Byron Lawrence

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Byron Lawrence
Personal information
Full name Byron Alfredo Lawrence[1]
Date of birth (1996-03-12) 12 March 1996 (age 28)[2]
Place of birth Cambridge, England
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Ipswich Wanderers
(dual registration from Needham Market)
Youth career
–2010 Histon
2010–2012 Ipswich Town
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2014 Ipswich Town 1 (0)
2014–2016 Colchester United 1 (0)
2016 Bishop's Stortford 11 (0)
2016–2017 Leiston 31 (8)
2017–2018 Billericay Town 8 (0)
2017–2018 → Leiston (loan) 44 (5)
2018 Dulwich Hamlet 2 (0)
2018–2020 Leiston 56 (5)
2019 → Braintree Town (loan) 2 (0)
2020–2023 Needham Market 0 (0)
2023– → Ipswich Wanderers (dual-registration) 0 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14:22, 29 November 2023 (UTC)

Byron Alfredo Lawrence (born 12 March 1996) is an English footballer who plays for Isthmian League North Division side Ipswich Wanderers, where he plays as a midfielder.

Playing career[edit]

Ipswich Town[edit]

Born in Cambridge,[3] Lawrence came through the youth system at Histon, before joining Ipswich Town's Academy in 2010 at the age of 14.[4]

2010–11 season[edit]

Lawrence was involved with Ipswich's under-18 side immediately after joining, scoring in a 2–1 friendly win over Bury Town on 10 August 2010.[5] He scored twice in the under-18s 2–1 win at West Ham United on 9 October,[6] before netting again in Town's 3–2 defeat to Southampton a week later.[7] He scored four goals in 13 under-18 appearances during the 2010–11 season.[8]

2011–12 season[edit]

Lawrence was called up by first-team manager Paul Jewell for their League Cup clash with Northampton Town on 9 August 2011, but was an unused substitute in the match. He had impressed Jewell with his performances in the Milk Cup in Northern Ireland and against Manchester United at under-15 level over the summer.[9] Lawrence returned to action with the under-18s, scoring the third goal in their 3–0 home win against Leicester City on 17 September.[10] He signed a two-year scholarship with Ipswich in November 2011, where Paul Jewell revealed that Lawrence had been training with the first-team. Jewell said of Lawrence that "he reminds me of Jack Wilshere. He's built that way, he uses his body and he's a clever player."[11][12]

Lawrence scored the opening goal in an eventual 3–1 FA Youth Cup defeat to Burnley at Turf Moor on 13 January 2012.[13] He also appeared for the Ipswich Town Reserves side for the first time in 2012, playing in a 1–0 win over Crystal Palace at Playford Road on 21 February.[14] Jewell then stated that he intended to hand some game time to Lawrence before the end of the season in April 2012.[4] He eventually became Town's second youngest-ever debutant on 28 April 2012, replacing Jay Emmanuel-Thomas after 79 minutes in the Blues' 3–2 win over already-relegated Doncaster Rovers.[15][16] He ended the 2011–12 season with 22 under-18 games and two goals to his name, with two reserve appearances in addition to his substitute appearance for the first-team.[8]

2012–13 season[edit]

Paul Jewell included Lawrence in his squad for a pre-season tour of the Netherlands in July 2012. He featured in the first half of a 1–1 draw with Eerste Divisie side Helmond Sport on 17 July,[17] and on their return to England, he appeared in a first-team 2–0 friendly win at Cambridge United on 25 July.[18] He scored a brace for the reserve side in a 6–1 hammering of A.F.C. Sudbury on 1 August,[19] before featuring for 22 minutes as a second-half substitute in Town's 3–1 friendly win against West Ham at Portman Road three days later.[20] He was again named on the bench for the League Cup clash with Carlisle United on 29 August, but was unused in the 2–1 defeat after extra time.[21] He scored for the under-18 side in a 3–2 home defeat by Colchester United on 6 October,[22] before he netted a late equaliser in the under-21s 2–2 draw with Brentford at Griffin Park on 30 October.[23] He grabbed a goal in a 4–2 win for the under-18s against Brighton & Hove Albion on 2 February 2013,[24] and was on target again in a 3–1 reverse at Bristol City on 16 February.[25]

Lawrence captained the under-21 side to a 4–3 win at Portman Road over Colchester on 25 February,[26] while his next goal arrived against the same opposition at under-17 level with a penalty on 4 May as Town fell to a 3–1 defeat.[27] He travelled with the under-17 side on their tour of Belgium in May 2013, where he scored in their 1–1 draw with Mons.[28] He netted two further goals in the competition, one against Gent from the penalty spot, and another in a 2–1 defeat to Sint-Truiden, meaning Town finished seventh overall.[29] His campaign ended with three goals in 23 reserve team appearances, and three goals in eight youth team appearances.[8]

2013–14 season[edit]

Lawrence began the 2013–14 season once again with pre-season alongside the first-team squad. He appeared in their tour of Ireland, starting the second half in Town's 2–0 victory over Shelbourne on 6 July.[30] He again started the second-half squad for Ipswich's 2–1 friendly win at Crawley Town on 10 July,[31] before making an appearance as a substitute in their 2–1 win at Gillingham on 16 July.[32] He was also involved in the 3–0 win at the Colchester Community Stadium against Colchester on 23 July.[33] Seven days later, he faced the same opposition for the under-21 side at Playford Road as Town won 1–0.[34]

He was again an unused substitute for the first-team's FA Cup third round defeat to Preston North End on 14 January 2014.[35] He scored a goal for the under-18 squad on 15 March as Ipswich were defeated 3–1 by Queens Park Rangers,[36] and then netted again five days later as the under-18s beat Bristol City 3–0 away.[37] He scored in a friendly between Ipswich and Peterborough United's development squads on 28 April, in which Town came out 5–2 victors.[38] Lawrence ended the season with a further 17 reserve team appearances and one goal to add to his tally, and two goals in seven games at youth level.[8]

2014–15 season[edit]

For a second year running, Lawrence was involved in Town's first-team pre-season training camp based in Ireland, where he began the second half of a 4–0 win against Shelbourne on 12 July 2014.[39] He scored in a 4–2 win for an Ipswich Town XI against Chelmsford City on 1 August, where he headed home from close range following a Ben Wyatt cross.[40]

Lawrence then joined Colchester United on trial, training with the U's in mid-August 2014.[41] He played for the under-21s in their Professional Development League Two opening game against Sheffield United on 20 August, a game which ended 0–0.[42] Soon after, Ipswich boss Mick McCarthy confirmed that Lawrence was able to leave the club on a permanent basis.[43] He made his second appearance for Colchester under-21s on 1 September as they fell to a 3–1 home defeat to Nottingham Forest.[44] During his brief 2014–15 season with Ipswich, Lawrence made four reserve appearances, where he scored one goal.[8]

Colchester United[edit]

Lawrence became new Colchester United manager Tony Humes' first signing on 2 September 2014, the day after Humes' appointment and the day after Lawrence had appeared for the under-21s in their defeat to Nottingham Forest. He joined the U's on a one-year deal.[45][46][47] He was immediately called up to the first-team squad by Humes for their trip to face Walsall on 6 September at the Bescot Stadium.[48] Despite not appearing against Walsall, he did score a brace for the under-21s in a 3–1 win at Gresty Road against Crewe Alexandra on 9 September. He gave Colchester the lead after the half-time interval after George Cooper's opener had been cancelled out by a Craig Eastmond strike, and then scored his second and Colchester's third with a shot from outside of the area.[49]

Tony Humes handed Lawrence his first-team debut for Colchester on 16 September at home to Sheffield United. He came on as a 76th-minute substitute for Sammie Szmodics when the U's were 1–0 up, and Freddie Sears made it 2–0 one minute after Lawrence's arrival on the field. However, a quickfire trio of goals in the last seven minutes of the game for the Blades handed them a 3–2 win over Colchester.[50] After the match, Lawrence said of his first game for Colchester that it was "a debut to remember but it was a good experience". He also spoke of his exit from Ipswich, stating that "I always tried my best to kick on at Ipswich but I knew that I needed to move on to play", and that Mick McCarthy "thought I was a good player but not quite good enough to play in his team".[51]

Lawrence returned to under-21 action with a goal in their 2–2 draw with Coventry City at Florence Park after converting a Drey Wright cross within the first minute of the game on 23 September.[52] He turned provider in Colchester's 2–1 win at Elland Road against Leeds United on 21 October, setting up Dominic Smith who went on to score both goals in the game.[53]

On 8 May 2015, Lawrence signed a one-year contract extension with Colchester United.[54] However, after just one first-team appearance, Lawrence was released from his contract by mutual consent on 18 January 2016.[55]

Bishop's Stortford[edit]

After training with several clubs, Lawrence signed for National League South outfit Bishop's Stortford on 5 February 2016.[56] He made a 12-minute substitute appearance for his debut on 6 February in a 2–1 defeat by Ebbsfleet United.[57]

Leiston[edit]

After making eleven appearances for Bishop's Stortford, Lawrence moved to Isthmian League Premier Division side Leiston in summer 2016 on a one-year contract with the option of a further year.[58] He made two assists on his debut on the opening day of the season as Leiston defeated Havant & Waterlooville 3–1.[59] He scored his first goals for the club in the following game against Canvey Island with his side's first and third goals of a 3–2 away win on 16 August.[60]

Billericay Town[edit]

On 17 March 2017, Lawrence moved to Isthmian League Premier Division rivals Billericay Town.

Dulwich Hamlet[edit]

On 6 June 2018 Lawrence moved to Dulwich Hamlet, ahead of their inaugural season in the National League South.[61]

Braintree Town[edit]

On 3 October 2019 Lawrence moved to National League South side Braintree Town.[62] In total Byron made two appearances for the club.

Return to Leiston[edit]

On 11 November 2019, Leiston announced former Braintree Town manager Glen Driver as their new manager, and confirmed that Lawrence had ended his loan spell and returned to Leiston.[63]

Needham Market[edit]

It was announced the 27 May, 2020 that Lawrence had departed Leiston and joined fellow Southern League Premier Division Central team Needham Market, becoming the club's second signing of the season.[64]

In November 2023, Lawrence joined Ipswich Wanderers on a dual-registration basis.[65]

Career statistics[edit]

As of match played 27 May 2020.
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Ipswich Town 2011–12[66] Championship 1 0 0 0 0 0 — 1 0
2012–13[66] 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
2013–14[66] 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
2014–15[66] 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
Total 1 0 0 0 0 0 — 1 0
Colchester United 2014–15[66] League One 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Bishop's Stortford 2015–16[66] National League South 11 0 0 0 — 0 0 11 0
Leiston 2016–17[67] Isthmian League Premier Division 31 8 3 2 — 5[a] 0 39 10
Billericay Town 2016–17[68] 8 0 0 0 — 1[b] 1 9 1
2017–18[68] 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0
Total 8 0 0 0 — 1 1 9 1
Leiston (loan) 2017–18[69] Isthmian League Premier Division 44 5 3 2 — 4[c] 0 51 7
Dulwich Hamlet 2018–19[66] National League South 2 0 0 0 — 0 0 2 0
Leiston 2018–19[70] Southern League Premier Division Central 33 3 3 0 — 6[d][e][f] 2[g][h] 42 6
2019–20[71] 23 2 0 0 — 1[i] 0 24 2
Total 56 5 3 0 — 7 2 66 8
Braintree Town (loan) 2019–20[66] National League South 2 0 0 0 — 1[j] 0 2 0
Needham Market 2020–21[72] Southern League Premier Division Central 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0
Career total 156 18 9 4 0 0 18 3 183 25
  1. ^ Appearance(s) in FA Trophy
  2. ^ Appearance(s) in Alan Turvey Trophy
  3. ^ Three appearances in FA Trophy, one in Isthmian League Premier Division play-offs
  4. ^ One appearance in Southern League Cup
  5. ^ Three appearances in FA Trophy
  6. ^ Two appearances in Suffolk Premier Cup
  7. ^ One goal in FA Trophy
  8. ^ One goal in Suffolk Premier Cup
  9. ^ One appearance in Suffolk Premier Cup
  10. ^ One appearance in Essex Senior Cup

References[edit]

  1. ^ "List of Players under Written Contract Registered Between 01/09/2014 and 30/09/2014" (PDF). The Football Association. 30 September 2014. p. 3. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  2. ^ a b Byron Lawrence at Soccerbase
  3. ^ "Colchester United". FootballSquads. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  4. ^ a b Watson, Stuart (13 April 2012). "Byron Lawrence set to become Ipswich Town's second youngest debutant". East Anglian Daily Times. Ipswich. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  5. ^ "Wickham Watches U18s Beat Bury". TWTD. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  6. ^ "U18s Win at West Ham". TWTD. 9 October 2010. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  7. ^ "U18s Lose to Saints". TWTD. 16 October 2010. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Byron Lawrence". Pride of Anglia — Ipswich Town Football Club. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  9. ^ Watson, Stuart (9 August 2011). "Fifteen-year-old called up by Jewell". Green'Un. Ipswich. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  10. ^ "Lavery Does Case for Contract No Harm as U18s Beat Leicester". TWTD. 17 September 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  11. ^ Gooderham, Dave (18 November 2011). "Byron Lawrence could make Ipswich Town debut this season". Green'Un. Ipswich. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  12. ^ "Signed Up Lawrence Could Feature for First Team". TWTD. 18 November 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  13. ^ "U18s Crash Out of Youth Cup". TWTD. 13 January 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  14. ^ "Ainsley Nets as Reserves Beat Palace". TWTD. 21 February 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  15. ^ "Doncaster 2–3 Ipswich". BBC Sport. 28 April 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  16. ^ Watson, Stuart (30 April 2012). "Paul Jewell wishes he had more 'intelligent' footballers like Byron Lawrence". East Anglian Daily Times. Ipswich. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  17. ^ "Helmond Sport 1–1 Town". TWTD. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  18. ^ "Cambridge 0–2 Town". TWTD. 25 July 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  19. ^ "Reserves Hammer AFC Sudbury". TWTD. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  20. ^ "Town 3–1 West Ham". TWTD. 4 August 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  21. ^ "Carlisle 2–1 Ipswich (AET)". BBC Sport. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  22. ^ "U18s Lose to Colchester". TWTD. 6 October 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  23. ^ "Lawrence Nets Last Gasp Equaliser for U21s". TWTD. 30 October 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  24. ^ "U18s Beat Brighton". TWTD. 2 February 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  25. ^ "U18s Lose But U16s Win". TWTD. 18 February 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  26. ^ "U21s Beat Colchester". TWTD. 25 February 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  27. ^ "U17s Lose to Colchester". TWTD. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  28. ^ "U17s Unbeaten in Belgium". TWTD. 11 May 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  29. ^ "U17s Seventh in Belgium". TWTD. 12 May 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  30. ^ "Shelbourne 0–2 Town". TWTD. 6 July 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  31. ^ "Crawley 1–2 Town". TWTD. 10 July 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  32. ^ "Gillingham 1–2 Town". TWTD. 16 July 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  33. ^ "Colchester 0–3 Town". TWTD. 23 July 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  34. ^ "Lee Nets Winner for U21s Against Colchester". TWTD. 30 July 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  35. ^ "Preston 3–2 Town". TWTD. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  36. ^ "Lawrence on Target But U18s Lose". TWTD. 17 March 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  37. ^ "U18s Win at Bristol City". TWTD. 21 March 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  38. ^ "Marriott Nets Four in Friendly". TWTD. 28 April 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  39. ^ Prenderville, Josh (12 July 2014). "Shelbourne 0–4 Town". TWTD. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  40. ^ Ager, James (1 August 2014). "Town XI Win at Chelmsford". TWTD. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  41. ^ "Lawrence Training at Colchester". TWTD. 20 August 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  42. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (20 August 2014). "Watt makes injury comeback in U's under-21 opener". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  43. ^ "McCarthy: Lawrence Can Move On". TWTD. 26 August 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  44. ^ "Lawrence Again in Action for Colchester". TWTD. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  45. ^ "Byron Lawrence: Colchester United sign Ipswich midfielder". BBC Sport. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  46. ^ "Lawrence Signs For Colchester". TWTD. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  47. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (3 September 2014). "Humes' aim is to restore U's confidence". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  48. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (5 September 2014). "U's new boy Byron urged to keep learning after first-team call-up". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  49. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (9 September 2014). "McGreal makes winning start to life as U's under-21 manager". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  50. ^ "Colchester 2–3 Sheff Utd". BBC Sport. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  51. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (19 September 2014). "Lawrence hungry for more U's action after debut to remember". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  52. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (23 September 2014). "Bonne on target as U's under-21s share spoils with Coventry". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  53. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (21 October 2014). "Smith at the double as U's youngsters win at Leeds United". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  54. ^ "Trio Sign New Deals". Colchester United FC. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2015.
  55. ^ "Elliot Lee: West Ham striker joins Colchester United on loan". BBC Sport. 18 January 2016. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  56. ^ Gold, Alasdair (5 February 2016). "Bishop's Stortford TRANSFER NEWS: Ex-Colchester United and Ipswich teenager Byron Lawrence signs up". Herts & Essex Observer. Bishop's Stortford. Retrieved 14 February 2016.[permanent dead link]
  57. ^ "Bishop's Stortford NEWS: 'Jack Wilshere-like' midfielder ready to help push Blues". Herts & Essex Observer. Bishop's Stortford. 12 February 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  58. ^ "Byron becomes a Blue!". The Blues Online. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  59. ^ "Leiston 3–1 Havant & Waterlooville". The Blues Online. 13 August 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  60. ^ "Canvey Island 2–3 Leiston". The Blues Online. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  61. ^ "Lawrence Signs". Dulwich Hamlet F.C. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  62. ^ "Byron Lawrence moves to Braintree on loan until end of season". Leiston F.C. 3 October 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  63. ^ "Byron Lawrence returns from loan spell with Braintree Town". Leiston F.C. 11 November 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  64. ^ "Signing No.2 - YES IT IS TRUE". Needham Market F.C. 27 May 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  65. ^ @_IWFC (27 November 2023). "Welcome to Wanderers @ByronLawrence" (Tweet). Retrieved 29 November 2023 – via Twitter.
  66. ^ a b c d e f g h "B. Lawrence". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  67. ^ "Byron Lawrence". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  68. ^ a b "Byron Lawrence". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  69. ^ "Byron Lawrence". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  70. ^ "Byron Lawrence". Football Web Pages. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  71. ^ "Byron Lawrence Profile". Aylesbury United FC. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  72. ^ "Byron Lawrence Profile". Aylesbury United FC. Retrieved 19 October 2019.

External links[edit]

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