Guy Bates

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Guy Bates
Personal information
Date of birth October 31, 1985 (1985-10-31) (age 22)
Place of birth    Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Height 1.83 m
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Drogheda United
Number 10
Youth clubs
1993-2004 Newcastle United
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
2004-2005
2005
2006
2006-2007
2007 -
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Jets
Darlington
KV Oostende
Drogheda United
0 (0)
3 (0)
9 (1)
24 (4)
3 (3)   

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 12:31, 2 October 2007 (UTC).
* Appearances (Goals)

Guy Bates (born October 31, 1985 in Newcastle upon Tyne) is an English footballer who plays for Drogheda United in the Eircom League.

[edit] Career

Bates joined his hometown club Newcastle United at the age of 8 in 1993, and moved through the youth system, setting several junior goalscoring records during that time.[1] With a view to progressing all the way to the firsts team, Bates played in the Newcastle Youth team up until 2004, with his goal taking the team to the final 16 in the 2003–04 FA Youth Cup.[2] The following season, Bates found a regular spot in the Reserves team, making 15 appearances and scoring a goal in the 2004–05 season.[3] Promotion into the firsts team proved significantly more difficult for Bates, however, as he was fighting for a place behind established strikers such as Alan Shearer, Shola Ameobi and Patrick Kluivert.[4] The lack of opportunities for Bates led him to seek a release from Newcastle and head to Australia in January 2005, where he trialled for the Newcastle United Jets. Two months later, in March, Bates signed a two-year deal with the newly established club, and spoke publicly about the possibility of a long-term stay in Australia.[5]

Bates played and scored regularly in the Jets' pre-season campaign, but did not make his A-League debut until round 4 of the competition, playing 64 minutes in a 4-0 victory over New Zealand Knights FC.[6] The match was one of just three appearances Bates made in the 2005–06 season,[7] and in November 2005, Bates was released by the club by mutual agreement, citing a lack of match time for wanting to leave.[8] Bates returned home to England in the hope of joining another club during the European January transfer window. Bates trialled at both English League Two club Darlington F.C. and Belgian club K.V. Mechelen, receiving an offer from the latter after scoring a hat-trick in a trial game.[9] He turned it down however, to play in his home country with Darlington, for whom he had already scored for in a trial match against Hartlepool United F.C..[9] Bates officially joined Darlington on February 3, 2006, signing a short-term deal until June 2006.[10] Bates made his Darlington league debut the day after signing, coming on as a substitute in the team's 0-0 draw with Boston United F.C.. Despite being unable to find the back of the net in that match, it took Bates just 10 minutes into his next appearance to score his first Darlington goal, in a 2-0 reserves win against Hull City A.F.C..[9] Over the remainder of the season, Bates could not find a regular starting spot in the Darlington line-up, and played just nine games for one goal as the team finished 8th in the league.[11] Bates was released by the club in May 2006,[12]. He then played for for KV Oostende in the Belgian Second Division. Bates signed for eircom League of Ireland leaders Drogheda United July 31st, 2007.

Bates recently scored the winner against Cork City which won the title for Drogheda for the first time ever.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Top Guns – Jets Youth Aim High (August 4, 2005). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  2. ^ Stoke City Youths 0, Newcastle United Youths 1. icNewcastle (January 21, 2004). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  3. ^ A-League Ex-Files: Newcastle United Jets FC. pintculture.com. Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  4. ^ Jets sign Magpie Guy. The World Game (March 16, 2005). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  5. ^ Newcastle Jets signing Bates has eyes on Aussie cap (April 19, 2005). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  6. ^ Cockerill, Michael (September 19, 2005). Knightmare for rivals as Jets fire title warning. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  7. ^ Player Statistics. Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  8. ^ Guy Bates Returns Home (November 22, 2005). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  9. ^ a b c Bates finds feet at Darlington. The World Game (February 10, 2006). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  10. ^ Hodgson happy to give Bates short-term deal (February 3, 2006). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  11. ^ Breaking News (May 17, 2006). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.
  12. ^ Bates released by Darlington. The World Game (May 19, 2006). Retrieved on July 1, 2006.

[edit] References