Four current Premier League forwards who had spells in non-league

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Players from Leicester City, Burnley, Watford and Southampton feature.

Burnley’s Andre Gray celebrates scoring their first goal

It’s often said that there is an abundance of talent in non-league, but perhaps nowadays there is a lot more than we as fans realise, with several players occupying the Football League who’ve once played in the Conference or lower.

That extends to the Premier League as well, with several household names from England’s top flight starting out right at the very bottom once upon a time. Here are five attackers who are currently idolised in the Premier League, but started out in non-league.

Andre Gray

Burnley’s joint top scorer this season with 10 in all competitions, at time of writing, certainly didn’t have an easy ride to get to where he is today. The 25-year-old was released by Shrewsbury Town in 2010, who signed him in 2004 after he was released by Wolverhampton Wanderers. Following Srewsbury, Gray signed for Hinckley Town, where he hit 37 in 90, catching the eye of Luton Town, then in non-league. With Luton, Gray scored 57 in 111, impressing Football League outfit Brentford. The goals continued at Griffin Park, with 20 in 52, which prompted Burnley to sign him. At Burnley, Gray scored 23 in 42 in his debut season at Turf Moor – winning the Championship golden boot in the process – and has carried on scoring goals for the Clarets in the top flight.

Southampton’s Charlie Austin celebrates scoring their first goal

Charlie Austin

Like Gray, Austin is Southampton’s top scorer this campaign at time of writing – and considering he missed five months of the season with a shoulder injury, that’s not bad going. At 15, Austin was released by Reading and went straight into non-league, signing with Kintbury Rangers. He left for Hungerford Town after a year, and then moved to Poole Town in 2008. Incredibly, Austin hit 64 goals in 57 games, alerting Swindon Town, who signed the striker in 2009. With Swindon, Austin scored 37 in 65, which prompted Burnley to snap him up. At Turf Moor, Austin scored 45 in 90, before switching to Queens Park Rangers. The goals continued to come, with Austin scoring 48 in 89 – including 18 in 35 in his debut Premier League season when QPR were promoted in 2014, before signing for the Saints in January 2016. But for injuries and Austin would certainly have represented England – there’s still time yet, with Austin only 27.

Troy Deeney

A recurring theme is emerging here, as Deeney is also Watford’s top scorer. The likeable striker failed a summer trial with Aston Villa when he was 15, and signed for Chelmsley Town instead. After impressing with Chelmsley, Walsall signed the powerful forward in 2006, and loaned him straight out to non-league side Halesowen Town. Deeney scored eight in 10 with Halesowen, and then proceeded to make a name for himself at Walsall, scoring 27 in 136 in total, but was notably prolific in his final two seasons with the club. That form lured Watford in, who signed Deeney in 2010, and they haven’t looked back since. Since signing, club captain Deeney has scored 106 in 298 games for Watford – 100 of which have come in league matches.

England’s Jamie Vardy

Jamie Vardy

In line with all the others on this list, Vardy is Leicester City’s top scorer this season, but unlike the others, he’s the only one – so far – to represent England. Having been released by Sheffield Wednesday as a kid, Vardy signed for Stocksbridge Park Steels, and stayed there until 2010 when Halifax Town signed him. With Halifax, Vardy hit 29 in 41, and then signed for Fleetwood Town. The 30-year-old only spent one year at Fleetwood, because after 34 goals in 42 games, Leicester decided to take a punt on him. His first season at Leicester was poor, with five goals in 29 games, but he then kicked on and became the club’s first choice striker. As well as firing Leicester to the Premier League title, Vardy broke a Premier League record when he scored in 11 consecutive Premier League matches, and currently has six goals in 16 games for England, with a record of 65 in 188 for Leicester.