Mitch Hancox

Hancox made his competitive debut in the 1–0 home defeat by Huddersfield Town in the Championship on 6 October, as an 80th-minute substitute for the injured Curtis Davies.

He played at left-back, allowing Paul Robinson to move to centre-back, and according to the Birmingham Mail, "can be pleased with his urgent and determined contribution in the last 10 minutes. He's only on a six-month contract but would sweat blood for his boyhood club."

A few days later, he was given a six-month extension to his contract.

When Robinson took over from Steven Caldwell as first-choice centre-back, Hancox was able to establish himself at left-back.

He ended the season with 20 appearances, including 14 starts, and signed a new three-year contract.

With David Murphy still recovering from injury, Hancox hoped to establish himself as first choice at left-back, but a bruised testicle sustained in training and the loan signing of Shane Ferguson obstructed his progress.

His first appearance of the season was in mid-September, as a substitute with Birmingham already 3–0 down at Burnley, followed by two League Cup ties, the second of which, at home to Stoke City, was 4–4 after extra time.

Hancox volunteered to take the first penalty in the shootout, but his powerful kick struck the top of the crossbar and went over; Birmingham went on to lose the shootout.

A run of games in November was halted by a knee injury, and ankle damage put an end to another run in the new year.

He returned for the last few matches of the season, with Birmingham in danger of relegation.

Needing at least a point from the final fixture, away to Bolton Wanderers and for other results to go in their favour, Hancox came on at half-time, and two minutes after Bolton took a two-goal lead, he crossed for Nikola Žigić to score with a header.

Well into stoppage time, Paul Caddis scored the equaliser that kept Birmingham in the second tier.

Mitchell John Hancox (born 9 November 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back or central midfielder for club York City.

He has played in the English Football League for Birmingham City, Crawley Town and Milton Keynes Dons.

He was picked out as "one of the bright spots of the evening from a home perspective" in a heavy defeat to Arsenal in the 2009–10 Premier Reserve League, and described by then Academy manager Terry Westley as "one of the few players to come out with any credit" from a defeat to Leamington in the Birmingham Senior Cup.

On leaving school, he began a two-year scholarship with Birmingham City in July 2010.

He has three older brothers; the eldest, Matthew, was seriously wounded in 2011 while serving in Afghanistan with the Royal Marines.

Hancox was recruited into Birmingham City's youth system at the age of eight after being noticed playing in a six-a-side competition.

As a youngster, he was a Birmingham City supporter, and particularly admired full-backs Jeff Kenna and Martin Grainger and wing-back Stan Lazaridis.

While still a 15-year-old Lyndon School student, he played for Birmingham's reserve team.

His first competitive involvement with Birmingham City's first team came when he was an unused substitute for the 2011–12 Europa League play-off round second leg against Nacional.

Hancox began his career with hometown club Birmingham City, for whom he made his Football League debut in October 2012.

Hancox signed his first professional contract, of six months, in May 2012, and was given a first-team squad number in August of that year.

In the 2014 close season, Lee Clark signed left-back Jonathan Grounds, who was almost ever-present under the management both of Clark and his successor Gary Rowett.

Hancox played only one first-team match in 2014–15, in the FA Cup against Blyth Spartans, but he was a member of the 2015 Birmingham Senior Cup-winning team, consisting mainly of reserve-team players but also including first-teamers Matt Green and Žigić, who was making his last appearance for the club.

In the 2015–16 season, he spent three months on loan to League Two club Crawley Town.

After just one League Cup appearance in 2015–16, Hancox joined League Two club Crawley Town on a month's loan on 2 October 2015.

He went straight into the starting eleven for the next day's visit to Plymouth Argyle, which Crawley lost 2–1 to a very late goal.

In his second League Two match, at home to Leyton Orient, he scored his first senior goal.

The score was 1–1 when Orient's goalkeeper Alex Cisak put the ball behind from Hancox's cross.

Hancox himself took the corner, and when it was cleared he hit the loose ball past Cisak at his near post.

He then made the pass that put Rhys Murphy through on goal, Murphy was fouled for a penalty that put Crawley two goals ahead, and the team held on for a 3–2 win.

After he started all seven of Crawley's matches during his first month with the club, his loan was extended for a second month, and then a third.

He finished his loan spell with two goals from sixteen appearances in all competitions.

Released by Birmingham at the end of that season, Hancox signed for National League club Macclesfield Town in August 2016.

After two years, during which he helped Macclesfield win the 2017–18 National League title, he moved on to Milton Keynes Dons.

Hancox joined his Solihull Moors in May 2019, spent time on loan to another National League club, Harrogate Town at the end of that year, and was released in 2021.

He then signed for Hereford, and joined York City on loan later that year.

He signed for York permanently in June 2022 after helping them to promotion to the National League.

Hancox was born in Solihull, West Midlands.