PAST PLAYERS
MATTHEW GREGG
Goalkeeper Matt (Upton St Leonards PS) played for GPSFA for two seasons between 1988 and 1990. He was ever-present when Gloucester won the Cotswold League and gained first place at the Jersey Festival during the 1989/90 season.
Matt started his league career at Torquay, making his debut as a sixteen year old against Wigan Athletic. He went on to appear at Wembley in the 3rd division play off against Colchester in the 97/98 season, his team going down to a late penalty.
Matt impressed Terry Venables when Torquay played Crystal Palace in a 1998 Coca-Cola League Cup tie, so much so that he signed him for a fee of £400,000. After 3 seasons as the Palace No 2, the signing of Matt Clarke from Bradford City for a £1.4m fee saw Matthew drop down the rankings and he left the club in December 2001 to take up a playing career with Bray Wanderers in the Irish League. He transferred to Bohemians in the summer of 2003, for whom he appeared in the qualifying stages of the Champions League. After 51 appearances for Bohemians, Matt played for several Irish League sides including UCD FC and Dundalk before returning to Bray in 2010. Matt retired in 2011 to concentrate on running his own specialist goalkeeping school (Just4Keepers) in Dublin.
Professional career (League games only): Torquay United (95-98): 32 matches. Swansea City (98/99): 5 matches. Crystal Palace (98-01): 7 matches. Exeter City (loan): 4 matches. Total (not including Cup games): 48 matches. Irish League (total): 185.
WAYNE THOMAS
Wayne (Moat Primary School) played in the same team as Matt Gregg. He began his career as a forward/ attacking midfielder, scoring 25 goals in 39 appearances for Gloucester Primary Schools.
Wayne went the same way as Gregg, signing YTS forms with Torquay United in 1995. He also played at Wembley in the Division Three Play Off Final, though by this time he had been converted to a highly efficient centre back.
In August 2000 Wayne was bought by Stoke City for the sum of £200,000 rising to £250,000 based on appearances. He was a virtual ever present in the Potters’ defence and at the end of both his first and second seasons at the club, won the supporter’s Player of the Year award. Wayne was transferred to Burnley in the summer of 2005 and became GPSFA’s first million pound player when joining Southampton in August 2007, for whom he was a regular that season. A serious injury sidelined him for much of the next season, though he was back in first team action at the beginning of 09/10.
Following the expiry of his contract, Wayne transferred to Doncaster Rovers in the summer of 2010 and after a year there had spells at Greek Premier League side Atromitos Athens, Luton Town and Rochdale. Since retiring, he has been Manager of Rushall Olympic in the Northern Premier League and an academy coach at New York Red Bulls, while he is currently working in China.
Professional Career Record: Torquay United (95-00): 141 matches (6 goals). Stoke City (00-July 04): 215 matches (6 goals). Burnley (05-08) 54 games (1 goal). Southampton (09-10) 59 matches (1 goal). Doncaster Rovers (10-11) 21 matches; Atromis Athens: 26 matches; Luton Town: 2 matches; Rochdale: 2 matches. Professional career: 523 games (14 goals).
PHIL GREENING
Phil attended Kingsholm Primary School and was a highly-rated goalkeeper during his time playing for Gloucester Primary Schools. He appeared in 9 of the team’s 11 matches during 1986/87.
Soon after leaving primary school, Phil changed codes and took up the oval ball game. He went on to play for England at rugby and was selected for the 2001 British Lions tour to Australia. In total, Phil played in 24 internationals, scoring 6 tries. At club level, Phil left Gloucester for Sale in July 1998 and after two seasons with the Manchester-based club, moved south to London to take up a place in the Wasps team where he won 4 major trophies before retiring in 2005.
Phil spent 2 seasons as assistant coach to the England Sevens squad and after returning from a period living in Singapore, took up the post of assistant coach at London Welsh RFC. On the departure of Danny Wilson to Newport Gwent Dragons, Phil became head coach before taking up the position of head coach and programme manager for the Scottish Rugby 7s set up in 2012 and since then has worked as a coach for the USA national 7s squad.
NEIL MUSTOE
Neil (Harewood Junior School) played for the Primary Schools from 1986-1988, making 23 appearances, scoring 7 times.
His career began as a trainee with Manchester United in July 1993, where he started out as a centre-forward before switching to a midfield role. A hard-working all-rounder, Neil represented England in the Under-16 European Championships, scoring 4 times in 4 games and won an FA Youth Cup winners’ medal in 1995 during his four and a half year spell at Old Trafford.
He signed for Wigan Athletic on a free transfer from United, but only managed one LDV Cup appearance, before being picked up by Cambridge United in the summer of 1998 where he was a regular for the next 3 seasons. Following his release, Neil had brief spells at Stevenage and Yeovil Town in the Conference, before joining Gloucester City. As club captain he led them to promotion to Conference North in 2008/09 and after a 1-game spell as manager, took over as player/coach, a position he held until the summer of 2014. Neil has since coached with the club’s U18 squad, before stepping down last year.
Professional career: Cambridge United (98-01): 118 matches (4 goals). Non-league: Gloucester City 389 matches (9 goals); Stevenage: 2 matches; Yeovil Town: 2 matches.
LEE MANSELL
Lee (Calton Primary School) played for Gloucester PSFA during the 92/93 & 93/94 seasons. He made 62 appearances (18 goals) for the A Side and 10 appearances (5 goals) for the B Team during his two years in GPSFA colours, while he was A team captain during his second season.
Lee trained with Luton Town as a schoolboy, signing YTS forms at 16 and making an immediate impact by scoring in his first outing against Southend United U-18s. He made five reserve team appearances in the 1999/2000 season before making national headlines when scoring just 58 seconds into his first team debut in an FA Cup tie at QPR in January 2000/01.
Lee played in 18 more first team games, scoring a further 5 times before the end of the season to earn himself a 3 year contract which was extended by a further year during the summer of 2004.
In the summer of 2005 Lee was transferred to Oxford United where he was a virtual ever present in central midfield, earning the Player of the Year award in the process and repeated both feats after signing for Torquay United in 2006, for whom he also made a Wembley appearance in the 2008 FA Trophy final. Following the disappointment of defeat in that game, a second Wembley appearance 12 months later more than compensated as Torquay’s 2-0 victory over Cambridge United saw them return to the football league, Lee netting to help earn an opening day win over Chesterfield in their first game back in August 09.
Having racked up just over 500 league & cup matches for Luton, Oxford & Torquay, Lee transferred to Bristol Rovers in the summer of 2014 and scored the winning penalty in the National League play-off final against Grimsby to see Rovers return to the EFL after just a single season out. He retired in the summer of 2017 to take up a coaching role in the club’s academy.
After leaving Rovers in the summer of 2021, Lee was appointed manager of Gloucester City FC and now works for the PFA.
Career Record to July 2017: Luton Town: 62 matches (10 goals). Oxford United: 50 games (2 goals). Torquay United 389 matches (28 goals). Bristol Rovers: 85 matches (7 goals). Total (July 2013): 586 games (47 goals).
SHAYNE BRADLEY
Shayne (Heron Primary School) played for GPSFA during the successful 1990/91 campaign, making 41 appearances, during which time he scored 14 goals. In 1994/95, Shayne represented England Schoolboys at U-15 level, playing in 7 international matches that season.
He signed professional forms for Southampton in 1998 after completing his time as a YTS player and made four Premier League appearances over the next three seasons. Shayne left the Saints to join Mansfield Town for a then club record fee of £150,000 in October 2000 in search of regular first team football and despite injury problems played in 26 of the club’s matches that season.
Following his time at Mansfield, Shayne had brief spells at Chesterfield and Lincoln, though persistent injury problems saw him having to retire permanently from the professional game.
Shayne continued to be involved in the game as a centre forward at Gloucester Hellenic League side Tuffley Rovers, before finally hanging up his well-worn boots in 2018.
Professional career: Southampton (98-00): 4 matches. Swindon Town (98/99): 7 matches. Exeter City (99/00): 8 matches (1 goal). Mansfield Town (00/01): 47 matches (11 goals). Chesterfield: 9 games (2 goals). Lincoln: 3 games (1 goal). Total: 78 matches (16 goals).
STEVE COWE
Steve (Grange Primary School) played for GPSFA in 1983/84 and signed for Aston Villa in 1992. After three seasons as a regular scorer for the reserves, switched to Swindon Town in 1995 for a fee of £100,000, where he stayed until 2001. Injuries limited his appearances in his final season and he left in the summer to join Newport County, following which he enjoyed spells at Forest Green Rovers, Cirencester Town and Cinderford Town.
Professional career (League games only): Swindon Town (95-01): 97 matches (11 goals); Hereford United 14 matches (2 goals). Non-league: (Newport County, Forest Green, Weston Super Mare & Cinderford): 198 matches (21 goals).
RYAN LAMB
Ryan’s (Tredworth Junior School) 14 goals in 23 games made him GPSFA B Squad’s top scorer in 1996/97. Since then he forged a successful rugby career at Gloucester RFC, during which time he played for England Saxons and put himself on the fringe of full international honours with a succession of fine displays for the Cherry & Whites.
With Gloucester’s 2008/09 campaign falling away, a good number of players were released at the season’s end and Ryan moved to London Irish in June 2009 before signing for Northampton Saints in June 2011. A short spell at Leicester Tigers in 2013/14 preceded a move to Worcester Warriors, his fifth Premiership club, in February 2014. In 2017, Ryan moved to La Rochelle in France on a two-year contract, before retiring in 2019.
Career record to September 2017: Gloucester RFC: 58 games (373 points); London Irish RFC: 34 games (300 points); Northampton Saints: 37 games (244 points); Leicester Tigers: 6 games (32 points); Worcester Warriors: 46 games (253 points); La Rochelle: 5 games (32 points). England Saxons: 5 games (46 points). Total: 191 games (1280 points).
TYLER WEIR
Tyler (Robinswood Primary School) occupied a central midfield role for GPSFA in the 2001/02 season, from which he scored 22 goals in 30 appearances.
He played in various Swindon Town youth sides before joining Hereford United in 2006. After a successful spell in the Hereford youth set up, Tyler signed a six month professional contract in July 2009, making his first team debut v MK Dons in December 2009 before playing 8 further games. Tyler then spent two spells at Gloucester City with a season at Worcester in between, before returning to Worcester on a permanent basis in 2013. There was a further Gloucester-Worcester see-saw in 2018, before Tyler retired from the semi-pro game.
Career record: Hereford United: 9 matches. Non-league: Gloucester City 62 matches (5 goals); Worcester City 176 matches (7 goals).
JOE HANKS
Joe (St Mary’s Primary School) captained GPSFA to their only Witney Cup victory in 2005/06, playing in 31 games (12 goals) in a central midfield role while captaining the team.
After successfully coming through a 2-year scholarahip, Joe signed a professional contract with Cheltenham Town in the summer of 2013, having made his first team debut v Exeter City during the previous season. Joe kicked off the 2014/15 season in style by scoring the winning goal against Bury and went on to make 37 appearances for The Robins. He spent much of 2015/16 on loan at Gloucester City before signing permanently in June 2016 following his release from Cheltenham. Joe ended his 4-year stay at his home town club when he transferred to Chippenham Town in June 2020, but returned to Gloucester in June 2023.
Career record to July 2024: Cheltenham Town: 37 matches (2 goals); Gloucester City 246 matches (33 goals); Chippenham Town: 92 matches (15 goals).
ZACK KOTWICA
Zack’s (Finlay Primary School) 66 goals in 35 2006/07 matches made him GPSFA’s record goalscorer. Left foot, right foot, top corner, bottom corner, volley, drive, chip – he scored them all.
Awarded a scholarship at Cheltenham Town in the summer of 2012, Zack signed a two-year pro contract in August 2013 after making his debut in the season’s opening game against Burton Albion and made 35 first team appearances for The Robins. He had loan spells at Gloucester City and Cirencester Town before his release by Cheltenham in 2016 when he signed for Gloucester. There have been spells at Tamworth and Salisbury in recent years, but Zack returned to The Tigers in 2018 before moving to Swindon Supermarine in June 2020.
Career record to July 2024: Cheltenham Town: 35 matches (2 goals); Gloucester City 81 matches (16 goals); Cirencester Town 17 matches (7 goals); Salisbury City 32 games (11 goals); Tamworth 11 games (1 goal); Swindon Supermarine: 146 games (25 goals).
JIMMY COX
Jimmy attended Upton St Leonards Primary School and played 36 games in GPSFA’s all-conquering 1990/91 team. His quick feet and darting runs caused defenders no end of problems that season and the same attributes led to him signing for Luton Town in 1999.
Jimmy made ten league & cup appearances for the Hatters before beginning a non-league career that took in Bath City and Weston Super-Mare, though the majority of his appearances came in four separate spells at Gloucester City where he scored 96 goals in 209 outings.
Career record: Luton Town: 10 games. Non-league: Gloucester City, Bath City, Weston Super-Mare, Yate Town, Cinderford Town.
CAMERON WALTERS
Cam (King’s School) played for GPSFA in the 2017/18 season, making 31 appearances and scoring 12 goals. On 18th October 2022, he became Cheltenham Town’s youngest-ever first-team player when he took to the field against West Ham U21s in the Papa Johns Trophy, aged just 16 years and 9 days.
GRACE MCCATTY
Grace (Fieldcourt Junior School) created a Gloucester Schools’ record in 2000/01 when she appeared for all three of GPSFA’s U11 teams (A, B & Girls) in the same season.
Grace signed for Bristol City WFC in 2006 and was a member of the club’s 2011 and 2013 WFA Cup Final teams. She has also represented England as a youth international, twice won medals at the World University Games and captained Bristol in the Women’s Champions League when her team knocked out Barcelona in 2015/16. Grace had a brief spell at Durham City before moving to Sunderland for whom she play over 100 times before retiring, aged 34, at the end of the 2023/24 season.
NICK SELWAY
Nick (Longlevens Junior School) was GPSFA’s B Team goalkeeper in 1999/00. He made one appearance for the A Squad in a 1-0 win at Vale of White Horse, a match which saw Gloucester end the hosts’ 18-month unbeaten run.
After spells at Lydney RFC and Cinderford RFC, Nick signed professional forms for Championship side Jersey in August 2013 during which time he converted from tight-head prop to hooker. Nick became Jersey RFC’s longest serving player during his six-year stay on the island, but signed for National League One Chinnor in June 2019.
RORY TEAGUE
Rory (Kingsholm Primary School) played 34 games in midfield for the Gloucester A Squad in the 1995/96 season, a campaign which saw the team win the Cotswold League and finish in first place at the Jersey Festival.
Rugby was always going to be Rory’s eventual sporting route however and after playing spells at Gloucester, Bristol and latterly in France, he took up a coaching role at Harrow School. Positions with both Saracens and Wasps followed, before he working with the England U20 team.
Following a successful spell in this role, during which the side won the Junior World Championship in 2016, Rory graduated to skills coach with the full England squad where he worked under Eddie Jones, before taking over as head coach of French Top-14 club, Bordeaux-Begles. In June 2019, Rory left France for a second time to return to Kingsholm, but left as a result of the 2020 coaching shake-up.
TOM WEBB
Tom (Moat Primary School) played for GPSFA from 1993-95, making 69 appearances and scoring 5 goals during that time. His non-stop midfield running and leadership ability were very much to the fore in those days and things were no different over 20 years on.
Tom went on to be Gloucester City’s record appearance holder and when he finally retired in 2018/19, he’d made a staggering 718 appearances for his hometown team, scoring 38 goals. Tom made his debut against Bromsgrove Rovers in 2001, played every minute of every game in 2004/05, was voted the most influential player in Gloucester City history by The Citizen newspaper in 2017 and by common consent is without doubt the greatest player ever to represent The Tigers.
DOMINIC BERNARD
Dominic (Upton St Leonards Primary School) represented GPSFA in 2007/08, making 36 appearances and scoring 4 goals, including a last-minute winner against the host association at the Jersey Festival that made the island’s Evening Post.
Dom spent several seasons at Birmingham City, captaining their U23 side on several occasions, but spent most of 2018/19 on loan at National League Aldershot Town before signing for Forest Green Rovers in July 2019. Since then he became a first team regular, captaining the club for a season, but following their relegation to the National League in 2024, DB was released after playing 167 first team matches over his five years at FGR. Dom signed for National League Yeovil Town at the beginning of September and celebrated by scoring the winning goal in a 4-3 victory at Fylde on his debut.
Professional career to July 2024: Aldershot Town 35 games; Forest Green Rovers 167 games (1 goal); Republic of Ireland U17 & U18s: 3 games.
ADEN BALDWIN
Aden (Harewood Junior School) played for GPSFA in 2007/08, scoring 7 times in 36 games from his centre back position (including a hat trick of headers against Gosport & Fareham).
Aden made four cup appearances for Forest Green Rovers and enjoyed a productive loan spell at National League South club Bath City before signing for Bristol City in January 2016. There were further sojourns at Bath City and Weston-Super-Mare, four football league appearances for Cheltenham and four more National League starts at Eastleigh. Aden transferred to MK Dons for the 2021/22 season before moving to Notts County in June 2022. He was a regular in the County squad that won promotion back to the EFL in 2023, his first-ever professional goal – in the play-off semi-final being voted the club’s goal of the season. He followed it up less than an hour later with his second – a 95th-minute equaliser – and the rest, as they say, is history.
Following the expiry of his contract in June 2024, Aden signed a 2-year deal with fellow League 2 side Bradford City.
Professional career to July 2024: Forest Green Rovers 4 games; Cheltenham Town 4 games; MK Dons 16 games; Notts County: 79 games (3 goals).
GEORGE LLOYD
George (St Paul’s Primary School) starred in centre midfield for the GPSFA ‘A’ Squad in the 2010/11 season, making 34 appearances and scoring 15 goals. At the same time his twin brother Oliver was proving to be an excellent goalkeeper in the city ‘B’ Side. George made his Cheltenham Town debut against Swansea City U23s in the EFL Trophy in 2017/18 and played in seven league games towards the end of the season, scoring two goals. George spent much of 2018/19 on loan at Hereford before returning to Cheltenham where he battened down a place in the first team squad.
In July 2021, George signed a new 3-year contract before departing on a half-season loan to Port Vale and in 2022/23 spent a productive period with Grimsby Town.
Following Cheltenham’s relegation in April 2024, George signed a 2-year contact with League One side Shrewsbury Town.
Professional career to July 2024: Cheltenham Town: 136 games (11 goals); Hereford: 19 games (3 goals); Port Vale: 11 games (2 goals); Grimsby Town: 21 games (5 goals).
NOAH SMERDON
Noah (Tibberton Primary School) netted 12 times in his 34 matches for GPSFA in the 2011/12 season. His quality on the ball was obvious in those days, but he coped well with adult football from the point at which he made his National League North debut for Gloucester City against Bath.
Noah represented England U18 Schoolboys in 2018, captaining his country against Wales, before returning to Gloucester where he was a regular during the 2018/19 campaign. In July 2019, Noah signed a two-year professional contract with Exeter City, though he spent much of his time there on loan at Tiverton Town and Chippenham. Noah joined Merthyr Town in 2023 and has just started his second full season there.
NAOMI LAYZELL
Naomi (Huntley Primary School) enjoyed two seasons with GPSFA Girls from 2013-2015. She signed for Bristol City in 2020, making 7 WSL appearances that season and coming on as a substitute in the League Cup Final versus Chelsea aged just 16. Naomi was a regular in the 2022/23 team that won the Championship at the second attempt, gaining promotion back to the WSL. Having made 77 first-team appearances for BCFC as well as winning 13 England age-group caps from U15-U23, Naomi signed for Manchester City in August 2024.
Career to July 2024: Bristol City 77 appearances (2 goals).
CHRISTY FENWICK
Christy (St Peter’s) played 19 GPSFA games, scoring twice in the 1988/89 season. After graduating from Loughborough University with a degree in Sports Science, Christy worked at Aston Villa and Wolves before becoming match analyst at Chelsea in 2007. During his time at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea have won two Champions League and three Premiership titles, 5 FA Cups, 2 League Cups and two Europa League trophies.
BRANDON LIGGETT
Brandon played for GPSFA in 2016/17, netting 17 goals in 31 central midfield appearances and after graduating from Cheltenham Academy, signed a one-year contract in the summer of 2024.
SOPURU OBIERI
Sopuru has already created two footballing records that are likely to remain intact for many years to come. In 2018/19 he scored a remarkable 86 goals for GPSFA and in November 2023 became Cheltenham Town’s youngest-ever first team player at just 15 years and 303 days when he came on as a second half substitute in the EFL Trophy game v West Ham U21s. Sopuru signed a professional contract with Cheltenham in July 2024.
WOODY BURGESS
Woody captained GPSFA’s all-conquering 2018/19 side, his 33 goals making him currently the association’s highest-scoring midfielder. Woody has since enjoyed several successful seasons in the youth ranks at Aston Villa and signed his first professional contract at the club in September 2024.
NON-LEAGUE REVIEW (SEPTEMBER 2024)
Yeovil Town (National League)
Dom Bernard (GPSFA 2007/08)
Gloucester City (Southern League Premier)
Joe Hanks (2005/06), Spencer Hamilton (2006/07), Harry Emmett (2011/12).
Worcester City (Northern Premier)
Adam Mace (2005/06), Elliott Keightley (2006/07).
Swindon Supermarine (Southern League Premier)
Jamie Edge (2004/05), Sam Turl (2005/06), Zack Kotwica (2006/07).
Merthyr Town (Southern League Premier)
Noah Smerdon (2011/12)
Rushall Olympic (National League North)
Danny King (2010/11).
Bishops Cleeve (Southern League)
Jack Holmes (2008/09), Jacob Geddes (2014/15).
Hellenic Premier League
Too many to mention.
