Matthew Pearson (2012)
Defender 2 (0) Apps 0 Goals
Born 3rd August 1993
2011–2012 Blackburn Rovers 0 (0), 2012 Imps (loan), 2012–2013 Rochdale 9 (0), 2013 FC Halifax Town (loan) 17 (0), 2013–2015 FC Halifax Town 84 (5), 2015 Accrington Stanley 61 (4) 2017–2018 Barnsley 17 (0), 2018–2021 Luton Town 128 (10), 2021– Huddersfield Town 16 (3)
Matthew Pearson, known better now as Matty, was a central defender who came on loan from Blackburn Rovers and played just two matches for City. They were both in the FA Trophy as we drew 0-0 with Carshalton at home and then went down 3-1 away. He was recalled by his parent club immediately after the Carshalton match, and I’m not surprised.
He was released by Rovers in 2013, and joined Rochdale, where he struggled to impress. He went out on loan to Halifax Town, then moved there permanently, earning an England C call up in 2013. He was a member of the Halifax team that humiliated us 5-1 in the 2013/14 season and his talent eventually earned him a deal with Accrington in League Two. As we were getting out of the Football League, he was already there, and his 120th-minute goal knocked Premier League side Burnley out of the League Cup. Worse was to come for the Clarets a few months later.
His form with Accrington got Championship side Barnsley interested, and they paid an undisclosed fee believed to be around £500,000 for his services in 2017. His time at Oakwell was not happy, playing just 19 times. There was stiff competition for places, plus he struggled with injury. At the end of the season, Luton Town snapped him up. They’d been promoted from our division, and as we were winning League Two, he was doing the same in League One. He played every game for the Hatters as they stormed through the third tier like a hot knife through butter.
He then played 82 of their 92 Championship games over a two-season spell, before moving to Huddersfield Town last summer. He has been a part of their rise to the play-offs, playing 42 times in all competitions going into their second leg tie with, rather ironically, Luton.
There’s no doubt at all that Matty Pearson is by far the most successful player to come out of the Carshalton debacle, and it’s a huge shame that few, if any, Lincoln City fans will remember his two games for the club.