Tom Hadler (born 30 July 1996) 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 le ...

who plays as a

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 ...

for

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

Early and personal life

Born in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

, Hadler attended the

Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys (also known as The Langton Grammar School for Boys and simply referred to as The Langton) is an 11–18 foundation grammar school for boys and mixed sixth form in Canterbury, Kent, England. It was establish ...

in the city.

Career

Gillingham

Hadler joined the Gillingham youth set up before leaving at the age of 15 "to concentrate on his studies". He re-joined the club on a part-time basis during the 2012–13 season, and turned professional in 2015. He spent loan spells at non-league clubs

Folkestone Invicta Folkestone Invicta Football Club is a association football, football club based in Folkestone, Kent, England. They are currently members of the and play at Cheriton Road. History The club was established in 1936 and joined the East Kent Wedne ...

, Tonbridge Angels,

Grays Athletic Grays Athletic Football Club is a football club based in Grays, Essex, England. They are currently members of the and play at Parkside in nearby Aveley. History The club was established as Grays Juniors in 1890, before merging with former S ...

and Gloucester City, He became the club's second-choice goalkeeper in February 2018, before making his senior debut for Gillingham on 21 April 2018 in a 3–0 home defeat in the league 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 ...

. Despite the result, he was praised by manager Steve Lovell. He was released by Gillingham at the end of the 2018–19 season, having made only three further appearances for the side, all in the

EFL 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 ...

Eastbourne Borough

On 25 June 2019, Hadler signed for Eastbourne Borough who play in the

National League South The National League South, formerly Conference South, is one of the second divisions of the National League in England, immediately below the top division National League. Along with National League North, it is in the second level of the N ...

. He made his debut for the side on the opening day of the 2019–20 season in a 1–0 away loss to

Billericay Town Billericay Town Football Club is a football club based in Billericay, Essex, England. The club are currently members of and play at New Lodge. They are the second most successful club in FA Vase history, having won the competition on three o ...

Ebsfleet United

On 16 July 2020 he signed for

side

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 from ...

Maidstone United

In June 2021, Hadler joined Maidstone United of the

, winning the league title that year. Following their relegation at the end of the 2022–23 season, he was released by the club.

Ramsgate

On 16 May 2023, Hadler was announced to have agreed to sign for

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...

South East Division club

Honours

Maidstone United *

: 2021–22

References

1996 births Living people English men's footballers Footballers from Kent Men's association football goalkeepers Gillingham F.C. players Folkestone Invicta F.C. players Tonbridge Angels F.C. players Grays Athletic F.C. players Gloucester City A.F.C. players Eastbourne Borough F.C. players Ebbsfleet United F.C. players Maidstone United F.C. players Ramsgate F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players {{England-footy-goalkeeper-stub