James Ball (born 1 December 1995) is an English professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
for
AFC Wimbledon
AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...
.
Ball started his career at
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
Conference North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
club
Hyde United
Hyde United Football Club is a semi-professional football club in Hyde, Greater Manchester, England. Formed in 1919, they were renamed Hyde F.C. between 2010 and 2015 as part of a sponsorship deal with Manchester City.2014–15 season. Following his release from Bolton in May 2015, Ball spent the following season at
Northwich Victoria
{{Infobox UK place
, static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg
, static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church
, official_name = Northwich
, country ...
. He joined
National League North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
Stockport County
Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...
a month later in September 2016. After two seasons at Stockport, Ball signed for Stevenage in May 2018. He spent a season at Stevenage before joining Ebbsfleet United of the National League in July 2019. He moved to
Solihull Moors
Solihull Moors Football Club is a professional football club based in Solihull, England. The club currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system, after achieving promotion from the National Leag ...
in October 2019.
Career
Early career
Ball began his career at hometown club
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
and is a product of the club's academy. At the start of the 2014–15 season, he was sent on a work experience
loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...
to
Conference North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
club
Hyde United
Hyde United Football Club is a semi-professional football club in Hyde, Greater Manchester, England. Formed in 1919, they were renamed Hyde F.C. between 2010 and 2015 as part of a sponsorship deal with Manchester City. Ball made his debut for Hyde in the club's 3–2 away loss to Bradford Park Avenue on 25 August 2014, and went on to make five appearances during the one-month loan spell. Ball returned to Bolton following the conclusion of the work experience loan, but did not many any first-team appearances for the club. He was released by Bolton in May 2015, subsequently joining
Northwich Victoria
{{Infobox UK place
, static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg
, static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church
, official_name = Northwich
, country ...
for the 2015–16 season.
After a full season at Northwich, Ball joined
National League North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
club Stalybridge Celtic on a free transfer ahead of the 2016–17 season. He made his debut on the opening day of the campaign, playing the whole match in a 1–0 away victory over
Boston United
Boston United Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. The club participates in the National League North, at the sixth tier of the English football league system. The club is known ...
. During the short spell at Stalybridge, which lasted a month, Ball made six appearances, scoring his only goal for Stalybridge in the club's 3–1 home defeat to
Stockport County
Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...
on 9 August 2016.
Stockport County
Having scored against Stockport County a month earlier, Ball signed for the club on 6 September 2016. Ball had played under Stockport manager
Jim Gannon
James Paul Gannon (born 7 September 1968) is a professional football manager and former player who most recently was manager of Hyde United. He started and finished his career as a player in Ireland, but made most of his professional appear ...
at Northwich the previous season. He made his Stockport debut a day later, in a 2–1 away defeat to
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town.
In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...
, scoring the club's goal in the match. In March 2017, Ball signed a new two-year contract extension with the club, with Gannon stating he believes Ball has all of the attributes to become a
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
player. He played regularly during the season, making 37 appearances in all competitions and scoring seven times, as Stockport missed out on a place in the National League North play-offs by a point.
Contracted to Stockport for the 2017–18 season, Ball continued to play regularly in the centre of midfield for the club throughout the season. He scored his first goal of the season in a 6–0 victory over
Southport
Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England.
Southport lies on the Irish ...
at
Edgeley Park
Edgeley Park is a football stadium in Edgeley, Stockport, England. Built for rugby league club Stockport RFC in 1891, by 1903, the rugby club was defunct and Stockport County Football Club moved in.
Edgeley Park is an all-seater stadium hold ...
on 5 September 2017. He ended the season by scoring seven times in the club's final eleven fixtures. This included a brace in a 4–0 win against Leamington, as well as a 94th-minute winner in a 3–2 victory over Bradford Park Avenue a week later to help Stockport secure their place in the National League North play-offs courtesy of a fifth-place finish. Ball made 48 appearances in all competitions during the season, scoring 11 goals, as Stockport were defeated at the qualifying round stage of the play-offs.
Stevenage
Ball signed for
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
club
Stevenage
Stevenage ( ) is a large town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevena ...
on 9 May 2018, joining for an undisclosed five-figure fee. Whilst managing
Nuneaton Town
Nuneaton Borough Football Club is an English football club that is based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire. The men's 1st team competes in the , the seventh tier of English football.
In 1889, Nuneaton St. Nicholas FC was the first team in Nuneaton to ...
, Stevenage manager
Dino Maamria
Noureddine "Dino" Maamria (born 18 February 1974) is a Tunisian football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is the manager of League One club Burton Albion.
Maamria started his playing career with AS Marsa of Tunisia. He lef ...
recommended Ball to Stevenage chairman
Phil Wallace
Phillip Owen Wallace BEM is a British businessman and chairman of EFL League One association football club Stevenage F.C.
Business interests
Phil Wallace is the CEO of Lamex Food Group, a global food trading company with 21 offices in 16 cou ...
in December 2017, describing him as one of the best players in non-League football. Maamria subsequently made Ball his first signing for the club. Ball made his Stevenage debut in the club's opening match of the 2018–19 season, scoring the first goal of the match in an eventual 2–2 draw with
Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...
at
Broadhall Way
Broadhall Way, known as the Lamex Stadium for sponsorship purposes, is an association football stadium in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. It has been the home ground of Stevenage (formerly Stevenage Borough and Stevenage Town) since the early 1960s, an ...
. Despite being a regular starter in midfield in the opening months of the season, Ball played predominantly as a substitute from October 2018 onwards. He came on as an 11th-minute substitute and played as a striker in a 2–1 win over
Crawley Town
Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The club was founded as Crawley Football Club in 1896, changed its name to Crawley Town Football Club in 1958. The team co ...
on 12 January 2019, scoring both of Stevenage's goals. He was praised by Maamria for his work-rate and maturity in a position he had rarely played in. Ball subsequently started the club's next two matches, but once again began to make appearances from the substitute's bench, and ultimately did not play for the final three months of the season. He made 21 appearances and scored four goals during the season. Ball was transfer-listed by the club on 9 May 2019.
Ebbsfleet United
After being transfer-listed by Stevenage, Ball signed for
Ebbsfleet United
Ebbsfleet United Football Club is a professional football club based in Northfleet, Kent, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the club competes in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football.
The club was formed in 1946 fr ...
of the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
on 15 July 2019. He debuted for Ebbsfleet in the opening game of the 2019–20 season, playing the whole match in a 4–1 home defeat to
FC Halifax Town
FC Halifax Town is a professional association football club based in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. They currently compete in and play at the Shay. They replaced Halifax Town A.F.C., which went into administration in the 2007–08 season. ...
. He scored his only goal for the club in Ebbsfleet's 2–1 away victory against
Boreham Wood
Borehamwood (, historically also Boreham Wood) is a town in southern Hertfordshire, England, from Charing Cross. Borehamwood has a population of 31,074, and is within the London commuter belt. The town's film and TV studios are commonly known ...
on 29 August 2019. Ball played in all 14 of Ebbsfleet's matches in the opening two months of the 2019–20 campaign, before Ebbsfleet received a transfer bid for Ball from fellow National League club
Solihull Moors
Solihull Moors Football Club is a professional football club based in Solihull, England. The club currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system, after achieving promotion from the National Leag ...
.
Solihull Moors
Ball subsequently signed for Solihull Moors for an undisclosed fee on 4 October 2019. He joined on a contract set to run until June 2021. He made his debut as a second-half substitute a day after signing for the club, in the club's 1–0 defeat to Boreham Wood. After scoring his first goal for the club in a 2–1 home victory against Dagenham & Redbridge on 2 November 2019, Ball scored four times in Solihull's 5–1
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
win at
Oxford City
Oxford City Football Club is a semi-professional English association football club based in Marston, Oxford. They currently compete in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football, and play their home matches at Marsh Lane.
...
a week later. He played 28 times for Solihull throughout the remainder of the season, scoring eight goals, as the National League regular season was curtailed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
in March 2020. He finished the 2020–21 season as joint top goalscorer for Solihull on 11 goals, making 34 appearances in all competitions.
Rochdale
On 31 January 2022, Ball returned to the Football League to join
Rochdale
Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
for an undisclosed fee on a two-and-a-half year deal.
AFC Wimbledon
In July 2023 he signed for
AFC Wimbledon
AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...
on a free transfer.
Style of play
Ball was initially a defender during his time at Bolton Wanderers' academy and was played in central defence on loan at Hyde United. He moved further up the pitch to play in central midfield during his time at Northwich Victoria and has remained there since. On signing for Stevenage, manager Dino Maamria described Ball as "big, strong, box-to-box, can cover a lot of ground and can score goals from midfield".