Ryley Towler
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ryley Ben Towler[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 6 May 2002 | ||
| Place of birth | Bristol, England | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position | Centre back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lincoln City | ||
| Number | 6 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2011–2019 | Bristol City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2023 | Bristol City | 4 | (0) |
| 2019 | → Frome Town (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2020 | → Taunton Town (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 2021 | → Grimsby Town (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → AFC Wimbledon (loan) | 17 | (1) |
| 2023–2025 | Portsmouth | 38 | (3) |
| 2025– | Lincoln City | 47 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 08:53, 20 September 2026 (UTC) | |||
Ryley Ben Towler (born 6 May 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre back for EFL Championship club Lincoln City.
Career
[edit]Bristol City
[edit]Towler joined his local City academy in the under 9 age group.[2] A left footed player who went to Mangotsfield School, Towler is considered an option at left back or left centre back.[3]
On 10 February 2021, Towler made his debut for Bristol City in the FA Cup fifth round starting away at Bramall Lane against Sheffield United.[4]
On 9 September 2021, Towler joined Grimsby Town on loan until January 2022.[5] Towler made his debut for the 'Mariners' on 11 September 2021, in a 3–1 away win against Torquay United. He went on to play 13 games in the National League for Grimsby Town, and one appearance in the FA Cup in a 1–0 defeat to Kidderminster Harriers. Towler was recalled on 20 December 2021 and returned to Bristol City.[6]
On 1 September 2022, Towler joined AFC Wimbledon on loan for the 2022–23 season.[7] He scored his first goal for Wimbledon in a 3–1 loss to Walsall on 8 October 2022.[8] Towler was recalled from his loan on 6 January 2023.[9]
Portsmouth
[edit]On 6 January 2023, Towler signed for League One club Portsmouth for an undisclosed fee on a three-and-a-half-year deal.[10] He made his Pompey debut as a substitute against Bolton Wanderers in January 2023, and made his full debut a week later in a 2–0 home win over Exeter City. Towler scored two second-half goals in a 3–1 win over Bolton on 28 February 2023.[11] However, with the promotion of Portsmouth to the Championship, the club looked to loan him out in the 2024–25 winter transfer window.[12]
Lincoln City
[edit]On 7 July 2025, Towler signed for EFL League One club, Lincoln City for an undisclosed fee, signing a deal until 2029.[13] He made his debut, starting in the opening day 2–0 win against Reading at left-back.[14] On 17 March 2026, he scored his first goal for the Imps scoring a stoppage time equaliser against Huddersfield Town, to help take their unbeaten run to 21 games.[15] He signed a new four-year contract just a year into his initial deal, keeping him contracted until 2030.[16]
Career statistics
[edit]- As of 19 September 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bristol City | 2019–20[17] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2020–21[18] | Championship | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22[19] | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23[20] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Frome Town (loan) | 2018-19[21] | SL Division One South | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Taunton Town (loan) | 2019–20[22] | SL Premier Division South | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Grimsby Town (loan) | 2021–22[19] | National League | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1[a] | 0 | 15 | 0 | |
| AFC Wimbledon (loan) | 2022–23[20] | League Two | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[b] | 0 | 24 | 1 |
| Portsmouth | 2022–23[20] | League One | 20 | 2 | — | — | — | 20 | 2 | |||
| 2023–24[23] | League One | 6 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 4[b] | 1 | 11 | 1 | ||
| 2024–25[24] | Championship | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| Total | 38 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 45 | 4 | ||
| Lincoln City | 2025–26[25] | League One | 40 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4[b] | 0 | 48 | 1 |
| 2026–27[26] | Championship | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| Total | 47 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 58 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 126 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 154 | 6 | ||
Honours
[edit]Portsmouth
Lincoln City
References
[edit]- ↑ "EFL - Squad List 2020/21" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
- ↑ "34. Ryley Towler". Bristol City.
- ↑ MacGregor, Gregor (10 February 2021). "Bristol City expected team to face Sheffield United with Ryley Towler an option". BristolLive.
- ↑ "FA Cup: Sheffield United 1–0 Bristol City". BBC Sport. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
- ↑ "Grimsby Town sign highly-rated Bristol City midfielder Ryley Towler". Grimsbylive. 8 September 2021.
- ↑ "Towler recalled from loan".
- ↑ "City defender Ryley Towler signs for AFC Wimbledon on loan". September 2022.
- ↑ "Walsall 3–1 AFC Wimbledon". BBC. 8 October 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ↑ "Ryley recalled". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. 6 January 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
- ↑ "Pompey Complete Towler Signing". www.portsmouthfc.co.uk. 6 January 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
- ↑ Weld, Neil (28 February 2023). "Pompey 3 Bolton 1". www.portsmouthfc.co.uk.
- ↑ Neil Allen (30 January 2025). "Aouchiche, Towler, Bramall, Moxon, Stevenson: Portsmouth transfer window state of play as business ramps up". The News. Retrieved 2 February 2025.
- ↑ "Towler signs for the Imps". Lincoln City FC. 7 July 2025. Retrieved 7 July 2025.
- ↑ "Imps 2 Reading 0". Lincoln City FC. 2 August 2025. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
- ↑ "Huddersfield Town 2–2 Lincoln City". BBC Sport. 17 March 2026. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
- ↑ "Towler celebrates memorable city season with new contract". Lincoln City FC. 22 July 2026. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
- 1 2 "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
- 1 2 3 "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
- ↑ "Ryley Towler Profile". southern-football-league.co.uk. Southern Football League. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
- ↑ "Ryley Towler Profile". aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Aylesbury United F.C. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ↑ "Games played by Ryley Towler in 2026/2027". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ↑ "Portsmouth 3–2 Barnsley: Pompey seal promotion to Championship with dramatic win". Sky Sports. 16 April 2024. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
- ↑ "Lincoln beat Doncaster to clinch League One title". BBC Sport. 21 April 2026. Retrieved 22 April 2026.
- 2002 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Bristol
- English men's footballers
- Men's association football midfielders
- Bristol City F.C. players
- Frome Town F.C. players
- Taunton Town F.C. players
- Grimsby Town F.C. players
- AFC Wimbledon players
- Portsmouth F.C. players
- Lincoln City F.C. players
- English Football League players
- Southern Football League players
- National League (English football) players
- 21st-century English sportsmen