described him as having a "cultured left-foot" that enables him to open up opposition defences. On securing the signature of Byrom, Westley said, "Joel is very creative going forward and is going to be one hell of a player. I was delighted to secure his signature as he is a real talent". Dino Maamria has called Byrom a "creative midfielder", as well as being able to unlock defences. Byrom has called himself "a good passer of the ball", as well as being able to "chip in with a few goals and generally get the team ticking over". In March 2010, following Stevenage's 3–0 win against Crawley Town, a game in which Byrom scored a goal from just inside Crawley's half, Westley said that Byrom has the "ability to score spectacular goals".

Career statistics

Honours

Stevenage
  • Conference Premier: 2009–10
  • FA Trophy runner-up: 2009–10
  • League Two play-offs: 2010–11
Northampton Town
  • League Two: 2015–16