Simon Gillett

Simon James Gillett (born 6 November 1985) is an English retired footballer.

Born in Oxford, England, Gillett started his career at Southampton Academy since 2000 and progressed through the academy and the reserve.

A midfielder, he played for nine different clubs between 2005 and 2016, most of them loan spells.

At the end of the 2005–06 season, Gillett was offered a new contract by the club, which he then signed a contract, keeping him until 2008.

On 30 September 2005, Gillett gained his first team experience when he was loaned out to League One side Walsall on a month deal loan.

The next day, Gillett made his Walsall debut, where he played for 64 minutes, in a 3–2 loss against Port Vale.

After making another appearance, Gillett returned to his parent club soon after suffering an injury.

After recovering from an injury, he made his Southampton first-team debut against Leicester City in the fourth round of the FA Cup in 2006, coming on for an Injured David Prutton after just 30 minutes of the game played.

Southampton won 1–0 with Kenwyne Jones the goal scorer.

On 9 August 2006, Gillett was loaned out to Blackpool on a one-month deal.

Gillett then made his Blackpool debut on 12 August 2006, in a 1–0 loss against Rotherham United.

After extending his loan spell at the club for two months, It was with the Fylde Coast club that he scored his first league goal, on 12 September, in a 1–1 draw with Chesterfield at Bloomfield Road.

The following month, on 21 October, he was sent off in the Seasiders' 2–1 win at Crewe Alexandra, which turns out to be his last appearance for the club.

After making fourteen appearances, Gillett returned to his parent club.

Weeks after returning to his parent club, on 23 November 2006, he moved on loan to AFC Bournemouth until the New Year.

Gillett made his Bournemouth debut on 25 November 2006, playing 90 minutes, in a 0–0 draw against Bradford City.

Gillett then scored his first Bournemouth goal on 23 December 2006 against his former club, Blackpool and saw Bournemouth lost 3–1.

After making seven appearances and scoring once in total, Gillett returned to his parent club after suffering from ankle injury and in addition to being recalled.

After making another appearance towards the end of the 2007–08 season, Gillett was awarded with a contract extension, keeping him until 2010.

Having previously he would like to returned to the club, it was announced on 30 January 2007, Gillett returned to Blackpool on loan until the end of the 2006–07 season.

Gillett's first game after signing for the club on loan spell came on 3 February 2007, in a 3–1 loss against Blackpool.

After making seventeen appearances, Gillett remained at the club for the club's play-offs and on 27 May 2007 he came on as a last-minute substitute in the Seasiders' League One play-off final victory over Yeovil Town at Wembley.

On 20 September 2007, he joined League One side Yeovil Town on loan, initially for a month.

Gillett made his Yeovil Town debut on 22 September 2007, in a 2–1 loss against Brighton & Hove Albion.

Gillett went on to make four appearances for the club before returning to his parent club.

After his loan spell at Yeovil Town came to an end, Gillett made his league debut for the club, where he came on as a substitute for goal scorer Stern John in the late minutes, in a 1–0 win over Leicester City on 15 March 2008.

The 2008–09 season saw Gillett's expectation to make a breakthrough in the first team under the management of Jan Poortvliet.

Gillett made his first start for the club in the opening game of the season, playing 90 minutes, in a 2–1 loss against Cardiff City.

He began to get first team football for numbers of games until he suffered injuries and suspension.

Even after making his return from injury, Gillettt was unable to help the club survive relegation in the Football League Championship.

In the 2009–10 season, Gillett made his first appearance of the season, where he played 15 minutes, in a 1–1 draw against Millwall.

However, Gillett's first team opportunities became increasingly limited under the management of Alan Pardew and never played for the club again after his Johnstone Paint Cup final appearance.

Ending his 10-year stay at the club with a winners medal.

Gillett joined championship club Doncaster Rovers on 12 October 2009 on a two-month loan.

Gillett made his Doncaster Rovers debut five days later on 17 October 2009, in a 1–0 loss against Barnsley.

His good performance saw Doncaster Rovers keen on signing him on a free transfer.

However, this never happened and returned to his parent club the following month, where he made a total of eleven appearances for the club.

On 15 May 2010 he was released from Southampton.

On 5 July 2010, Gillett agreed to join Doncaster Rovers subject to a medical, with the deal being completed on the evening of 7 July.

Gillett signed a 2-year contract with Doncaster, and was assigned the shirt number 18.