Duncan Watmore
English footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Duncan Ian Watmore (born 8 March 1994) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Rotherham United.
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Watmore playing for Sunderland in 2015 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Duncan Ian Watmore[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 8 March 1994[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Manchester, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Rotherham United | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2006 | Manchester United | ||
| 2010–2011 | Altrincham | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011–2013 | Altrincham | 48 | (15) |
| 2012 | → Clitheroe (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2012 | → Curzon Ashton (loan) | ||
| 2013–2020 | Sunderland | 71 | (5) |
| 2014 | → Hibernian (loan) | 9 | (1) |
| 2020–2023 | Middlesbrough | 92 | (21) |
| 2023–2025 | Millwall | 76 | (11) |
| 2026– | Rotherham United | 0 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2015 | England U20 | 5 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | England U21 | 13 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 2 February 2026 (UTC) | |||
Watmore has previously played for Altrincham, Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Millwall, with loans at Hibernian, Clitheroe & Curzon Ashton.
Early life
Watmore was born in Manchester[4] and is the son of Ian Watmore, a former chief executive of the Football Association.[5] He was educated at Cheadle Hulme School.[6]
Career
Early career
Watmore started his career at Manchester United, but was released at the age of 12.[7] He joined Altrincham in their youth team at the age of 16.[7] He made his first-team debut on 27 November 2011 as a substitute in a 2–1 away defeat to F.C. United of Manchester in the FA Trophy.[8] Watmore had spells on loan at Northern Premier League Division One North clubs Clitheroe and Curzon Ashton in early 2012.[9][10] He scored 14 goals for Altrincham in the 2012–13 season.[11]
Sunderland
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Watmore signed for Premier League club Sunderland on 24 May 2013 for an undisclosed fee on a two-year contract.[5][12] He made his debut for the Sunderland first team on 5 January 2014 as a 60th-minute substitute for Ji Dong-won in a 3–1 home win against Carlisle United in the third round of the FA Cup.[13]
On 31 January 2014, Watmore joined Scottish Premiership club Hibernian on loan for the rest of the 2013–14 season.[14] His first goal came on 15 March 2014 in a 3–1 defeat away to Partick Thistle.[15][16] Watmore left Hibernian at the end of the season.[17]
On 29 May 2015, Watmore was named the U21 Premier League Player of the Season, after scoring 11 goals in 19 matches in the competition.[18]
Watmore made his league debut for Sunderland on 15 August 2015, coming off the bench to score a late consolation goal with a scuffed volley into the bottom-left corner in a 3–1 home loss to Norwich City.[19] He signed a new four-year contract with Sunderland on 22 November 2015.[20] Watmore returned from two months out with an ankle injury on 16 April 2016 as a half time substitute away to Norwich City, and scored the third goal in Sunderland's 3–0 victory, a result which brought the team to within a point of Norwich in the relegation battle.[21]
Watmore was ruled out for the remainder of the a 2016–17 season after suffering cruciate knee ligament injury during Sunderland's 2–1 home win over Leicester City on 3 December 2016.[22]
It was announced on 17 June 2020 that Watmore would be leaving Sunderland, bringing to an end his 7 years at the club.[23]
Middlesbrough
On 17 November 2020, Watmore signed for Middlesbrough on a short-term deal until January 2021.[24] He scored his first goals for Middlesbrough when he scored twice in a 2–1 win against Swansea City on 2 December 2020.[25] Watmore continued his goal scoring with two on 12 December in a 3–0 win against Millwall.[26] On 7 January 2021, Watmore signed a new two-and-a-half-year deal at Middlesbrough.[27][28] Watmore's performances earned him the championship player of the month for December.[29] Watmore was Middlesbrough's top scorer for the 2020–21 season, with nine goals.
Millwall
On 31 January 2023, Watmore signed for Millwall for an undisclosed fee.[30] On 19 May 2025, the club announced the player would be leaving in June when his contract expired.[31]
Rotherham United
On 2 February 2026, Watmore signed for Rotherham United.[32]
International career
Watmore made his debut for England under-20s on 28 May 2015 in the 2015 Toulon Tournament, scoring England's second goal in a 3–3 draw with Morocco.[33] He was named in the Team of the Tournament and was also voted as the Revelation of the Tournament.[34][35] He made five appearances and scored two goals for the under-20s in 2015.[36]
In August 2015, Watmore was called up to the England under-21 squad for the first time.[37] He made his debut against the United States on 3 September 2015 as a second-half substitute, and assisted James Wilson's winning goal.[38] Watmore scored his first under-21 goal and assisted two others on 14 November 2015 after coming on as a substitute against Switzerland in a 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifier.[39] He was part of the team that won the 2016 Toulon Tournament, their first such win for 22 years.[40] He scored three goals in 13 appearances for the under-21s from 2015 to 2016.[41]
Style of play
Watmore plays as a winger.[42] In November 2015, Sunderland forward Jermain Defoe likened Watmore to Gareth Bale, his former Tottenham Hotspur teammate, citing a shared ability of ball control.[43]
Personal life
Watmore continued studying for a degree in economics and business management after signing for Sunderland, transferring from the University of Manchester to Newcastle University.[44] He graduated with a first-class honours degree in December 2015.[45] In 2017, whilst on holiday in Barbados Watmore reportedly helped save three pensioners from the water after a boat crash.[46]
Career statistics
- As of the end of 2024–25 season
| Club | Season | League | National Cup[a] | League Cup[b] | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Altrincham | 2011–12[47] | Conference North | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[c] | 0 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2012–13[11] | Conference North | 37 | 14 | 4 | 0 | — | 5[d] | 0 | 46 | 14 | ||
| Total | 48 | 15 | 4 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 58 | 15 | |||
| Clitheroe (loan) | 2011–12[48] | NPL Division One West | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Sunderland | 2013–14[15] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Hibernian (loan) | 2013–14[15] | Scottish Premiership | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | |
| Sunderland | 2014–15[49] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2015–16[50] | Premier League | 23 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 25 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17[51] | Premier League | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18[52] | EFL Championship | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19[53] | League One | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[e] | 1 | 16 | 2 | |
| 2019–20[54] | League One | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[f] | 1 | 22 | 2 | |
| Total | 71 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 87 | 8 | ||
| Middlesbrough | 2020–21[55] | EFL Championship | 30 | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 30 | 9 | |
| 2021–22[56] | EFL Championship | 41 | 7 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 44 | 7 | ||
| 2022–23[57] | EFL Championship | 21 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 23 | 5 | ||
| Total | 92 | 21 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 97 | 21 | ||
| Millwall | 2022–23[57] | EFL Championship | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 3 |
| 2023–24[58] | EFL Championship | 34 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 4 | |
| 2024–25[59] | EFL Championship | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 5 | |
| Total | 76 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80 | 12 | ||
| Career total | 300 | 53 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 2 | 336 | 57 | ||
- Includes FA Cup, Scottish Cup
- Includes League/EFL Cup
- One appearance in Cheshire Senior Cup, two in FA Trophy, two in Conference North play-offs
- Appearances in EFL Trophy
- Appearances in EFL Trophy
Honours
England U21
Individual
- Altrincham Player of the Year: 2012–13[61]
- Altrincham Goal of the Year: 2012–13[61]
- Sunderland Supporters' Young Player of the Year: 2015–16[62]
- U21 Premier League Player of the Season: 2014–15[63]
- Toulon Tournament Team of the Tournament: 2015[34]
- Toulon Tournament Revelation of the Tournament: 2015[35]
- EFL Championship Player of the Month:December 2020.[29]
