Help protectthe pathwayfor the nextgeneration.

Why this is personal to me

I have seen the talent first-hand.

I first played in goal at around eight years old and became a professional goalkeeper at 18.

After more than ten years playing professionally, injury ended my career in 1998. That same year I started Just4Keepers (J4K) to help young goalkeepers receive the coaching, guidance and opportunities I knew were so important.

Since then, J4K coaches and I have worked with thousands of goalkeepers from grassroots football through to academy, semi-professional, professional and international level.

So when I say the UK and Ireland still produce talented goalkeepers, I am not guessing. I have seen them with my own eyes for more than two decades.

The pathway is narrowing

During the 2025/26 season, the picture of home-grown first-choice goalkeepers across the leagues looked roughly like this:

* Source: FBref / Sports Reference, 2025/26 league goalkeeper statistics. Method: the goalkeeper with the most league starts for each club was treated as that club's main first-choice goalkeeper.

England is clearly still producing talented goalkeepers, so the question is: why are so few reaching the very top?

When I played professionally, only around 5% of goalkeepers in the Premier League were from overseas, and virtually none in the Championship. In just a couple of decades, those dynamics have changed dramatically.

As you can see from the graph above, the opportunities for homegrown goalkeepers are now becoming increasingly limited — and that trend is starting to filter further down the football pyramid.

The human cost

Two real examples of why this matters.

Story 1

Years of sacrifice — then the contract disappears.

I have heard a few variations of this story from credible coaches and heartbroken parents over my 25 plus years coaching goalkeepers.

A young goalkeeper spends most of their childhood at a professional academy, making huge sacrifices and believing they are finally going to receive a professional contract.

Then, just weeks before signing, a new manager or coach arrives from overseas and brings in players they already know and trust, including another goalkeeper.

In situations I have heard about, the new coaching staff had never even seen the young goalkeeper play before making the decision. The goalkeeper who has spent years at the club is released, while another goalkeeper - who is NO better than them - gets the opportunity.

Even though this is little consolation to the home grown goalkeeper, I do understand why a new manager will bring their own players. They know just a few bad results could cost them their job, so they probably think they have not got the time to get to know certain players, instead they would rather bring in players they know and trust.

I also heard one or two stories of local goalkeepers spending most of their childhood at one academy, believing they were competing against just one or two other local keepers for a future professional contract.

Then, after years of loyalty, training and sacrifice, they are released - only to discover the club had already been developing or monitoring a goalkeeper overseas, sometimes through one of the club's own overseas academies, who is then brought in and given the opportunity instead.

That is why some families have told me they felt the club had used their child - relying on them to train, play matches and represent the academy for years, while another goalkeeper was quietly being developed overseas and lined up for the opportunity they believed their child was competing for.

We all know there is very little loyalty from most football clubs. At the end of the day, professional football is a business.

But understanding why it happens does not mean we should ignore what it can do to the pathway for young home-grown goalkeepers.

Story 2

The Loan Knock-On Effect

A very talented English goalkeeper I know was playing two divisions below League Two. They had been their club's established number one for several seasons and had even won Player of the Season the season before.

Then a young goalkeeper from a Premier League club arrived on loan to gain senior experience. The established goalkeeper lost their place AND their contract - not because their performances deserved it, but, from what I was told, because the lower-league club could receive financial support for playing the Premier League goalkeeper.

I do not blame the Premier League goalkeeper, and I do not necessarily blame the smaller club. But what happens to the goalkeeper who has done absolutely nothing wrong? They can lose their place, income and potentially their career.

Like many people, I believe semi-professional and non-league football is the backbone of English football.

More supporters are turning to the lower leagues because the game still feels real, honest and connected to the community.

At lower-league level, supporters often know the players, see them locally and feel a genuine connection to the team. These are players whose next contract, reputation and livelihood can depend on the club doing well.

That is why The Loan Knock-On Effect worries me.

Loan players can be talented, but they may not have the same connection or skin in the game. Their long-term future usually lies elsewhere.

If lower-league clubs become increasingly reliant on players with little connection to the club or area, we risk losing the very things that make this level so special - passion, loyalty, identity and community.

Who funds this campaign?

Why Is J4K Funding This Campaign?

Running and promoting this campaign costs money, and J4K Goalkeeping is funding those costs.

Since 1998, I have seen first-hand how much goalkeepers and their families sacrifice chasing the dream, and there is nothing more frustrating or soul-destroying than seeing a talented goalkeeper passed over not because they are not good enough, but because coaching staff bring in someone from overseas who, in my opinion, for the most part AND personal experience is no better.

I have seen this happen too many times, and it still makes me angry.

That is why J4K is funding this campaign.

J4K makes no money from petition signatures - this campaign actually costs J4K money to run and promote.

Signing is completely free, so please help J4K help goalkeepers across the UK and Ireland by signing and sharing this petition with as many people as possible.