Matthew James Blair (born 21 June 1989) is a former 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 last played as a

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for club

Cheltenham Town Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. From the 2021–22 season, the club compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league sy ...

. Blair started his career with Racing Club Warwick and after one season with the club signed for Stratford Town in 2008. He left for Bedworth United a year later, before going on to have spells with

Redditch United Redditch United Football Club is an English football club based in Redditch, Worcestershire. The club participates in the and play their home games at the V Trico Stadium. They are managed by former Captain and Assistant Manager Matt Clarke. ...

and

A.F.C. Telford United AFC Telford United is a football club based in Telford, Shropshire, England. The club was formed in 2004 after the original Telford United, founded in 1872, folded due to financial problems. Currently members of the National League North, the ...

in the

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 Syst ...

. He joined Kidderminster Harriers of the

Conference Premier The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-professi ...

in 2010 and after one season signed for York City. He scored in the 2012 FA Trophy Final and

2012 Conference Premier play-off Final The 2012 Conference Premier play-off Final, known as the 2012 Blue Square Bet Premier play-off Final for sponsorship purposes, was a football match between Luton Town and York City on 20 May 2012 at Wembley Stadium in London. It was the tenth Co ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

, and his winning goal in the latter saw York promoted into League Two. After one season with York in League Two, Blair signed for divisional rivals

Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...

in 2013 and was released in January 2015.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

, Warwickshire, Blair started his career in the

Midland Football Alliance The Midland Football Alliance was an English association football league for semi-professional teams. It covered Leicestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire and also southern parts of Derbyshire and Not ...

with his hometown club, Racing Club Warwick, in the 2007–08 season. He signed for Stratford Town of the Midland Football Alliance on 7 July 2008. After signing,

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Micky Moore said of Blair: "He had an excellent season with Racing Club Warwick and I feel coming to Stratford and its environment will make him a better player". He finished 2008–09 with seven goals in 40 league appearances for Stratford. Blair signed for Southern League Division One Central club Bedworth United on 3 June 2009. He scored four times for Bedworth in 16 appearances before signing for

club

on 25 November 2009. Having made 15 appearances and scored two goals for Redditch, Blair moved on again, signing for Conference North rivals

on 19 March 2010. He finished 2009–10 with one goal in seven appearances for Telford.

Kidderminster Harriers

Blair signed for

club Kidderminster Harriers on 9 August 2010 on non-contract terms following a trial. He made his debut on 14 August 2010 as a 75th-minute substitute in Kidderminster's 2010–11 opening day 2–1 victory away to

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...

. His first goal for the club came after scoring with a low shot in the 75th minute of a 2–1 win at home to Gateshead on 5 October 2010. In the following match, Blair scored twice as Kidderminster beat

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

3–2 on 10 October 2010. Blair signed a contract until the end of 2010–11 on 18 October 2010. His first hat-trick for Kidderminster came after scoring all three of their goals in a 3–3 draw away to Grimsby on 9 April 2011, including an 83rd-minute equaliser after latching onto a loose ball in the

penalty area The penalty area or 18-yard box (also known less formally as the penalty box or simply box) is an area of an association football pitch. It is rectangular and extends 16.5m (18 yd) to each side of the goal and 16.5m (18 yd) in front of it. With ...

. He finished the season with 11 goals in 45 appearances for Kidderminster.

York City

After turning down a new contract with Kidderminster, Blair signed for Conference Premier rivals York City on 1 June 2011 on a two-year contract. A compensation package was agreed by the two clubs later that month. He made his debut in York's opening match of 2011–12, a 2–1 victory away to

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 ...

on 13 August 2011. His first goal came in the following match with York's final goal in a 3–1 victory at home to Barrow on 16 August 2011, with a sidefooted shot from six yards in the fifth minute of stoppage time. Blair scored the equaliser to give York a 1–1 away draw to

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

in the FA Trophy semi-final second leg with a 90th-minute header from a Jamal Fyfield

cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...

. York progressed to the final with a 2–1 aggregate victory. With a 111th-minute header from a Jason Walker cross, Blair scored the winning goal for York away to

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 ...

during extra time of their play-off semi-final second leg on 7 May 2012. He scored the opening goal for York in their 2–0 victory over Newport County in the 2012 FA Trophy Final at

on 12 May 2012, after lifting the ball 20 yards into an empty net after

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

Glyn Thompson had charged out of his goal. Eight days later, Blair scored the winning goal in York's 2–1 victory over Luton in the

at Wembley Stadium. He scored in the 47th minute with a sidefooted shot from four yards after the ball was head down by

Daniel Parslow Daniel James Parslow (born 11 September 1985) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a centre-back in the English Football League for York City and Cheltenham Town. Parslow started his career with Cardiff City in their you ...

, and the goal was allowed despite Blair being in an offside position. This result meant York were promoted into

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 ...

after an eight-year absence from

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

. He finished his first season at York as top scorer with 20 goals in 52 appearances, and was named in the 2011–12 Conference Premier Team of the Year alongside York teammate

James Meredith James Howard Meredith (born June 25, 1933) is an American civil rights activist, writer, political adviser, and Air Force veteran who became, in 1962, the first African-American student admitted to the racially segregated University of Missi ...

Blair came on as a 78th-minute substitute in York's

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

opener away to

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

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 ...

in the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

first round on 11 August 2012. Following a 1–1 draw after extra time the team lost 4–2 in a

penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...

, with Blair missing the final

penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...

. He then entered York's first Football League fixture since their promotion, a 3–1 defeat at home to

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 ho ...

on 18 August 2012, as a 56th-minute substitute. His first goal of the season came with the 80th-minute winner in York's 1–0 victory away to

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...

in the

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

first round Northern section. He finished the season with seven goals in 49 appearances.

Fleetwood Town

Following discussions with York manager

Nigel Worthington Nigel Worthington (born 4 November 1961) is a Northern Irish former professional footballer who was most recently the manager of York City. He played a defender and a midfielder, playing his club football for Ballymena United, Notts County, ...

, Blair expressed his desire to look for another club, and was in talks with newly relegated League Two club

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

before asking for more time to consider the move. However, he signed for League Two rivals

on a two-year contract on 13 May 2013. Blair joined fellow League Two club

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 10 January 2014 on a one-month

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 ...

. He made his debut the following day in a 2–0 home defeat to former club York, before scoring a 76th-minute equaliser for Northampton in their 1–1 away draw with

on 1 February 2014. His loan was ended on 5 February 2014, three days ahead of when it was due to expire, having made three appearances and scored one goal for Northampton. Blair scored the only goal in the play-off semi-final against his former club York, and started for Fleetwood in their 1–0 win over

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home grou ...

in the 2014 League Two play-off Final at Wembley Stadium on 26 May. This result meant they were promoted into League One for the first time in their history. He finished 2013–14 with 33 appearances and five goals for Fleetwood. On 17 November 2014, Blair joined League Two club

Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on Ne ...

on loan until January 2015.

Mansfield Town

Blair signed for League Two club Mansfield Town on a contract until the end of 2014–15 on 14 January 2015 after leaving Fleetwood by mutual consent.

Doncaster Rovers

Blair rejected a new contract with Mansfield to sign for newly relegated League Two club Doncaster Rovers on 24 May 2016 on a two-year contract. He made 48 appearances and scored 3 goals in 2016–17 as Doncaster were promoted to League One after finishing third in League Two. He was named as PFA League One Community Player of the Year in both seasons 2017–18 and 2018–19. In April 2019, Blair was also named as Community Champion by the PFA for the 2018–19 season in recognition of all his community services.

Cheltenham Town

Blair rejected a new contract offered by Doncaster, and was signed by

at the beginning of September 2020 on a one year contract. He made his debut for the club on 8 September 2020 in an EFL Trophy group stage away win over Newport County. On 12 September 2022, Blair announced his retirement from football due to injury.

International career

Blair made his England national C team debut as a 56th-minute substitute for Connor Franklin in a 1–0 defeat at home to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

in the 2009–11 International Challenge Trophy on 19 May 2011. His second and final

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

came after starting England's 1–1 draw at home to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

in the 2011–13 International Challenge Trophy on 28 February 2012.

Personal life

Blair is the son of former professional footballer Andy Blair. His sister-in-law is actress Holly Matthews, who was married to his brother Ross up until his death from a brain tumour.

Career statistics

Honours

York City *

play-offs:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

* FA Trophy: 2011–12 Fleetwood Town *

Football League Two play-offs The EFL League Two play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from fourth to seventh in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are part of the annual Eng ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Doncaster Rovers * EFL League Two third-place promotion: 2016–17

Cheltenham Town

: 2020–21 Individual *Conference Premier Team of the Year: 2011–12

References

External links

Profile
at the Doncaster Rovers F.C. website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blair, Matty 1989 births Living people People from Warwick Sportspeople from Warwickshire English footballers England semi-pro international footballers Association football wingers Association football fullbacks Racing Club Warwick F.C. players Stratford Town F.C. players Bedworth United F.C. players Redditch United F.C. players AFC Telford United players Kidderminster Harriers F.C. players York City F.C. players Fleetwood Town F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Cambridge United F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Doncaster Rovers F.C. players Cheltenham Town F.C. players Midland Football Alliance players Southern Football League players National League (English football) players English Football League players English people of Scottish descent