James Caton
English footballer (born 1994)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
James Alan Kenneth Caton (born 4 January 1994) is an English footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder.
|
Caton playing for Ashton United | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | James Alan Kenneth Caton[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 4 January 1994[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Widnes, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Winger[4] | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Ashton United | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2012 | Bolton Wanderers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2014 | Blackpool | 2 | (0) |
| 2013 | → Accrington Stanley (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2014 | → Chester (loan) | 1 | (1) |
| 2014–2016 | Shrewsbury Town | 2 | (0) |
| 2015 | → Southport (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2015 | → Mansfield Town (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | → Wrexham (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2016 | → Lincoln City (loan) | 12 | (3) |
| 2016–2017 | Southport | 23 | (2) |
| 2017 | Dover Athletic | 0 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Darlington | 25 | (1) |
| 2018 | → Warrington Town (loan) | 5 | (1) |
| 2018–2019 | → Stalybridge Celtic (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2019 | Nuneaton Borough | 7 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | Dover Athletic | 12 | (0) |
| 2022 | Hereford | 8 | (1) |
| 2022–2023 | Nantwich Town | 11 | (3) |
| 2023 | Bamber Bridge | 2 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Ashton United | 15 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 30 June 2024 | |||
He has played in the Football League for Blackpool, Accrington Stanley and Shrewsbury Town.
Early life and career
Caton was born in Widnes,[5] where he attended Wade Deacon High School. As well as football, he played rugby league at school, and was a member of his Year 10 team that reached the Champion Schools final at Twickenham in 2009.[6] Caton played football for boys' team Widnes Wolves[citation needed] before joining Bolton Wanderers as a nine-year-old schoolboy. He was a part of the England U16s setup that won the Victory shield and turned professional with Bolton in 2010,[7] but was released in the summer of 2012. After a trial with Derby County,[8][9] Caton scored against Everton in Keith Southern's testimonial match as part of a successful trial with Blackpool.[10]
Club career
Blackpool
Caton signed a two-year contract with Football League Championship club Blackpool, with the option of a third year, in August 2012.[11] He said his move to Blackpool was motivated by the club's playing style.[12] Named twice on the bench in his first year, against Cardiff City and Watford,[2] his senior debut came on 31 August 2013, as a late substitute for Nathan Delfouneso in a 1–0 win against Watford.[13]
He joined League Two club Accrington Stanley on a month's loan in October 2013,[14] and made his debut in a 2–1 loss against Dagenham & Redbridge, coming on as a substitute for Nicky Hunt in the 59th minute.[15] However, his loan was cut short due to injury.[16] In March 2014, he went on loan again, to Conference Premier club Chester until the end of the season.[17] He scored on his debut, having come on as a half-time substitute against Grimsby Town,[18] but made no more appearances for the club.[2]
At the end of the 2013–14 season, Caton was released.[19]
Shrewsbury Town
Following his release by Blackpool, Caton joined Shrewsbury Town on a free transfer in June 2014.[20] He made his league debut as a 57th-minute substitute for Ashley Vincent in a 2–1 win over Tranmere Rovers on 16 August 2014.[21]
Having only been on the fringes of the first-team squad, he went on loan to Southport in January 2015.[22] After returning to his parent club, he captained a young Shrewsbury side to victory over local rivals AFC Telford United in the Shropshire Senior Cup final, also scoring the opening goal in a 3–1 win.[23]
Just prior to the start of the following season, Caton joined League Two club Mansfield Town on a one-month loan,[24] during which he made a single appearance in the League Cup.[25] In November 2015, he signed for Wrexham of the National League on loan until January.[26] On his return to Shrewsbury, he made another loan move, to another National League club, Lincoln City, for the rest of the season.[27]
Caton was released by Shrewsbury Town when his contract expired.[28]
Non-league career
Caton joined up once again with Lincoln City in the following pre-season with a view to earning a permanent deal,[29] but was unable to agree terms.[30] He signed a six-month contract with National League club Southport in August 2016.[31][32] His 23 league appearances produced two goals[2] – a consolation in a 4–1 defeat to Barrow,[33] and the winning goal at Torquay United,[34] – and his contract was not renewed.[32]
Caton joined National League rivals Dover Athletic on 2 February 2017 for what remained of the season.[35] He played twice, in the quarter-final and semi-final of the Kent Senior Cup, and scored in each match, but made no league appearances.[4][36]
Following his release from Dover, Caton signed a two-year contract with National League North club Darlington on 17 July 2017.[37] In the 2018–19 season, he spent time on loan to Northern Premier League clubs Warrington Town and Stalybridge Celtic.[38][39][40] He left Darlington by mutual consent in January 2019,[41] and finished the season with Nuneaton Borough.[42]
Alongside his football career, Caton studied for a BA degree in football coaching and management with UCFB, which he completed in 2021.[43] He then rejoined Dover Athletic.[4] Caton was released after one season following relegation.[44]
On 3 September 2022, Caton joined National League North club Hereford;[45] he was released three months later,[46] subsequently joining Nantwich Town.[47] He joined Northern Premier League promotion hopefuls Bamber Bridge in March 2023,[48] and moved on to divisional rival Ashton United for the 2023–24 season.[49]
Career statistics
- As of end of 2023–24 season
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Blackpool | 2012–13[13] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2013–14[50] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| Accrington Stanley (loan) | 2013–14[50] | League Two | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Chester (loan) | 2013–14[2] | Conference Premier | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||
| Shrewsbury Town | 2014–15[21] | League Two | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 2015–16[25] | League One | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Southport (loan) | 2014–15[2] | Conference Premier | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Mansfield Town (loan) | 2015–16[25] | League Two | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wrexham (loan) | 2015–16[2] | National League | 4 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Lincoln City (loan) | 2015–16[2] | National League | 12 | 3 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 12 | 3 | ||
| Southport | 2016–17[2] | National League | 23 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 1[a] | 1 | 26 | 3 | |
| Dover Athletic | 2016–17[2] | National League | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2[b] | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Darlington | 2017–18[2][51] | National League North | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 1[a] | 0 | 27 | 1 | |
| 2018–19[2] | National League North | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 27 | 1 | |||
| Stalybridge Celtic (loan) | 2018–19[40] | Northern Premier League Premier Division | 4 | 0 | — | — | 5[a] | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| Nuneaton Borough | 2018–19[2] | National League North | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| Dover Athletic | 2021–22[2] | National League | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[a] | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| Hereford | 2022–23[2][52] | National League North | 8 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 1[a] | 0 | 13 | 2 | |
| Nantwich Town | 2022–23[53] | Northern Premier League Premier Division | 11 | 3 | — | — | 1[c] | 0 | 12 | 3 | ||
| Bamber Bridge | 2022–23[54] | Northern Premier League Premier Division | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1[d] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Ashton United | 2023–24[55] | Northern Premier League Premier Division | 15 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 5[e] | 1 | 23 | 2 | |
| Career total | 134 | 11 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 4 | 165 | 17 | ||
- Appearances in Kent Senior Cup[4][36]
- Appearance in Cheshire Senior Cup
- Appearance in Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy
- Two appearances in FA Trophy, three appearances and one goal in Manchester Premier Cup
