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James Shea

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

James Shea
Shea with Luton Town in 2026
Personal information
Full name James William Shea[1]
Date of birth (1991-06-16) 16 June 1991 (age 35)[2]
Place of birth Islington, England
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[3]
Position Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Luton Town
Number 1
Youth career
2007–2010 Arsenal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2013 Arsenal 0 (0)
2011 → Southampton (loan) 0 (0)
2011 → Dagenham & Redbridge (loan) 1 (0)
2013 Needham Market 1 (0)
2013–2014 Harrow Borough 32 (0)
2014–2017 AFC Wimbledon 95 (0)
2017– Luton Town 93 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 10:12, 23 January 2026 (UTC)

James William Shea (born 16 June 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for EFL League One club Luton Town.

Having started his career in the Arsenal youth system, he played for Needham Market, Harrow Borough and AFC Wimbledon before joining Luton Town in 2017. He is currently the longest serving player at the club.

Club career

[edit]

Arsenal

[edit]

Born in Islington, Greater London,[2] Shea joined the Arsenal academy in August 2007. In 2009, he won both the Premier Academy League and FA Youth Cup.[4][5]

Shea joined League One club Southampton on a month-long loan in February 2011 to act as cover for the injured Bartosz Białkowski. However, he was recalled after eight days by Arsenal without making an appearance.[6]

Shea was sent out on loan to League Two club Dagenham & Redbridge for the 2011–12 season.[7] He made his debut as a substitute for Chris Lewington in the match against Macclesfield Town at Moss Rose.[8] Despite getting a yellow card for wasting time, he helped his team to win their first league match of the season by scoreline of 1–0.[9]

He was recalled from his loan by Arsenal on 5 December 2011.[10] On 18 September 2012, he was named on the bench for a UEFA Champions League match against Montpellier HSC due to injuries to Wojciech Szczęsny and Łukasz Fabiański.[11] On 30 June 2013, he was released along with nine other young players at Arsenal.[12]

Non-League

[edit]

After a short spell with Isthmian League Division One North club Needham Market,[13] in October 2013 Shea signed for Premier Division club Harrow Borough, where he played 36 matches in all competitions, with 32 of these in the league.[14]

AFC Wimbledon

[edit]

Shea joined League Two club AFC Wimbledon on a free transfer on 4 July 2014.[15]

Shea was Wimbledon's regular goalkeeper during the 2014–15 season and at the start of the 2015–16 season, but was replaced by loan signings Kelle Roos and Ben Wilson whilst injured, and was not able to regain his place. He was on the substitutes' bench for all three 2016 League Two play-off matches, including a 2–0 win against Plymouth Argyle at Wembley Stadium to achieve promotion to League One.[16]

Luton Town

[edit]

On 3 July 2017, Shea joined League Two club Luton Town on a one-year contract.[17] In his first season at the club he made 8 league appearances in his role as second-choice keeper behind Marek Štěch, however took over as first-choice for the majority of the following 2018–19 season due to Štěch recovering from an operation.[18] During that season the club achieved a second successive automatic promotion, reaching the Championship after a 12-year absence. Shea won the Golden Glove for the season alongside Barnsley's Adam Davies, having both kept 19 clean sheets.[19]

In 2019–20 and 2020–21, Shea was once again second-choice behind new signing Simon Sluga, making 13 and 7 league appearances respectively. In the second half of the 2021–22 season, Shea once again become first-choice after Sluga's departure in January, however in April, Shea was ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering an ACL injury after a collision with team-mate Tom Lockyer during a match away at Cardiff City. He signed a new contract the end of the season.[20]

Shea remained out injured for the first half of the 2022–23 season, with Nottingham Forest loanee Ethan Horvath and new signing Matt Macey taking over. After recovering, he returned to his role as second-choice goalkeeper, including being named on the bench for the 2023 Championship play-off final, in which Luton beat Coventry City on penalties to secure promotion to the Premier League for the first time.[21]

During the 2023–24 season, Shea was demoted to third-choice behind new signings Thomas Kaminski and Tim Krul. He made his Premier League debut on the final day of the season against Fulham, coming on with 15 minutes left of the match.[22] On 24 May 2024, the club announced that it had exercised an option to extend Shea's contract.[23]

Shea continued to be third-choice goalkeeper until the 2024–25 season in League One, in which he became the Luton's longest serving player after the departure of Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu. After Kaminski and Krul left the club after back-to-back relegations, the club signed Josh Keeley from Tottenham Hotspur. Keeley started all but one league game, with Shea playing in every match in the EFL Trophy. He started in the 2026 EFL Trophy final after receiving praise for his performances by Luton manager and former Arsenal youth team-mate Jack Wilshere. They won the game 3–1, with Shea stating that he had now "completed the EFL".[24]

He signed a new contract with Luton Town on 28 August 2025, extending his stay to 10 years with the club.[25]

International career

[edit]

In August 2010, Shea trained with the England squad for their UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying match against Bulgaria at the Arsenal training ground, due to an injury to David Stockdale.[26]

Career statistics

[edit]
As of match played 12 April 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Arsenal 2010–11[27] Premier League 0000000000
2011–12[28] Premier League 00——0000
2012–13[29] Premier League 0000000000
Total 0000000000
Southampton (loan) 2010–11[27] League One 00———00
Dagenham & Redbridge (loan) 2011–12[28] League Two 1010101[a]040
Needham Market 2013–14 Isthmian League Division One North 1000—0010
Harrow Borough 2013–14[14] Isthmian League Premier Division 320——4[b]0360
AFC Wimbledon 2014–15[30] League Two 38040103[a]0460
2015–16[31] League Two 21000101[a]0230
2016–17[32] League One 36050002[c]0430
Total 9509020601120
Luton Town 2017–18[33] League Two 8000005[c]0130
2018–19[34] League One 410401000460
2019–20[35] Championship 1300030—160
2020–21[36] Championship 700030—100
2021–22[37] Championship 190101000210
2022–23[38] Championship 100000—10
2023–24[39] Premier League 100000—10
2024–25[40] Championship 2 0 0 0 0 0 — 2 0
2025–26[41] League One 1 0 1 0 1 0 8[c] 0 11 0
Total 93060901301210
Career total 22201601202402740
  1. 1 2 3 Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy
  2. ↑ Three appearances in Isthmian League Cup, one in Middlesex Senior Cup
  3. 1 2 3 Appearances in EFL Trophy

Honours

[edit]

Arsenal

AFC Wimbledon

Luton Town

Individual

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Notification of shirt numbers: Luton Town" (PDF). English Football League. p. 39. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 "James Shea". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  3. ↑ "James Shea: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 "James Shea". Arsenal F.C. Archived from the original on 10 January 2011.
  5. 1 2 Rudzki, Krystyna (26 May 2009). "Young Gunners lift Youth Cup". The Football Association.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  6. ↑ "Southampton sign Arsenal goalkeeper James Shea on loan". BBC Sport. 18 February 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
  7. ↑ "Daggers land Shea". Sky Sports. 26 July 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  8. ↑ Richards, Joshua (7 August 2011). "Elito strike hands 10-man Daggers victory over Macclesfield". Barking & Dagenham Post. Ilford. Archived from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  9. ↑ "Debutant Elito downs Macc". Sky Sports. 7 August 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  10. ↑ Richards, Joshua (5 December 2011). "Shea returns to Arsenal". Barking & Dagenham Post. Ilford. Archived from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  11. ↑ "Podolski keeps firing for Gunners". Sky Sports. 19 September 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  12. ↑ "Arsenal release 10 young players". Arsenal F.C. 30 May 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  13. ↑ Coney, Steven (29 October 2013). "Needham Market star signs for Harrow Borough". The Non-League Paper. London. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  14. 1 2 "The team: James Shea: 2013–14". Harrow Borough F.C. Retrieved 1 April 2018 – via Pitchero.
  15. 1 2 "James Shea: AFC Wimbledon sign former Arsenal goalkeeper". BBC Sport. 4 July 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  16. 1 2 Pilnick, Brent (30 May 2016). "AFC Wimbledon 2–0 Plymouth Argyle". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  17. ↑ "James Shea: Luton Town sign former AFC Wimbledon goalkeeper". BBC Sport. 3 July 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  18. ↑ "Stech back in contention for Dons trip". Luton Today. 25 October 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  19. ↑ "Town's Golden Glove winner Shea quick to thank his back-line". Luton Today. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  20. ↑ Cunliffe, James (23 April 2022). "James Shea's season over but injured keeper pens new deal to stay at Luton - The Lutonian". Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  21. ↑ "Town keeper highlights the belief instilled by Edwards that Luton can do 'something special'". Luton Today. 1 April 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  22. ↑ "Long-serving Hatters keeper bursting with pride after making his Premier League debut for Luton". Luton Today. 20 May 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  23. ↑ "Luton Town Retained and Released list 2024". www.lutontown.co.uk. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  24. ↑ "Shea jokes he has 'completed the EFL' after Vertu Trophy success with Luton". Luton Today. 15 April 2026. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  25. ↑ "Sheasy signs new deal to take him to 10 years a Hatter!". www.lutontown.co.uk. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  26. ↑ "James Shea trains with the England squad". Arsenal F.C. 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012.
  27. 1 2 "Games played by James Shea in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  28. 1 2 "Games played by James Shea in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  29. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  30. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  31. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  32. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  33. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  34. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  35. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  36. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  37. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  38. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  39. ↑ "Games played by James Shea in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  40. ↑ "James Shea | Football Stats | Luton Town | Season 2024/2025 | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  41. ↑ "James Shea | Football Stats | Luton Town | Season 2025/2026 | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  42. ↑ "Luton win shootout to reach Premier League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  43. ↑ "League One: 2018/19: Current table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
    "Luton: Squad details: 2018/19". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  44. ↑ "Luton Town 3–1 Stockport County: Line-ups". BBC Sport. 12 April 2026. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  45. ↑ Anderson, John, ed. (2018). Football Yearbook 2018–2019. London: Headline Publishing Group. pp. 214–215. ISBN 978-1-4722-6106-9.
    "Promotion presentation and lap of honour". Luton Town F.C. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  46. ↑ "James Shea and James Collins win Golden Glove and Golden Boot Awards!". Luton Town F.C. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
[edit]
  • Profile at the Luton Town F.C. website
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_Shea&oldid=1365468061"