Jake Rooney
English footballer (born 2003)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jake Richard Rooney (born 22 August 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for Boston United, on loan from EFL Championship club Derby County.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jake Richard Rooney[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 22 August 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Liverpool, England | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team |
Boston United (on loan from Derby County) | ||
| Number | 20 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2014–2018 | Tranmere Rovers | ||
| 2018–2022 | Burnley | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022– | Derby County | 12 | (0) |
| 2025–2026 | → Barnsley (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2026– | → Boston United (loan) | 4 | (2) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 01:09, 15 February 2026 (UTC) | |||
Rooney spent time in the academies at Tranmere Rovers and Burnley, before signing with Derby County's under-21 in August 2022, he would make his league debut for Derby County in November 2022, in July 2023 Rooney signed a three-year contract at Derby, in August 2023, Rooney picked out an anterior cruciate ligament which left him on the sidelines for a year. After this setback, Rooney was loaned to Barnsley on a one year deal, but this deal was terminated in January 2026. Later in the month, he joined Boston United on loan until the end of the season.
Personal life
Rooney is a cousin of former England and Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney and Macclesfield manager John Rooney.[2]
Career
Youth career
Rooney joined the Burnley academy at age 14,[3] after leaving Tranmere Rovers following the closure of their academy.
Derby County
He joined Derby County on 8 August 2022, following a trial period with the club, and made his debut the following day, playing 63 minutes of Derby's 2–1 EFL Cup first round win at Mansfield Town.[2][4] Rooney would make his first league appearance in a 3–1 win at Milton Keynes Dons on 14 November 2022, playing the entire 90 minutes.[5] Rooney would feature in the majority of first team matchday squads during the season as he made a total 18 appearances during his first season with the club.
On 11 July 2023 it was announced that Rooney had signed a three-year contract extension, extending his stay at Derby until June 2026.[6] At the start of the 2023–24 season, Rooney would feature as an unused substitute in Derby's opening four games of the season, but after injuries to Joe Ward and Kane Wilson, Rooney would start the next three games at right-back,[7] in the third of these games against Bolton Wanderers on 2 September Rooney was substituted off after 14 after a serious looking injury.[8][9] He underwent a scan[9] to check the severity of the injury, on 6 September 2023 the scan results confirmed anterior cruciate ligament damage in his right knee, with the 20-year old defender expected to be sidelined for a "significant period".[10] In a February 2024 interview to the Derby Telegraph, Rooney thanked the support of the club, his teammates and family during his recovery and took up his hobby of playing the guitar during his rehab, which was said to be going "better than expected" with a return to training before the end of the season possible.[11] Rooney did not feature in any further games for Derby in 2023–24; he made a total of three appearances for Derby during the season, as they secured promotion to the Championship.[12]
Rooney returned to action in a 2024–25 pre-season friendly against Matlock Town on 12 July 2024.[13] However just a week later in a pre-season training camp in Spain, Rooney picked up another knee injury which is expected to rule him out for the first four months of the season.[14]
After a two-year absence; Rooney appeared for the first team on 12 August 2025, in Derby's EFL Cup match at West Bromwich Albion.[15]
Rooney was linked with either a loan move or permanent move away from The Rams during the 2025 summer transfer window.[16] On 1 September 2025, Rooney would complete a deadline-day loan move to EFL League One outfit Barnsley for one year.[17] At Barnsley, he linked up with former team-mates David McGoldrick as well as Conor Hourihane, who is the current Barnsley manager.[18][19] After making seven appearances for Barnsley, with only of these being in the league Rooney's loan was terminated on 1 January 2026.[20]
On 30 January 2026, Rooney joined National League club Boston United on loan for the remainder of the season.[21] A day later, Rooney made his Boston United debut in a 2–1 win at Boreham Wood.[22] On 14 February 2026, Rooney scored his first goals for Boston United and in senior football when he netted twice in a 6–3 win at Scunthorpe United.[23]
Career statistics
- As of match played 14 February 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Derby County | 2022–23[24] | League One | 9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 18 | 0 |
| 2023–24[25] | League One | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2024–25[26] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2025–26[27] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 0 | ||
| Barnsley (loan) | 2025–26[27] | League One | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Boston United (loan) | 2025–26[27] | National League | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | 4 | 2 | |||
| Career total | 17 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 34 | 2 | ||
- Appearances in EFL Trophy
Honours
Derby County
- EFL League One second-place promotion: 2023–24[12]