Dale Anthony Gorman is a Northern Irish professional footballer who last played for Leyton Orient. Gorman began his career at hometown club Letterkenny Rovers before signing a scholarship with Stevenage in 2013. He broke into the Stevenage first-team during the 2015–16 season and spent three seasons in the first-team before leaving in May 2018. Gorman joined Leyton Orient of the National League ahead of the 2018–19 season, where he helped the club earn promotion back to the Football League in his first season there. He has also represented Northern Ireland at U17, U19 and U21 level.
Early life
Gorman is the son of Sheila and coach and former Finn Harps F.C. player Anthony Gorman. Dale Gorman has two younger brothers called Zach and Joel. He attended St Eunan's College for his secondary education. While there he captained the school team and played alongside Shaun Patton.
Club career
Early career
Gorman began his career with his hometown club, Letterkenny Rovers, progressing through the youth ranks at the club. He attracted the attention of English side Stevenage after being scouted in a Northern Ireland U17 game against Scotland. After Gorman had finished competing in qualifying for the 2013 European U17 Championships, he was invited to train at Stevenage's academy, playing in a youth game against Bournemouth. He scored one goal and assisted another in the match, and was subsequently offered a two-year scholarship. He signed the deal immediately, calling it a "no-brainer". His parents also had relatives living near the club.
Stevenage
Gorman officially joined Stevenage in May 2013, and spent the following two seasons in the club's youth set-up, competing for the U18 and reserve sides, as well as playing at the IMG Cup in Florida for the Hertfordshire side. During his two years at academy level, Gorman also frequently trained with the first-team. In May 2015, he signed his first professional contract with the club. Ahead of the 2015–16 season, Gorman featured in several of Stevenage's pre-season fixtures under new manager Teddy Sheringham. He made his professional debut in the club's second game of the new campaign, coming on as a second-half substitute in Stevenage's 2–1 away loss to Ipswich Town in the League Cup on 11 August 2015. Gorman made his first start a week-and-a-half later, playing the whole game as Stevenage secured their first win of the season courtesy of a 2–0 victory over Hartlepool United at Broadhall Way. After featuring a handful of times during the first half of the season, Gorman signed an improved three-year contract with Stevenage in December 2015. He went on to make 14 appearances during his first season in professional football. The following season served as Gorman's breakthrough campaign as a first-team regular. His first appearance of the new season came at Portman Road in an EFL Cup game away at Championship opposition Ipswich Town, the same match and venue where he made his professional debut a year earlier. This time Gorman played the whole match in a 1–0 Stevenage win. It marked the start of a run of games in the first-team for the midfielder, and he scored his first professional goal in December 2016, netting with a curling strike in a 2–1 away win over local rivals Barnet. The following month, on 9 January 2017, Gorman signed a new contract with the club, running until 2019. Gorman scored once in 30 appearances during the season as the club finished in tenth place in League Two. The 2017–18 season saw Gorman make 27 appearances in all competitions, scoring twice, as Stevenage finished the League Two campaign in 16th position. He was released in May 2018.
Leyton Orient
Following his departure from Stevenage, Gorman signed for National League club Leyton Orient on a two-year deal on 14 June 2018. He scored his first goal for Orient when he scored in an EFL Trophy tie against Southend United on 3 September 2019. On 10 January 2020 Gorman joined Newport County on loan for the remainder of the 2019-20 season. He made his debut for Newport County on 18 January 2020 in the 2-0 League Two win against Swindon Town as a second half substitute. He scored his first goal for Newport on 7 March 2020 in the 1-0 League Two win against Morecambe.
International career
Gorman decided to play for Northern Ireland in order to further his prospects of gaining a move to an English club. Having earned six caps for Northern Ireland's U17 side from October 2012 to March 2013, Gorman made the step up to U19 level following his move to Stevenage in the summer of 2013, receiving his first call-up at U19 level in October 2013, and proceeded to make three appearances at that level over the space of a year. A month after making his professional debut at Stevenage, Gorman was called up to the Northern Ireland U21 side, making his debut on 5 September 2015, a game in which he was sent off for two bookable offences in a 2–1 home defeat to Scotland U21.
