Vadaine Oliver

Vadaine Aston James Oliver (born 21 October 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for EFL League One club Shrewsbury Town, on loan from EFL League Two club Bradford City.

Vadaine Oliver

Oliver playing for York City in 2017
Personal information
Full name	Vadaine Aston James Oliver[1]
Date of birth	(1991-10-21) 21 October 1991 (age 33)[2]
Place of birth	Sheffield, England
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[3]
Position(s)	Striker[4]
Team information
Current team	Shrewsbury Town (on loan from Bradford City)
Youth career
0000–2010	Sheffield Wednesday
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2012	Sheffield Wednesday	0	(0)
2012–2013	Lincoln City	37	(11)
2013–2015	Crewe Alexandra	34	(3)
2014–2015	→ Mansfield Town (loan)	30	(7)
2015–2017	York City	55	(14)
2016–2017	→ Notts County (loan)	19	(1)
2017–2019	Morecambe	64	(7)
2019–2020	Northampton Town	30	(4)
2020–2022	Gillingham	82	(27)
2022–	Bradford City	44	(3)
2024	→ Stevenage (loan)	14	(0)
2025–	→ Shrewsbury Town (loan)	0	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 01:06, 5 November 2024 (UTC)

He has played in the English Football League for Crewe Alexandra, Mansfield Town, York City, Notts County, Morecambe, Northampton Town and Gillingham.

Career

Early life and career

Oliver was born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.^[5] He began his career with Sheffield Wednesday's youth system, and signed a professional contract in 2010.^[6] He was released by the club in May 2012,^[7] before joining Conference Premier club Lincoln City on 4 August 2012 on a one-year contract.^[6] He scored 13 goals for Lincoln in the 2012–13 season, 11 of which came in the league.^[8]

He attracted interest from Football League clubs and signed for League One club Crewe Alexandra on 10 June 2013 on a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee.^[9] He made his debut as an 89th-minute substitute in a 3–3 draw with Rotherham United on 3 August 2013.^[10] Oliver scored his first Crewe goal after sliding in from a Brad Inman cross in the 15th minute of a 2–2 draw at home to Peterborough United on 7 September 2013.^[11]

York City

Oliver playing for York City in 2017

Oliver signed for League Two club York City on 20 May 2015 on a three-year contract.^[12][13] He made his debut when starting York's 3–0 away defeat by Wycombe Wanderers on 8 August 2015, the opening match of 2015–16.^[14] His first goal for the club came in the 59th minute of a 3–0 away win over Newport County on 5 September 2015,^[14] with a close-range shot after James Berrett's shot was saved.^[15] Early in the season, Oliver showed a desire to flick on aerial balls, but once that desire seemingly disappeared he "cut a lethargic figure up front", according to Dave Flett of The Press.^[16] He finished the season as York's top scorer with 10 goals from 42 appearances,^[17] although he only scored once in his last 19 appearances.^[14] Following York's relegation to the National League after finishing 24th in League Two,^[18] Oliver was transfer listed by the club.^[19]

On 2 August 2016, Oliver joined League Two club Notts County on loan until 7 January 2017.^[20] He debuted four days later as a 56th-minute substitute for Jon Stead in a 2–0 defeat away to Yeovil Town.^[21] He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 loss against Morecambe on 11 October 2016.^[22]

On 21 May 2017, Oliver started as York beat Macclesfield Town 3–2 at Wembley Stadium in the 2017 FA Trophy Final, scoring in the 22nd minute with a three-yard shot from Sean Newton's low cross.^[23] He finished 2016–17 with 10 goals from 23 appearances for York^[8] as the club was relegated to the National League North after finishing in 21st place in the National League.^[24] He was transfer listed at the end of the season at his own request.^[25]

Morecambe and Northampton Town

Oliver signed for League Two club Morecambe on 30 June 2017 for an undisclosed fee,^[26] on a contract of undisclosed length.^[27] He scored his first goal for Morecambe in a 4–3 EFL Cup defeat away to Barnsley on 8 August 2017.^[28] He was released by Morecambe at the end of the 2018–19 season.^[29]

Oliver signed for League Two club Northampton Town on 3 July 2019 on a one-year contract.^[30]

Gillingham

Oliver signed for League One club Gillingham on 5 August 2020.^[31] He scored his first goal for Gillingham in a 2–1 home win over Crawley Town on 8 September in the EFL Trophy with a 52nd-minute header.^[32] After scoring eight goals in eight games, on 9 April 2021, Oliver was awarded the League One Player of the Month award for March 2021.^[33] He finished the 2020–21 season as the Kent side's top goal scorer, with 20 goals in all competitions.^[34]

Oliver was also top scorer the following season with 11 goals in all competitions,^[35] but could not prevent Gillingham's relegation to League Two.^[36] Oliver announced on his Twitter account that he would be leaving the Kent side at the end of his contract.^[37]

Bradford City

On 10 July 2022, Oliver signed for League Two club Bradford City on a three-year deal.^[38][39]

On 17 January 2024, he joined League One club Stevenage on loan for the remainder of the 2023–24 season.^[40]

Career statistics

As of match played 13 January 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Lincoln City	2012–13[8]	Conference Premier	37	11	4	2	—		1[a]	0	42	13
Crewe Alexandra	2013–14[10]	League One	25	2	2	0	1	0	2[b]	0	30	2
	2014–15[41]	League One	9	1	—		2	0	1[b]	0	12	1
	Total		34	3	2	0	3	0	3	0	42	3
Mansfield Town (loan)	2014–15[41]	League Two	30	7	2	0	—		—		32	7
York City	2015–16[14]	League Two	37	7	1	1	2	0	2[b]	2	42	10
	2016–17[8]	National League	18	7	—		—		5[a]	3	23	10
	Total		55	14	1	1	2	0	7	5	65	20
Notts County (loan)	2016–17[21]	League Two	19	1	3	0	1	0	2[c]	0	25	1
Morecambe	2017–18[42]	League Two	34	3	2	0	1	1	1[c]	0	38	4
	2018–19[43]	League Two	30	4	2	0	0	0	1[c]	1	33	5
	Total		64	7	4	0	1	1	2	1	71	9
Northampton Town	2019–20[44]	League Two	30	4	5	3	0	0	5[d]	1	40	8
Gillingham	2020–21[45]	League One	43	17	2	2	3	0	2[c]	1	50	20
	2021–22[46]	League One	39	10	1	0	2	1	1	0	43	11
	Total		82	27	3	2	5	1	3	1	93	31
Bradford City	2022–23[47]	League Two	30	3	1	0	2	0	4[c]	1	37	4
	2023–24[48]	League Two	6	0	0	0	0	0	3[c]	1	9	1
	Total		36	3	1	0	2	0	7	2	46	5
Career total			387	77	25	8	14	2	30	10	456	97

1. Appearance(s) in FA Trophy
2. Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy
3. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
4. Two appearances in EFL Trophy, three appearances and one goal in League Two play-offs

Honours

Club

York City

• FA Trophy: 2016–17^[49]

Northampton Town

• EFL League Two play-offs: 2020^[50]

Individual

• League One Player of the Month: March 2021^[33]
• Gillingham Players' Player of the Season: 2020–21^[51]

References

1. "EFL: Club retained and released lists published". English Football League. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
2. "Vadaine Oliver". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
3. "Vadaine Oliver". Gillingham F.C. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
4. Casey, Jeremy (3 July 2019). "Cobblers land ex-Morecambe striker Vadaine Oliver on free transfer". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
5. "Vadaine Oliver". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
6. Banks, Barnaby (4 August 2012). "Lincoln City sign striker Vadaine Oliver". Lincolnshire Echo. Lincoln. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016.
7. "Sheffield Wednesday release six players". BBC Sport. 15 May 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
8. "V. Oliver: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
9. "Crewe Alexandra sign Vadaine Oliver from Lincoln City". BBC Sport. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
10. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
11. "Crewe 2–2 Peterborough". BBC Sport. 7 September 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
12. "City boss Russ Wilcox delighted to finally net Crewe striker Vadaine Oliver". The Press. York. 20 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
13. Flett, Dave (18 May 2016). "Transfer-listed York City striker Vadaine Oliver wants to stay in Football League". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
14. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
15. Flett, Dave (5 September 2015). "York City thump Newport 3–0 for first away win of the season". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
16. Flett, Dave (13 May 2016). "York City review of 2015/16: The unfunny tale of an Englishman, Irishman and a Scotsman". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
17. "York: Squad stats: 2015/16". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
18. "League Two: 2015/16: Latest table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
19. Flett, Dave (10 May 2016). "Updated with Penn quotes: Dave Winfield, Russell Penn, Luke Summerfield and Michael Ingham offered new contracts at York City". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
20. Appleyard, Ian (2 August 2016). "York City striker Vadaine Oliver moves on loan to Notts County". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
21. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
22. "Notts County 1–2 Morecambe". BBC Sport. 11 October 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
23. Flett, Dave (21 May 2017). "York City lift FA Trophy to win at Wembley for a fourth time in their history". The Press. York. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
24. "National League: 2016/17: Latest table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
25. Appleyard, Ian (6 June 2017). "Defender's departure heralds start of summer shake-up at York City". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
26. Flett, Dave (30 June 2017). "York City striker Vadaine Oliver completes move to Morecambe for an undisclosed fee". The Press. York. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
27. "Morecambe sign striker Vadaine Oliver from York City". BBC Sport. 30 June 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
28. "Barnsley 4–3 Morecambe". BBC Sport. 8 August 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
29. "Morecambe release five players but extend the deals of four more". BBC Sport. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
30. Willsher, Gareth (3 July 2019). "Northampton Town sign striker Vadaine Oliver". Northampton Town F.C. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
31. "Gills clinch the signing of Vadaine Oliver". Gillingham F.C. 5 August 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
32. "Report: Gillingham 2–1 Crawley Town". Gillingham F.C. 8 September 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
33. "Vadaine Oliver wins Sky Bet League 1 player of the month". www.gillinghamfootballclub.com. 9 April 2021.
34. "Gillingham FC | Squad Stats | 2020/21". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
35. "Gillingham FC | Squad Stats | 2021/22". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
36. Britcher, Chris (30 April 2022). "Gills relegated from League One as they lose 2-0 to Rotherham United at Priestfield". Kent Online. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
37. Cawdell, Luke (5 May 2022). "Striker confirms Gillingham exit". Kent Online. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
38. "Bradford City sign striker Oliver on three-year deal". Bradford Telegraph and Argus.
39. "CITY CAPTURE FRONTMAN OLIVER". www.bradfordcityafc.com. 10 July 2022.
40. "Stevenage sign Vadaine Oliver". www.stevenagefc.com. 17 January 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
41. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
42. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
43. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
44. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
45. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
46. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
47. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
48. "Games played by Vadaine Oliver in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
49. "Macclesfield Town 2–3 York City". BBC Sport. 21 May 2017. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
50. Pilnick, Brent (29 June 2020). "Exeter City 0–4 Northampton Town". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
51. "Kyle Dempsey named Gillingham supporters' player-of-the-year 2020/21; Vadaine Oliver players' player, Jack Tucker young player and Connor Ogilvie goal of the season". Kent Online. 9 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.