Joshua Kipkemboi Whittaker Lelan (born 21 December 1994) is a 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 le ...
who plays as a
central defender or right back for
Farnham Town on a dual registration from
Hayes & Yeading United. Born in England, he represents the
Kenya national team.
Club career
Derby County
Born in
Church Broughton
Church Broughton is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, to the west of Derby. It has a church ( Saint Michael and All Angels) and a Methodist chapel (1828). Badway Green is a piece of common land within the parish.Commons Registration A ...
, England, Lelann started his career within
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
's youth system since joining the club when he was fourteen years old and was a season ticket holder.
On 29 April 2012, Lelan appeared in the first team for the first time, as an unused substitute in a 1–1 draw against
Peterborough United
Peterborough United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Peterborough have a long-standing ...
. Ahead of the 2012–13 season, he was given a number twenty–eight shirt and appeared in the first team matches as an unused substitute. On 6 April 2013, Lelan signed his first professional contract with Derby County after the completion of his two-year scholarship programmes.
Lelan's first taste of senior football came when he joined
Football Conference
The National League (named Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league in England consisting of three divisions, the National League, National League North, and National League South. It was called the ...
side
Gateshead
Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...
on a one month loan on 20 September 2013. He made his debut in the 1–0 win over
Tamworth three days later. Lelan returned to his parent club after making four appearances for Gateshead.
On 23 July 2014, Lelan joined
Swindon Town
Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...
on a one-month young loan. He made his debut on the opening day of Swindon's
2014–15 campaign at home to
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The tea ...
. On 29 August 2014, Lelan extended his loan at Swindon by a further month, which would see him stay at the club until 27 September 2014.
Lelan made five appearances for the club, as he was recalled by his parent club.
At the end of the 2014–15 season, Lelan was released by the club.
Northampton Town
After being released by Derby County, Lelan joined
Football 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 ...
side
Northampton Town
Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...
on a 12-month contract. Upon joining the club, he was given a number twelve shirt.
Lelan made his debut for Northampton Town, starting the whole game in the right–back position, in a 1–0 win against
Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been c ...
in the opening game of the season. He helped the club keep a clean sheet in the next two matches against
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
and
Exeter City
Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third tier of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...
. However in a match against
Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...
on 22 August 2015, Lelan received a red card for a second bookable offence, having been booked twice within the last two minutes of the game, as Northampton Town lost 2–0. In a match against
Dagenham & Redbridge
Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club is a professional association football club based in Dagenham, Greater London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Often known simply as Dag ...
, he was at fault for the conceding the first goal of the game, as the club lost 2–1. As a result, Lelan lost his first team place in the right–back position, with
Darnell Furlong
Darnell Anthony Furlong (born 31 October 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for club West Bromwich Albion.
Club career Queens Park Rangers
Having impressed at junior level, Darnell signed his first professiona ...
and
Brendan Moloney preferred as Northampton Town's first choice right–back. It wasn't until on 24 November 2015 when he made his return to the first team against
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 ...
, coming on as a 62nd-minute substitute, in a 2–1 loss. In a follow–up match, Lelan made his first start for the club for the first time in two months against
Yeovil Town Yeovil Town may refer to:
* Yeovil Town F.C., an English football team based in Yeovil, Somerset
* Yeovil Town L.F.C.
Bridgwater United Women's Football Club are an English women's association football club based in Bridgwater, Somerset who wer ...
and helped Northampton Town keep a clean sheet, in a 2–0 win. However, he, once again, lost his first team place to Moloney in the right–back position for the next five months. Following the club's promotion to League One, Lelan started in the remaining four matches of the season, playing in the right–back position. At the end of the 2015–16 season, he went on to make thirteen appearances in all competitions. Following this, Lelan was released by Northampton Town, as the club's manager
Rob Page
Robert John Page (born 3 September 1974) is a Welsh football manager and former player, who is currently the manager of the Wales national team. In an 18-year career in the Premier League and the English Football League, he made 550 competitive ...
expressed regret after his decision to release the player, saying "the lad has gone in and given a good account of himself. From a supporters' view it might be a little bit of a surprise, but we have made the decision
o release Lelanas a group and what we think is best for this football club."
In July 2016, Lelan, in search of a new club, played as a trialist for
League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
team
Gillingham in a 2–1 win over
Concord Rangers and
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 ...
team
Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...
in a 9–0 win over
St Blazey
St Blazey ( kw, Lanndreth) is a small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.
St Blaise is the civil parish in which St Blazey is situated; the name St Blaise is also used by the town council. The village of Biscovey and the settlements of ...
. He was reported to be attending trials at Swedish 3rd tier side
Västerås SK on 11 August 2016, but failed to win a contract. Lelan then returned to his former club,
Derby County U23, featuring seven times between October 2016 and January 2017.
On 2 December 2016, he was on trial with
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 ...
side
Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
playing against
Southend United
Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...
in a behind-closed-door friendly.
Crawley Town
On 26 January 2017, Lelan joined League Two side
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 a one-and-a-half-year deal after a short-term trial spell back at Derby County.
On 4 February 2017, he made his debut for the club in their 2–1 home defeat against
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 ...
.
Featuring for the full 90 minutes, Lelan was awarded Crawley Town's man of the match after an impressive debut despite the defeat.
Since joining the club, he started in the next four matches, playing in either the centre–back and right–back positions. However in a match against
Wycombe Wanderers
Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their home ...
on 25 February 2017, Lelan suffered an injury and was substituted in the 21st minute, as Crawley Town won 2–1. After missing one match, he returned to the starting line–up against
Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...
and helped the club keep a clean sheet, in a 0–0 draw on 4 March 2017. Lelan then followed up by starting in the right–back position for the next three matches for Crawley Town. However, he found his playing time, mostly coming from the substitute bench for the rest of the 2016–17 season. At the end of the 2016–17 season, Lelan went on to make twenty appearances in all competitions.
At the start of the 2017–18 season, Lelan continued to establish himself in the first team, rotating in playing either the centre–back, left–back position and right–back position. He then helped Crawley Town keep two consecutive clean sheets in two matches between 26 August 2017 and 2 September 2017 against Swindon Town and Yeovil Town. Lelan helped the club keep four clean sheets out of the five matches between 7 October 2017 and 28 October 2017. Since the start of the 2017–18 season, he started in every match until he was dropped to the substitute bench for the next two matches between 21 November 2017 and 25 November 2017. But Lelan made his return to the starting line–up against
Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they play in a blue and ...
on 9 December 2017 and helped Crawley Town keep a clean sheet, in a 2–0 win. He then regained his first team place for the next ten matches for the club. However, Lelan lost his first team place and was placed on the substitute bench for the rest of the 2017–18 season. At the end of the 2017–18 season, he went on to make thirty–three appearances in all competitions. On 14 May 2018, it was announced that Lelan would leave Crawley at the end of his current deal in June.
Aldershot Town
On 2 July 2018, following his release from Crawley, Lelan agreed to join
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 ...
side
Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spring ...
.
He made his debut for the club, starting the whole game in the right–back position, in a 1–0 loss against
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 ...
on 11 August 2018. Since joining Aldershot Town, Lelan quickly became a first team regular, playing in either the centre–back position and right–back position. The club were eventually relegated after a 1–1 draw against
Hartlepool United
Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system.
They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...
on 13 April 2019. At the end of the 2018–19 season, he went on to make twenty–six appearances in all competitions. Following this, Lelan was released at the end of his first season at the club.
Hayes and Yeading
In early 2023, Lelan signed for
Hayes & Yeading United
Farnham Town
On 22 September 2023, Lelan signed for
Farnham Town on a dual registration from
Hayes & Yeading United.
International career
On 5 August 2016 Lelan received his first call up for the
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
for the first time and was eligible to play for the national team through his father. He made his international debut on 30 August 2016 in a match against
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
, coming on as a substitute, in a 0–0 draw.
After making his making his Kenya debut, Lelan reflected on his debut, saying: "It was a completely different style of football which I learnt a lot from and I'd like to play more games international games. Playing with
Victor
The name Victor or Viktor may refer to:
* Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname
Arts and entertainment
Film
* ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film
* ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
was a massively proud moment for me and my family.”.
Career statistics
Honours
Northampton Town
*
Football 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 ...
:
2015–16
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lelan, Josh
1994 births
People from South Derbyshire District
Footballers from Derbyshire
English people of Kenyan descent
Kenyan men's footballers
Kenya men's international footballers
English men's footballers
Men's association football defenders
Hayes & Yeading United F.C. players
Swindon Town F.C. players
Derby County F.C. players
Gateshead F.C. players
Northampton Town F.C. players
Crawley Town F.C. players
Aldershot Town F.C. players
English Football League players
National League (English football) players
Living people