Former Lincoln City goalkeeper Ethan Ross has joined Forest Green Rovers on a one-year contract ahead of the new National League season.
The 29-year-old had been without a club following his release by Altrincham at the end of the 2025/26 campaign. He had suffered a serious knee injury in 2025, which kept him out of action for an extended period.
Ross has spent the past week training with Forest Green and has now earned a permanent deal. He will wear the number one shirt as Robbie Savage prepares his side for the 2026/27 campaign.
“Ethan has been training with us over the past week,” said Savage. “He is a fantastic goalkeeper and brings a wealth of experience at this level, adding real competition to Pags and Luke. I can’t wait to see him in match action.”
The 6ft 5in goalkeeper began his youth career with Arsenal before spending time with Cambridge United and West Bromwich Albion. He gained his first taste of senior football during loan spells with Worcester City and Redditch United.
Ross joined Colchester United in 2018 and made his Football League debut as a substitute against Yeovil Town in April 2019. He kept a clean sheet in that game and repeated the feat on his first senior start, which came against Milton Keynes Dons.
He signed for Lincoln in July 2020, arriving as competition for Alex Palmer. Ross did not make a league appearance for the Imps, although he featured twice in the EFL Trophy during the 2020/21 season. His stay at Sincil Bank was largely unremarkable, but that was perhaps more down to a lack of opportunity than anything else. I interviewed him for the club programme during his time with us and found him to be a cracking character.
Sadly, supporters never really got the opportunity to discover that for themselves: he joined Weymouth on loan in January 2021 and made 26 appearances for the National League side before leaving Lincoln at the end of his contract that summer.
He subsequently signed for Stockport County, making nine appearances as they won the National League title and returned to the EFL after a ten-year absence. Loan spells with York City and Altrincham followed before his move to the latter became permanent in October 2023. He made 65 appearances for Altrincham and kept 19 clean sheets. He also helped the Robins reach the National League play-offs during the 2023/24 campaign.
He will now continue his career at the New Lawn as Forest Green look to challenge for a return to the Football League.
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