Tom Conlon
Tom George Sawyer Conlon is an English footballer who plays for League Two side Port Vale. He is a descendant of Football League players George Heppell and Albert Pearson.
Conlon began his career in the youth set-up at Stoke City, later joining the youth academies at Newcastle Town and Peterborough United respectively. He made a handful of appearances in the first-team at Peterborough, before signing for Stevenage on loan in September 2014, a deal that was subsequently made permanent in January 2015. He signed with Port Vale in July 2018.
Career
Early career
Conlon began his career at Stoke City's academy, spending nine years at his hometown club before being released in the summer of 2012. He subsequently joined Newcastle Town's youth set-up, playing the opening two months of the 2012–13 season for the club's U17 and U18 sides. In October 2012, Conlon was spotted by scouts at Peterborough United whilst playing in the FA Youth Cup for Newcastle Town in a game against Stratford Town, and subsequently signed for the then-Championship club on a two-year scholarship after a successful three-day trial. He spent the remainder of the campaign playing in Peterborough's U18 side. Conlon made his professional debut on 9 November 2013, coming on as a 68th minute substitute in a 2–0 win over Exeter City in an FA Cup First Round tie at the London Road Stadium. He was given his first 18-month professional contract by manager Darren Ferguson the following month. He made three appearances in total for the "Posh" first-team during the 2013–14 campaign, all of which were from the substitute's bench.Stevenage
Having not featured for Peterborough's first-team at the start of the 2014–15 season, Conlon joined League Two side Stevenage on loan on 13 September 2014 for the remainder of the year, with a view to a permanent deal in the January transfer window. He made his debut on the same day his loan move was announced, playing the whole match as "Boro" secured a 1–0 victory over Shrewsbury Town at Broadhall Way. His deal was made permanent in January 2015, with manager Graham Westley saying he just needed to develop physically to make the most of his technical ability. He went on to make 14 appearances during his first season with the Hertfordshire club as they narrowly lost out on promotion after defeat in the League Two play-off semi-final. After being given the captain's armband for a pre-season friendly at the age of 19 by new manager Teddy Sheringham, the following season turned out to be Conlon's breakthrough season in the first-team. He started the opening game of the campaign, a 2–0 home loss to Notts County and was a mainstay in the centre of midfield up until an injury sustained in November 2015 kept him out of first-team action for five weeks. Conlon scored the first professional goals of his career in Stevenage's 2–1 away victory over Hartlepool United on 9 February 2016, giving Stevenage their first win in nine matches. The first goal was a left-footed long-range effort that flew into the top corner, before his second of the match came from close range to double the Hertfordshire side's lead. He made 35 appearances in all competitions during the season, scoring twice, as Stevenage finished the season in 18th place.After featuring in the club's opening five fixtures of the 2016–17 season, Conlon suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury in Stevenage's 2–1 victory over Luton Town. The injury ultimately ruled Conlon out of action for nine months, missing the remainder of the campaign. He signed a new contract with Stevenage in April 2017, after manager Darren Sarll stated that "he's had a really tough year... if he realises his potential he will be a terrific player". Ahead of the 2017–18 season, Conlon played his first match in just under a year when he played the first half in Stevenage's pre-season draw with Hitchin Town. He made his competitive return on 19 August 2017, coming on as an 80th minute substitute in the club's 3–1 home win over Grimsby Town. The majority of Conlon's 15 appearances during the first half of the season were from the substitute's bench, and he was subsequently loaned out to Isthmian League Premier Division leaders Billericay Town on a one-month loan deal on 20 February 2018. He made his "Blues" debut on the same day, playing the first 75 minutes in a 2–1 away defeat at Folkestone Invicta. The match proved to be Conlon's only appearance of the brief loan spell as he returned to Stevenage early due to having a "slight injury". The 2017–18 season saw Conlon make 17 appearances in all competitions as Stevenage finished the League Two campaign in 16th position. He was released by new manager Dino Maamria upon the expiry of his contract in May 2018.
Port Vale
On 25 July 2018, Conlon signed a one-year contract with League Two side Port Vale after impressing manager Neil Aspin in pre-season friendlies whilst on trial at Vale Park. However he picked up a thigh injury only a few days later, which ruled him out of action for the start of the 2018–19 season. He made his debut in a 1–1 draw with Forest Green Rovers on 8 September, a game in which Farrend Rawson was sent off for a "wild late challenge" on Conlon. On 22 January, Conlon himself was sent off after receiving two yellow cards in the space of four minutes during a 3–0 defeat at Bristol Rovers in the quarter-finals of the EFL Trophy; Aspin went on to say that Conlon had to learn from the incident and reduce any further ill-discipline in the future. On 12 March, he scored a "stunning" 25-yard volley in a 3–0 home win over Yeovil Town, which would win him the club's goal of the season award.He started the 2019–20 season with the club's number ten shirt and was a key member of the Vale's midfield three until he was sidelined with a hamstring injury in mid-September. He was returned to the starting line-up upon his recovery, but then picked up a suspension after being shown a straight red card for elbowing Josh Gordon in a 1–0 home defeat to Walsall on 7 December. He scored his first goal of the campaign on 15 February, in a 3–0 home win over Colchester United, and was praised by coach Danny Pugh for his "brilliant" performance and work rate. He was signed a new two-year contract after he ended the 2019–20 campaign with one goals in 27 appearances.