3/1 To Win
Goalkeeper Scott Loach has joined the goalkeeping department at Derby County to add valuable experience and know-how ahead of the new 2022/23 Sky Bet League One season.
The shot-stopper has penned a one-year contract with the Rams taking him to the end of the campaign.
Here is a little more information about our newest recruit.
Patience Is The Key
Loach is a local boy, having been born in nearby Nottingham. However, he spent the majority of his youth in the south. Raised in Essex, Loach would catch the eye of scouts at Ipswich Town, signing for the club in 1997 at the age of nine.
He spent three years in the Tractor Boys’ youth team but was let go at the age of 12. He moved back to the Midlands, signing for Southwell United, but was later picked up by Lincoln City and would sign a youth scholarship with the club.
He was loaned out from an early age to gain first team experience and spent time on loan with Bourne Town, Radcliffe Olympic, Boston Town, Spalding United, Lincoln United and Grantham Town, making a number of appearances for each.
Those performances out on loan weren’t in vain. Despite struggling to break into the Lincoln City first team, he caught the attention of then Premier League side Watford who saw his promising potential, so much so that they paid £50,000 for his services, aged just 18.
Loan spells would continue whilst with the Hornets, but this time he experienced football at a higher level. He joined Stafford Rangers in the Conference Premier and played 11 games during a three-month spell, whilst in January 2008 he joined Morecambe on loan in the EFL.
The goalkeeper would only make three appearances for the Shrimps and returned to Watford after only two weeks. He did enjoy some success in the north west, however, as he saved a penalty from Macclesfield Town striker Martin Gritton in a 2-1 victory.
For the rest of the 2007/08 campaign, he would spend it out on loan with Bradford City. It allowed him the opportunity to play in front of a bigger crowd and he showed he could handle the pressure. He played 20 games between January and May for the Bantams, keeping four clean sheets. Ironically, one of those came against Morecambe.
By the start of the 2008/09 campaign, he had impressed enough to challenge for the number one jersey at Vicarage Road. Watford, now in the Championship, had dropped down from the top flight and were looking to rebuild, placing an emphasis on bringing through talented youngsters.
Loach was one of those and kept a clean sheet on his debut in a 1-0 EFL Cup First Round victory over Bristol Rovers. He followed that up two weeks later with another appearance, this time in the Second Round as Watford beat Darlington.
An injury to first-choice goalkeeper, and Rams legend Mart Poom, in the fourth minute against Reading saw Loach come off the bench to make his league debut. It would be a debut to remember, especially for a referring howler because the first goal he conceded in league football actually never crossed the line.
It was the infamous ‘ghost goal’ incident in which the referee and linesman gave a goal instead of what should have been a corner. John Eustace was credited with putting the ball into his own net, however, replays showed the ball was nowhere near the goal. It caused bewilderment in the stands, and certainly amongst the Watford players, too. They did hit back with two goals, but had to settle for a point.
Now given his chance in the first team, Loach knew he needed to seize it. The Third Round of the EFL Cup saw Watford drawn against Premier League side West Ham United. He kept a clean sheet once again as they got the better of the superior opposition, however it was a fellow London side Tottenham Hotspur which eventually knocked them out of the competition in the Fourth Round.
Loach first played at Pride Park Stadium in December 2008 but it would end in a 1-0 defeat, but by this point he had established himself as the club’s first choice goalkeeper. He went on to make 38 appearances in all competitions that season as Watford finished 13th in the Championship.
His form for the Hornets was recognised on the international stage as he was called up to Stuart Pearce’s England Under-21s squad for the Under-21 European Championships that take place in Sweden in 2009. He was back-up to Joe Hart but played once in a defeat to Germany.
Following the tournament, he became a regular fixture in the Under-21s squad and even earned a call up to the England national squad in 2010. With Paul Robinson and Ben Foster unavailable, Loach was drafted into the fold by then manager Fabio Capello, whilst he was called up a second time a month later, this time replacing Scott Carson.
Whilst he did not manage to earn a cap for the Three Lions, he did enjoy camps with the squad and learned from some of the top goalkeeping talents in the country at the time.
Back at club level, the goalkeeper played every league game during the 2009/10 and 2010/11 campaigns for Watford. His exploits in goal had seen him linked with moves away from Vicarage Road with Tottenham Hotspur hot on his heels, but a move did not materialise.
He wouldn’t a miss a game almost three years, between November 2008 and September 2011, but after a run of 130 consecutive games, he lost his place in the squad to Rene Gilmartin. He did eventually retain his place in the squad, but the arrival of Tomasz Kuszczak saw him lose his spot again.
A Dream Move
Loach called time on his spell with Watford in July 2012 and sealed a dream move back to his boyhood club Ipswich Town for an undisclosed fee. On signing, he described his transfer as ‘a dream move’ as he signed for the club who had let him go 12 years previous.
He made his debut in a League Cup victory over Bristol Rovers whilst three games into his return, he faced his former club Watford at Vicarage Road. It would turn into a memorable afternoon, too, as he kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 victory, courtesy of a late strike from Michael Chopra.
The goalkeeper even tasted late success at Pride Park Stadium that season, too. In April 2013, he remained resolute and kept Derby out, saving a penalty from Jamie Ward, as a late Carlos Edwards goal secured all three points for the Tractor Boys. Current Rams players David McGoldrick and Richard Stearman were also in the Ipswich Town side that afternoon.
He would play 25 times in total but his game-time was significantly less during the 2013/14 campaign as he lost his place in the squad to Dean Gerken. But, at the end of the season, he would depart, having made 33 appearances in total.
Whilst it didn’t turn out to be the dream return he had hoped for, he did sign for Championship side Rotherham United at the start of the 2014/15 campaign. He played four games for the Millers and even returned to Portman Road, but was on the losing side as suffered a 2-0 defeat.
His season would be filled with loan spells, however. He spent time in League Two with Bury, whilst he stepped up to League One with Peterborough United in January 2015. He spent a month on loan there before concluding the campaign at Yeovil Town.
Loach was on the move once again at the start of the 2015/16campaign as he returned to Nottingham, the place of his birth, and spent two years with Notts County in League Two. He made 16 appearances in his first season and seven in his second before dropping into the National League for the remainder of the campaign with York City.
Stability
After enjoying stability at Watford, Loach’s career had taken him seven different clubs in five years between 2012 and 2017. He needed stability back in his career, and thankfully he got that with Hartlepool United, who had just dropped into the National League following relegation the season previous.
He was immediately installed as the club’s number one goalkeeper and played every game for Pools in their 2017/18 campaign. It was exactly what he needed, despite the club struggling to return to the EFL at the first time of asking. His second season was the same, playing every game but Hartlepool could only manage a 17th-placed finish.
But, after two years with the Monkey Hangers, he made the long move from the north back down to the south, joining Barnet on a two-year deal. Again, he was assured game time in the National League and went on to make 38 appearances in the 2019/20 campaign before COVID-19 curtailed the division. When football did return behind-closed-doors, he would play 26 times for Barnet before leaving the club in 2021.
He spent last season with fellow National League side Chesterfield and was their first-choice goalkeeper as they aimed for promotion back to the EFL. It started well for the goalkeeper, keeping a number of clean sheets as the Spireites led the pace at the top of the table.
However, they would suffer a dip in form towards the end of the campaign and had to settle for a place in the play-offs. They won their eliminator clash against FC Halifax Town before suffering defeat against Solihull Moors at the semi-final stage.
The goalkeeper played all 48 games for the Spireites last season, but called his time on the club to join Derby, where he has signed a one-year deal.
