Lee Martin (footballer, born 1987)

Lee Robert Martin (born 9 February 1987) is an English professional footballer. He can play as a winger or as a supporting striker for Ebbsfleet United.

Lee Martin

Martin playing for Millwall in 2015
Personal information
Full name	Lee Robert Martin[1]
Date of birth	9 February 1987
Place of birth	Taunton, England
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[2]
Position(s)	Winger Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current team	Ebbsfleet United
Youth career
000?–2003	Wimbledon
2003–2005	Manchester United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2005–2009	Manchester United	1	(0)
2006	→ Royal Antwerp (loan)	17	(1)
2006	→ Rangers (loan)	7	(0)
2007	→ Stoke City (loan)	13	(1)
2007–2008	→ Plymouth Argyle (loan)	12	(2)
2008	→ Sheffield United (loan)	6	(0)
2008	→ Nottingham Forest (loan)	13	(1)
2009–2013	Ipswich Town	100	(6)
2010–2011	→ Charlton Athletic (loan)	20	(2)
2013–2016	Millwall	61	(2)
2016	→ Northampton Town (loan)	10	(0)
2016–2018	Gillingham	52	(6)
2018–2020	Exeter City	63	(7)
2020–	Ebbsfleet United	9	(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 January 2021 (UTC)

Playing career

Manchester United

Martin began his career as a trainee with Wimbledon, where he caught the eye of many Premier League teams. Pursued by a number of other top clubs, including Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, he signed for Manchester United on 17 December 2003, following a week-long trial in October 2003, during which time he made one appearance for the Manchester United Under-19s team. The compensation package United paid Wimbledon is estimated to be approximately £1 million, with £200k being paid up front, and the rest in instalments based on both his and Manchester United's performance.[3]

Over the remainder of the 2003–04 season, Martin made seven more appearances for United's various youth teams, and was even named as an unused substitute for the Reserves in January 2004. The following season, Martin began as a regular in the Under-18s, but he was soon promoted to the Reserve team, where he began to flourish, scoring goals as well as setting them up, including a hat-trick in one game against Bolton Wanderers Reserves. The 2005–06 season was even more auspicious for Martin; after being named on the bench for two UEFA Champions League group games, he finally made his first team debut in the League Cup against Barnet on 26 October 2005. He was substituted after 75 minutes, allowing Darron Gibson to make his own first team debut, but he was a constant threat to the Barnet goal.

Royal Antwerp (loan)

In January 2006, Martin joined United's feeder club, Belgian Second Division side Royal Antwerp in a loan deal until May 2006, to gain regular first team experience. During that short spell, he earned the Royal Antwerp Fans' Player of the Year award, and earned the fan-chosen Man of the Match award in five consecutive games. In the run-up to the 2006–07 season, Martin played in six of United's seven friendlies following their summer tour of South Africa. Their match against Celtic attracted the attention of Celtic's Glasgow rivals, Rangers, who sought to take him on loan for the first half of the season.

Rangers (loan)

Seen as not quite ready for the Premier League, Martin joined the Scottish club with a view to an extension of the loan to the end of the season.[4] After a succession of injuries he failed to establish himself and returned to Manchester United in December 2006, having made just 10 appearances.[5]

Stoke City (loan)

On 25 January 2007, he was farmed out on loan again, this time to Stoke City.[6] He scored his first senior goal in Stoke's 2–1 win against Southampton on 10 March 2007;[7] it was his only goal in his 14 appearances for the club.

Return to United

Martin returned to United for the 2007–08 season, and toured the Far East with the club in July 2007. He played in two of the four matches, and scored a spectacular goal against Chinese side Guangzhou Pharmaceutical on 27 July 2007, before being replaced by Patrice Evra. He was again named as an unused substitute for the Community Shield against Chelsea on 5 August 2007. Had he played in the game, it would have been his third game in as many days, having played a total of 149 minutes over the previous two games.

On 26 September 2007, Martin started the League Cup Third Round match against Coventry City, but, with United 1–0 down at half-time, he was substituted, Fraizer Campbell his replacement. However, United conceded again and were knocked out of the cup.

Plymouth Argyle (loan)

On 5 October 2007, he joined Championship side Plymouth Argyle on a three-month loan deal, with Plymouth beating three other Championship clubs to his signature.[8] He scored his first Argyle goal in the 1–0 victory over Coventry City on 20 October 2007.

Martin discussed an extension to his loan with Sir Alex Ferguson on 2 January, but it was decided that Martin would return to Manchester United at the end of the spell on 5 January.[9]

Sheffield United (loan)

However, on 10 January 2008, Sheffield United announced that they had managed to capture Martin on loan until the end of the season.[10] Martin made his debut for the Blades in a 2–0 away defeat to local rivals Sheffield Wednesday[11] but his loan spell was marred by a recurring knee injury[12][13] and he returned to Old Trafford having only played nine games in total for the Blades.

In Manchester United's 2008 pre-season tour of South Arica, Martin scored United's winner against Orlando Pirates in their 1–0 win in the Vodacom Challenge.

Nottingham Forest (loan)

On 13 August 2008, Martin joined Nottingham Forest on a one-month loan.[14] That evening, he made his first appearance for Forest in their League Cup clash against Morecambe. Forest won the match 4–0, but Martin was booked in the first half. Martin scored his first competitive goal for Forest on 23 August 2008, scoring the opening goal in a 3–2 win over Watford at the City Ground.[15] On 29 August 2008, Nottingham Forest announced an extension of the loan deal until 31 December 2008.[16]

Latter days at United

Upon returning from his loan, Martin was increasingly used by Ole Gunnar Solskjær in the Manchester United Reserve team as an attacking midfielder and makeshift striker,[17] scoring five goals in the latter half of the season. He was also named as a substitute for the first team's home match against Aston Villa on 5 April 2009, but did not take to the field.[18]

Martin made his first league start for Manchester United in the final match of the 2008–09 Premier League season at Hull City, as United rested key players for the Champions League Final.

Ipswich Town

Martin joined Ipswich Town on 6 July 2009 for an undisclosed fee thought to be around £1.5 million, signing a four-year contract with the club managed by former Manchester United captain Roy Keane.[19] He made his debut for Ipswich in a friendly against Brentford on 15 July 2009, scoring a goal within eight minutes; Ipswich went on to win the game 3–1.[20] His first competitive start for Ipswich came on 9 August 2009, in a Championship game with Coventry[21] Martin scored his first competitive goal for Ipswich in a 3–3 draw away to Doncaster – it was his 8th appearance for the club. Martin was one of eight players made available for transfer by manager Roy Keane at the end of the 2009–10 season.

Charlton Athletic (loan)

On 6 August 2010, Martin joined League One club Charlton Athletic for the duration of the 2010–11 season.[22] He scored his first goal for the club in a League Cup match against Shrewsbury Town on 10 August 2010. He scored his only two league goals for Charlton in a 5–1 victory against Peterborough United at London Road. He was recalled by Ipswich on 18 January 2011.

Ipswich Town return

With Paul Jewell being appointed manager, he recalled Martin back from loan. Martin scored his second goal for the club on 6 August 2011 in the season's opening game at Bristol City. Martin has been a regular player under Paul Jewell and has made 26 appearances scoring 5 goals.[23] He was released by Mick McCarthy at the end of the 2012–13 season.[24]

Millwall

On 4 July 2013, Martin joined Championship club Millwall on a one-year contract.[25] He signed a two-year extension on 17 June 2014.[26] In January 2016 Martin went out on loan to Northampton Town.[27] He was released by Millwall at the end of the 2015–16 season.[28]

Gillingham

On 6 July 2016 he joined League One club Gillingham on a two-year contract.[29] He suffered a serious ankle injury in a pre-season friendly at the end of the month and early indications were that he would miss the entire season as a result, but he eventually returned to action in February 2017 making his debut against Port Vale in a 1–1 draw.[30][31]

On 3 August 2017 he was named as Gillingham captain by manager Adrian Pennock.[32] He was released by Gillingham at the end of the 2017–18 season.[33]

Exeter City

Following his release from Gillingham, Martin joined Exeter City.[34] He made 77 appearances and scored 8 goals over two seasons at the club, helping Exeter reach the 2020 EFL League Two play-off Final. He was released following the end of his contract in July 2020.[35]

Ebbsfleet United

He joined National League South side Ebbsfleet United on 29 July, following his release from Exeter City.[36]

Career statistics

As of match played 2 January 2021

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Manchester United	2005–06[37]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
	2006–07[38]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2007–08[39]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0
	2008–09[40]	Premier League	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	Total		1	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	3	0
Royal Antwerp (loan)	2005–06[37]	Belgian First Division	17	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	1
Rangers (loan)	2006–07[38]	Scottish Premier League	7	0	0	0	2	0	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	10	0
Stoke City (loan)	2006–07[38]	Championship	13	1	1	0	0	0	—		14	1
Plymouth Argyle (loan)	2007–08[39]	Championship	12	2	0	0	0	0	—		12	2
Sheffield United (loan)	2007–08[39]	Championship	6	0	3	0	0	0	—		9	0
Nottingham Forest (loan)	2008–09[40]	Championship	13	1	0	0	1	0	—		14	1
Ipswich Town	2009–10[41]	Championship	16	1	1	0	1	0	—		18	1
	2010–11[42]	Championship	16	0	0	0	0	0	—		16	0
	2011–12[43]	Championship	34	5	1	0	1	0	—		36	5
	2012–13[44]	Championship	34	0	1	0	2	0	—		37	0
	Total		100	6	3	0	4	0	0	0	107	6
Charlton Athletic (loan)	2010–11[42]	League One	20	2	0	0	1	1	4[lower-alpha 2]	0	25	3
Millwall	2013–14[45]	Championship	26	1	1	0	2	0	—		29	1
	2014–15[46]	Championship	27	1	2	0	0	0	—		29	1
	2015–16[47]	League One	8	0	1	0	1	0	1[lower-alpha 2]	0	11	0
	Total		61	2	4	0	3	0	1	0	69	2
Northampton Town (loan)	2015–16[47]	League Two	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	10	0
Gillingham	2016–17[48]	League One	17	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0
	2017–18[49]	League One	35	6	3	0	0	0	1[lower-alpha 3]	0	39	6
	Total		52	6	3	0	0	0	1	0	56	6
Exeter City	2018–19[50]	League Two	35	1	0	0	2	0	3[lower-alpha 3]	0	40	1
	2019–20[51]	League Two	28	6	4	0	1	0	4[lower-alpha 4]	1	37	7
	Total		63	7	4	0	3	0	7	1	77	8
Ebbsfleet United	2020–21[52]	National League South	9	2	2	1	—		2[lower-alpha 5]	1	13	4
Career Total			384	30	20	1	16	1	16	2	436	34

1. Appearance in UEFA Cup
2. Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy
3. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
4. Three appearances in EFL Trophy, one appearance in EFL League Two play-offs
5. Appearance(s) in FA Trophy

Honours

Manchester United

• FA Community Shield: 2007

References

1. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2007). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2007–08. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 274. ISBN 978-1-84596-246-3.
2. "Lee Martin - Midfielder - First Team - Exeter City FC". Exeter City F.C. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
3. "Lee Martin". 4thegame.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
4. "Man Utd's Martin moves to Rangers". BBC Sport. 11 August 2006. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
5. "Old Trafford duo make Ibrox exit". BBC Sport. 29 December 2006. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
6. "Stoke sign Man Utd winger on loan". BBC Sport. 25 January 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
7. "Stoke 2–1 Southampton". BBC Sport. 10 March 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
8. "Plymouth wrap up Martin loan deal". BBC Sport. 5 October 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
9. "LEE LOAN LATEST". pafc.co.uk. 28 December 2007. Archived from the original on 11 April 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
10. "Blades Secure loan winger". Sheffield United F.C. 10 January 2008. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
11. "Sheff Wed 2–0 Sheff Utd". BBC Sport. 19 January 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
12. "Injury update". Sheffield United F.C. 14 March 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
13. "Triple injury blow". Sheffield United F.C. 27 April 2008. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
14. "Forest complete Martin loan deal". BBC Sport. 13 August 2008. Retrieved 13 August 2008.
15. "Nott'm Forest 3–2 Watford". BBC Sport. 23 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
16. "Martin's Stay Extended". nottinghamforest.co.uk. 29 August 2008. Archived from the original on 12 September 2008. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
17. "Reserves face champions". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 30 April 2009. Retrieved 30 April 2009.
18. Hughes, Ian (5 April 2009). "Man Utd 3–2 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 5 April 2009.
19. Bartram, Steve (6 July 2009). "Martin joins Keane's Ipswich". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 6 July 2009.
20. "Brentford 1 Town 3". itfc.co.uk. Ipswich Town FC. 16 July 2009. Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
21. Coventry 2–1 Ipswich. Simply Blue. Retrieved 17 August 2009
22. Wright, Matt (6 August 2010). "Martin agrees Valley move". cafc.co.uk. Charlton Athletic. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
23. "Bristol City 0-3 Ipswich". BBC News. 6 August 2011.
24. "Ipswich Town: Michael Chopra & Jay Emmanuel-Thomas can leave". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
25. "Lee Martin: Millwall set to sign ex-Ipswich Town winger". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
26. "Lee Martin: Millwall winger signs new two-year contract". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
27. "Lee Martin: Millwall winger joins Northampton Town on loan". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
28. "Millwall: Seven released, new deals for Byron Webster and Joe Martin". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
29. "GILLS MAKE DOUBLE SIGNING". Retrieved 6 July 2016.
30. Cawdell, Luke (30 July 2016). "Gillingham's former Ipswich and Manchester United midfielder Lee Martin suffers ankle injury at Leyton Orient". Kent Messenger. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
31. "Debut man rescues Gills". Kent Online. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
32. "LEE MARTIN NAMED GILLS CAPTAIN". Retrieved 3 August 2017.
33. "Lee Martin: Gillingham release captain and Scott Wagstaff and Jake Hessenthaler". BBC Sport. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
34. "Lee Martin and Jimmy Oates: Exeter City sign midfielder and defender". BBC Sport. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
35. "Retained list: Exeter City confirm that nine players have left the club". Exeter City F.C. 2 July 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
36. "Martin makes it double figures for Fleet". Ebbsfleet United F.C. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
37. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
38. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
39. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
40. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
41. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
42. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
43. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
44. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
45. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
46. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
47. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
48. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
49. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
50. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm.
51. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
52. "Games played by Lee Martin in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 September 2017.

External links

• Lee Martin at Soccerbase
• Profile at StretfordEnd.co.uk