Tom Soares
FullnameThomas James Soares[1]
Birth date10 July 1986 (age 40)
Birth placeReading, England
Height6.0 ft (1.83 metres)[2]
PositionMidfielder
Youthyears 12000–2003
Youthclubs 1Crystal Palace
Years 12003–2008
Clubs 1Crystal Palace
Caps 1149
Goals 111
Years 22008–2012
Clubs 2Stoke City
Caps 27
Goals 20
Years 32009
Clubs 3→ Charlton Athletic (loan)
Caps 311
Goals 31
Years 42009–2010
Clubs 4→ Sheffield Wednesday (loan)
Caps 425
Goals 42
Years 52012
Clubs 5→ Hibernian (loan)
Caps 510
Goals 52
Years 62012–2017
Clubs 6Bury
Caps 6164
Goals 622
Years 72017–2019
Clubs 7AFC Wimbledon
Caps 769
Goals 71
Clubs 8Stevenage
Years 82019–2020
Caps 815
Goals 80
Goals 91
Clubs 10Dorchester Town
Years 102021–2022
Caps 1025
Goals 101
Clubs 11Marlow
Years 112023–2024
Caps 1119
Goals 112
Nationalyears 12005–2007
Nationalteam 1England U21
Nationalcaps 14
Nationalgoals 10
Club-update15:02, 21 April 2025 (UTC)

Thomas James Soares (born 10 July 1986) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder. He has previously played for Crystal Palace, Stoke City, Bury, AFC Wimbledon and Stevenage.

Career

Crystal Palace

Born in Reading, Berkshire, Soares came up through the Crystal Palace academy, playing in central midfield.[citation needed] When he made the Palace first team he was used as a winger.[citation needed] Under the management of Neil Warnock, however, Soares was played in central midfield.[citation needed] His driving runs, combined with his best goalscoring season to date, meant that he was a key performer in the 2007–08 season for Palace.[citation needed]

Stoke City

In August 2008 Soares joined Premier League newcomers Stoke City for a fee of £1.25 million.[3] He made an impressive start, as in his second match for Stoke he won two penalty kicks in a 2–1 win against Tottenham Hotspur at the Britannia Stadium.[4] Soares played a few more matches for Stoke, against Sunderland, Manchester City, Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion.[5] After playing against Hartlepool United in the FA Cup, however, Soares failed to make a league appearance.[5] He was loaned out to Charlton Athletic for the remainder of the 2008–09 season,[6] but failed to help keep them in the Championship.[7] Soares scored one goal for Charlton, on 3 February against Bristol City.[8]

Back at Stoke, he failed to make a Premier League appearance in the 2009–10 season.[9] On 26 November 2009 Soares joined Sheffield Wednesday, initially on a month-long loan deal,[10] but he remained there until the end of the season. As with Charlton, Soares was part of a team who were relegated from the Championship.[11] His misery was compounded by it coming at the hands of former club Crystal Palace, who stayed up at Wednesday's expense.[12] Soares had now been relegated three times in his short career.[13] In March 2011, Soares played for Stoke for the first time in almost 18 months, against Cardiff City in the FA Cup.[14] Soares again failed to make a single Premier League appearance for Stoke during the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons.[14][15] His last league appearance for Stoke was in December 2008.[5]

On 23 January 2012, Soares joined Scottish Premier League club Hibernian on loan until the end of the 2011–12 season.[16] He scored two goals in a 3–1 win against Kilmarnock on 25 February.[17]

He was released by Stoke at the end of the 2011–12 season.[18]

On 16 August 2012, it was reported by The News that Soares was training with Portsmouth.[19]

Bury

On 9 November 2012, Soares joined Bury on non-contract terms.[20] He re-signed for Bury on a two-year deal on 2 July 2013.[21] Soares scored the winning goal against Tranmere Rovers on the last day of the 2014–15 season that gained Bury 3rd place and automatic promotion to League One.[22][23]

AFC Wimbledon

On 31 January 2017, Soares left Bury and signed for fellow League One side AFC Wimbledon.[24] He scored his first goal for the club on 1 January 2018 against Southend United.[25]

Stevenage

After spending the pre-season with Stevenage FC he officially signed for the club on 2 August 2019.[26]

In July 2021, Soares joined Southern Football League side Dorchester Town,[27] where he went on to make 25 league appearances.[28]

Personal life

His brother Louie is also a footballer, who has represented Barbados.

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueFA CupLeague CupOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Crystal Palace2003–04[29]First Division3000000030
2004–05[30]Premier League220103100261
2005–06[31]Championship441102020491
2006–07[32]Championship373000000373
2007–08[33]Championship396100020426
2008–09[5]Championship4110000051
Total1491140514016212
Stoke City2008–09[5]Premier League701000―80
2009–10[9]Premier League000030―30
2010–11[14]Premier League001000―10
2011–12[15]Premier League0000001010
Total70203010130
Charlton Athletic (loan)2008–09[5]Championship111000000111
Sheffield Wednesday (loan)2009–10[9]Championship25210―00262
Hibernian (loan)2011–12[15]Scottish Premier League102300000132
Bury2012–13[34]League One232100000242
2013–14[35]League Two306201000336
2014–15[22]League Two438201020488
2015–16[36]League One424501020504
2016–17[37]League One262201030322
Total16422120407018722
AFC Wimbledon2016–17[37]League One150000000150
2017–18[25]League One311300010351
2018–19[38]League One230301021291
Total691601031792
Stevenage2019–20[39]League Two150101030200
Dorchester Town2021–22[40]Southern League Premier Division South25110―10271
Marlow2022–23[41]Isthmian League South Central Division91――10101
2023–24[42]Isthmian League South Central Division10130―20151
Total19230―30252
Career total4944233014122156344
A.  The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the English Football League play-offs, UEFA Europa League, EFL Trophy, FA Trophy, Berks & Bucks Senior Cup and Isthmian League Cup

References

  1. ^ "Notification of shirt numbers: Stevenage". English Football League. p. 68. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
  2. ^ "Premier League Player Profile Tom Soares". Premier League. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
  3. ^ "Soares delighted to be at Stoke". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 March 2011.
  4. ^ "Stoke City 2–1 Tottenham". Stoke City official site. Stoke City. 19 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  5. ^
  6. ^ "Soares makes Charlton loan switch". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 March 2011.
  7. ^
  8. ^ "Bristol City 2–1 Charlton". BBC Sport. BBC. 3 February 2009. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  9. ^
  10. ^ "Stoke allow duo to leave on loan". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 March 2011.
  11. ^
  12. ^ "Wednesday 2 – 2 Palace". BBC Sport. BBC. 2 May 2010.
  13. ^ Haggerty, Anthony (4 February 2012). "Hibs loan signing Tom Soares admits he couldn't bear being relegated for a fourth time in his career". Daily Record. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  14. ^
  15. ^
  16. ^ "Soares Signs For Hibs". Stoke City. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  17. ^ "Kilmarnock 1–3 Hibernian". BBC Sport. BBC. 25 February 2012. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  18. ^ "FREE TRANSFER LIST 2011/12". Premier League. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  19. ^ Allen, Neil (16 August 2012). "Williamson and Soares train with Pompey". The News (Portsmouth). Johnston Press. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  20. ^ "Soares soars in". Bury FC. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  21. ^ "Soares signs new deal with Bury". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  22. ^
  23. ^
  24. ^ "AFC Wimbledon sign Bury's Soares". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  25. ^
  26. ^ "Tom Soares completes Stevenage move". www.stevenagefc.com. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
  27. ^ "Welcome Tom Soares". Dorchester Town F.C.. 9 July 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  28. ^ "Tom Soares Profile". aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
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  40. ^ "Tom Soares Profile". Aylesbury United FC. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  41. ^ "Tom Soares Match List". Marlow Football Club. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  42. ^ "Tom Soares Match List". Marlow Football Club. Retrieved 21 April 2025.