Steven Saunders

For other people named Stephen Saunders, see Stephen Saunders (disambiguation).
Steven Saunders
Personal information
Full name Steven Saunders
Date of birth (1991-03-30) 30 March 1991
Place of birth Rutherglen, Scotland
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position Centre back / Right back
Club information
Current team
 The New Saints
Number 15
Youth career
2007–2008 Queen's Park
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2013 Motherwell 56 (2)
2013–2015 Ross County 19 (1)
2015–2016 Dumbarton 25 (4)
2016– The New Saints 10 (3)
National team‡
2009–2010 Scotland U19 3 (0[1])
2010–2012 Scotland U21 2 (0[2])
2010 Scotland 1 (0[2])

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:35, 1 October 2016 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 16 November 2010

Steven Saunders (born 30 March 1991) is a Scottish professional footballer, who currently plays for Welsh side The New Saints as a centre back or right back.

Saunders has previously played for Motherwell, Ross County and Dumbarton, and has also represented Scotland.

Club career

Motherwell

Saunders started his career with Motherwell. He made his debut as a substitute in a Scottish Premier League match against Aberdeen on 29 November 2008.[3] After the match, manager Mark McGhee said that he was "delighted" with Saunders' performance.[3] Saunders then started the following two games against Kilmarnock and Hamilton Academical, playing at right back, and he was again praised by McGhee for his performance in the first of those games.[4]

In the 2009–10 season, under new manager Jim Gannon, Saunders has established himself as a regular starter in his preferred position of centre back. He scored his first goal for the club on Saturday 24 April 2010 against Hearts.[5] Under Gannon's successor, Craig Brown, Saunders became a regular starter at right back.

On 10 August 2011, whilst playing for the Scotland under-21s, Saunders suffered an achilles tendon injury that ruled him out for most of the 2011–12 season.[6] On 8 April 2012, Saunders made his first-team comeback as a late substitute in a 1–1 draw against Hibernian.[7] Saunders was released by Motherwell at the end of the 2012–13 season, after another lengthy injury lay-off restricted him to just one further appearance.[8]

Ross County

On 8 July 2013, Saunders signed a one-year deal with Ross County.[9] He made his debut for the club on 3 August 2013, in a 2–1 defeat against Celtic in the opening game of the 2013–14 season.[10] On 17 November 2013, he scored his first Ross County goal against St Mirren, but he was then sent off later in the match.[11]

Saunders signed a new one-year contract with Ross County on 19 May 2014.[12] He was one of 14 players released by the club at the end of the season.[13]

Dumbarton

After being released by Ross County, Saunders signed a short-term contract with Scottish Championship side Dumbarton in September 2015.[14][15] He scored his first two goals for the club within two minutes of each other in a 3–3 draw with Raith on 21 November 2015.[16] He extended his deal until the end of the season in January 2016.[17]

The New Saints

Saunders signed a two-year deal with The New Saints on 8 June 2016, alongside Sons' teammate Jon Routledge.[18]

International career

On 15 November 2010, Saunders was called up to the Scotland Squad for the first time, and made his debut the following evening in a 3–0 win over the Faroe Islands, replacing Phil Bardsley at right back in the 70th minute.[19]

Career statistics

As of 1 March 2016
Club Season League Cup League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Motherwell 2008–09 3000000030
2009–10 251102040321
2010–11 251203060361
2011–12 2000000020
2012–13 1000000010
Total 5623050100742
Ross County 2013–14 121100000131
2014–15 7000000070
Total 191100000201
Dumbarton 2015–16 254200000274
Total 254200000274
The New Saints 2016–17 0000000000
Career total 99760501001417

References

  1. ↑ Steven Saunders – A Squad, Scottish Football Association.
  2. 1 2 Steven Saunders – A Squad, Scottish Football Association.
  3. 1 2 McGhee points to positives, www.eatsleepsport.com, 1 December 2008.
  4. ↑ Saunders’ debut is ray of light on dull night at Fir Park, Wishaw Press, 17 December 2008.
  5. ↑ "Hearts 0–2 Motherwell". BBC Sport. BBC. 24 April 2010.
  6. ↑ "Motherwell's Steven Saunders to miss rest of season". BBC Sport. BBC. 10 August 2011.
  7. ↑ "Hibernian 1 – 1 Motherwell". BBC Sport. BBC. 8 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "Forthcoming squad changes". Motherwell F.C. BBC. 20 May 2013.
  9. ↑ "Ross County sign ex-Motherwell defender Steven Saunders". BBC Sport. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  10. ↑ Crawford, Kenny (3 August 2013). "Celtic 2-1 Ross County". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  11. ↑ "St Mirren 2-1 Ross County". BBC Sport. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  12. ↑ "Ross County duo sign new deals while Evangelos Oikonomou departs". STV Sport. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  13. ↑ "Ross County to release 14 players at end of season". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 May 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  14. ↑ "Steven Saunders signs short-term deal at Dumbarton". Scotsman. 29 September 2015. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  15. ↑ "Dumbarton Football Club - SAUNDERS SIGNS". dumbartonfootballclub.com.
  16. ↑ "Dumbarton 3-3 Raith Rovers". 21 November 2015 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  17. ↑ "Dumbarton Football Club - SAUNDERS SIGNS NEW DEAL". dumbartonfootballclub.com.
  18. ↑ "Saints Sign Scottish Saunders". Retrieved 8 June 2016.
  19. ↑ "Scotland 3–0 Faroe Islands". BBC Sport. BBC. 16 November 2010.
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