Sam Curtis
Personal information
Date of birth (2005-12-01) 1 December 2005
Place of birth Navan, Republic of Ireland
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 St Patrick's Athletic
Number 22
Youth career
Parkvilla
–2019 St Kevin's Boys
2019–2021 Shamrock Rovers
2021–2022 St Patrick's Athletic
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020 Shamrock Rovers II 2 (0)
2021– St Patrick's Athletic 53 (3)
International career‡
2019–2020 Republic of Ireland U15 6 (2)
2021–2022 Republic of Ireland U17 6 (2)
2021–2022 Republic of Ireland U18 5 (0)
2022–2023 Republic of Ireland U19 7 (0)
2023– Republic of Ireland U21 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 02:07, 4 November 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:35, 21 November 2023 (UTC)

Sam Curtis (born 1 December 2005) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for League of Ireland Premier Division club St Patrick's Athletic. He is the youngest ever player to play in the League of Ireland.[1]

Club career

Youth career

A native of Navan, County Meath, Curtis began playing with his local side Parkvilla, before moving to top Dublin youth side, St Kevin's Boys before moving to the academy of League of Ireland Premier Division club Shamrock Rovers. In June 2019, he captained the Dublin District Schoolboys League representative team to winning the prestigious Kennedy Cup.[2] While at Rovers, he made his debut in senior football for the club's reserve team Shamrock Rovers II in Ireland's second tier, the League of Ireland First Division.[3] His debut came on 17 October 2020 in a 3–1 win over Athlone Town at age 14, making him the youngest player in League of Ireland history.[4] He spent time on trial at AS Roma and Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2021.[5]

St Patrick's Athletic

2021 season

On 25 July 2021, it was announced that Curtis, as well as his brother Ben, had signed for St Patrick's Athletic, where they would initially play with the club's under 19 side.[6] Curtis made his senior debut for the club came on 13 August 2021, replacing the injured Lee Desmond in injury time of a 2–1 win over Waterford at Richmond Park, making him the club's youngest ever player at 15 years and 255 days old (this record has since been taken by Mason Melia in 2023).[7][8] He made his UEFA Youth League debut on 29 September 2021 in a 2–1 loss to Serbian side Crvena Zvezda.[9]

2022 season

Both Sam and brother Ben Curtis signed their first professional contracts on 20 January 2022.[10][11][12] Curtis' first start for the club came on 6 May 2022 in a 4–0 win away to Drogheda United at United Park.[13] His form in May 2022 saw him voted as the club's Player of the Month by supporters.[14] His first appearances in European competition came in the summer of 2022 when he came off the bench in a 1–1 draw with NŠ Mura of Slovenia[15] and in a 1–0 away win against Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia in the UEFA Europa Conference League.[16] He won the clubs' Player of the Month award for the second time in the season, for September 2022.[17] He made a total of 20 appearances in all competitions during his first full season at the club.[3] His form in his breakthrough season at the club led to reported interest from Manchester City and Chelsea.[18][19][20][21][22][23]

2023 season

Curtis started the 2023 season off well, making the Right wingback position his own following the departure of Barry Cotter in the offseason. He started the first 6 games of the season in the position, leading up to the March international break which earned him his first callup to the Republic of Ireland U21 side with Pats assistant manager Jon Daly tipping him for a bright future in the game.[24] He earned the club's Player of the Month award for his performances in March 2023.[25] On 19 May 2023, Curtis scored the first goal of his senior career, heading home a Jake Mulraney corner in a 1–0 Dublin derby win away to Shelbourne at Tolka Park.[26] He was voted as the club's Player of the Month for the second time in the season for May 2023.[27] On 30 June 2023, Curtis scored a header from a Jake Mulraney corner to give his side a 3-goal lead in an eventual 7–0 win over UCD at Richmond Park.[28] On 4 August 2023, he scored his 3rd goal of the season, volleying home his sides second goal in a 2–0 win away to Sligo Rovers at The Showgrounds, in what was his 50th appearance for the club in all competitions.[29] On 28 October 2023, he was named as the club's Young Player of the Year for 2023.[30] On 12 November 2023, Curtis was part of the starting XI in the 2023 FAI Cup Final, in a 3–1 win over Bohemians in front of a record breaking FAI Cup Final crowd of 43,881 at the Aviva Stadium.[31] On 15 November 2023, it was announced that Curtis had been included in the PFAI Team of the Year and was one of the 3 nominees for the PFAI Young Player of the Year award, alongside James Clarke and Jack Moylan.[32] On 2 December 2023, he was named PFAI Young Player of the Year for 2023, becoming the youngest ever player to win the award.[33][34]

International career

Curtis featured for the Republic of Ireland U15 side in 2019, captaining the side at age 13.[35] He was a prominent player for the Republic of Ireland U17s during their qualification campaign over 2021–2022, scoring 2 goals in 6 appearances.[36][37][38][39] Curtis captained the Republic of Ireland U18 side over 2021–2022.[40] His first call up to the Republic of Ireland U19 team came in September 2022.[8] Curtis received his first call up to the Republic of Ireland U21 side came in March 2023, for a friendly against Iceland U21, despite still being just 17 years old.[41][42] He played the full 90 minutes in the game as his side came from behind to win 2–1 after playing an hour with 10 men.[43] On 20 June 2023, he was named as Republic of Ireland U18 Player of the Year for 2022 at the FAI International Football Awards.[44]

Career statistics

As of match played on 12 November 2023[3]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Shamrock Rovers II 2020 LOI First Division 20———20
St Patrick's Athletic 2021 LOI Premier Division 1000——10
2022 180002[lower-alpha 1]00[lower-alpha 2]0200
2023 343302[lower-alpha 1]00[lower-alpha 3]0393
Total 533304000603
Career total 553304000623

Honours

Club

St Patrick's Athletic

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "'I've seen kids go at 16 and come back a year later' – Sam Curtis ready for final goodbye after LOI journey". www.independent.ie. 12 November 2023.
  2. ↑ "Local boys help keep DDSL top". 20 June 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "Republic of Ireland - S. Curtis - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". ie.soccerway.com.
  4. ↑ Doyle, Garry (17 October 2020). "Fourteen-year-old Sam Curtis makes senior debut for Shamrock Rovers". The42.
  5. ↑ Fallon, John (26 June 2021). "French club Rennes make offer for St Pat's star". Irish Examiner.
  6. ↑ Fallon, John (25 July 2021). "St Pats sign Sam Curtis from Shamrock Rovers". Irish Examiner.
  7. ↑ Walsh, Daire (14 August 2021). "Saints keep pace with Hoops following Waterford victory".
  8. 1 2 "Curtis Called Up To Ireland U19 Squad". www.stpatsfc.com.
  9. ↑ Donnelly, Dave (29 September 2021). "St Pat's rally from two goals down but fall just short in Uefa Youth League first leg". The42.
  10. ↑ O'Connor, Seán. "Curtis brothers sign professional contracts with Saints". extratime.com.
  11. ↑ "Curtis brothers sign pro deals with St Patrick's Athletic". Meath Chronicle.
  12. ↑ "Curtis brothers commit to St. Pat's with pro deals". LMFM.
  13. ↑ O'Hehir, Paul (11 May 2022). "St Pat's wonderkid Sam Curtis tipped for a bright career". Irish Mirror.
  14. ↑ "Log in or sign up to view". www.facebook.com.
  15. ↑ Ward, Johnny (21 July 2022). "Forrester fires St Pat's to first-leg draw with Mura" – via www.rte.ie.
  16. ↑ Fennessy, Paul (4 August 2022). "Late goal sees St Pat's earn famous win in Bulgaria". The42.
  17. ↑ https://twitter.com/stpatsfc/status/1578418331777761280?s=46&t=J7xt5ynNeYeJ1MJEJFlMiw
  18. ↑ Ward, Johnny (10 October 2022). "Manchester City tracking St Pat's teenage star Curtis" – via www.rte.ie.
  19. ↑ Fallon, John (13 October 2022). "City scouts dispatched to watch Saints' wonderkid Curtis". Irish Examiner.
  20. ↑ Fallon, John (2 November 2022). "Chelsea to rival Manchester City in hunt for St Pat's wonderkid Sam Curtis". Irish Examiner.
  21. ↑ Stanley, Colman. "Man City Interested In Signing St. Pat's Teenage Sensation Sam Curtis". Balls.ie.
  22. ↑ Hobkinson, Matthew (15 October 2022). "Man City 'line up offer' for teenage sensation Curtis". Manchester Evening News.
  23. ↑ "Man City racing to sign Sam Curtis after trial with giants - sources". Football Insider. 14 October 2022.
  24. ↑ "St Pat's 17-year-old sensation Sam Curtis tipped for bright future". independent.
  25. ↑ https://twitter.com/stpatsfc/status/1643548419426856962?s=46&t=J7xt5ynNeYeJ1MJEJFlMiw
  26. ↑ "Teenage star Sam Curtis lifts Jon Daly's Saints to Tolka Park triumph". Independent.ie. 19 May 2023.
  27. ↑ https://twitter.com/stpatsfc/status/1666104865418891264?s=46
  28. ↑ "15-year-old Mason Melia becomes youngest Saints scorer in rout of UCD". Independent.ie. 30 June 2023.
  29. ↑ Goulden, David (4 August 2023). "Saints punish Sligo mistakes to close gap at the top" – via www.rte.ie.
  30. ↑ "2023 Awards Night Winners". www.stpatsfc.com.
  31. ↑ Fenton, James (12 November 2023). "FAI Cup final recap: Bohemians 1-3 St Pat's" – via www.rte.ie.
  32. ↑ "PFAI Team of Year includes one Shamrock Rovers player". 15 November 2023 – via www.rte.ie.
  33. ↑ "Clean sweep for St Pat's at PFAI awards as Chris Forrester and Sam Curtis claim Player and Young Player of the Year gongs". Independent.ie. 2 December 2023.
  34. ↑ "Curtis Named PFAI Young Player Of The Year". www.stpatsfc.com.
  35. ↑ "2019 Review: Ireland U15 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  36. ↑ "MU17 | Review of 2022 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  37. ↑ "Sam Curtis in Republic of Ireland u-17 panel". Meath Chronicle.
  38. ↑ "Sam and Ben Curtis add to international experience". Meath Chronicle.
  39. ↑ "Ireland's U17 Euro hopes end despite fight-back". 29 March 2022 – via www.rte.ie.
  40. ↑ "Curtis looking to lead Irish to more success". Meath Chronicle.
  41. ↑ "PREVIEW | Ireland U21 v Iceland U21 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  42. ↑ "Saints Named In U21 Squad". www.stpatsfc.com.
  43. ↑ O'Connell, Dylan (26 March 2023). "Cannon and Kenny strike as 10-man Ireland overcome Iceland". The42.
  44. ↑ "Winners unveiled at the 33rd FAI International Awards | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
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