Tom Eaves – Player Profile

The third signing of the 2022 off-season, Tom Eaves returns to South Yorkshire on a free transfer, joining Paul Warne’s men on a three-year deal following the end of his time at Hull City. Reportedly wanted by the Reds regardless of the outcome of the Michael Smith saga, the striker is now a self-proclaimed “different beast” – one that is out with intentions to exceed his personal best, that which was done by the past strike force, and, as well, rewrite the story of his time in a Rotherham United shirt.

Born in Liverpool, the Scouse giant never made it onto the books of any of the Merseyside-based clubs, instead cutting his teeth in youth football with the relatively local Crewe Alexandra, before making the switch to Oldham Athletic in 2007. The Latics would eventually platform Eaves, following two-years in their youth sides, in the 2009/10 campaign wherein the big-man would play 15 games for the Boundary Park side, all 246-minutes of his senior Oldham career coming as a substitute, thrown on for off-bench cameos which never really allowed the then teenager to settle into men’s football.

Unhappy with his treatment both on and off-pitch, Eaves rejected Oldham’s proposed new contract to seek pastures new. Brave and bold, it meant that the Millers’ new number 9 was iced by manager, Dave Penney, who was incensed by the player’s decision. Given something of a fresh-start in the following pre-season, Eaves’ first as a professional player, the striker bagged a hat-trick in a friendly against Bolton Wanderers late into the month of July, 2010 – and with his future still unsecured, those on the receiving end of that man of the match performance acted, as the Trotters snapped up the striker for an undisclosed fee, a mere fifteen days after he ran riot in that friendly.

The novelty of greener grass quickly wore off, and frankly Eaves’ progress was shackled when for the first season of his spell with the Whites, he was condemned to reserve football. That standard is very much playing football in a “bubble”, the games are entirely inconsequential and against non-competition. Eaves, personally fared quite well in the 10/11 Premier Reserve League, he tallied excess of 1400-minutes across 18 appearances and contributed to 9 goals; netting on 5 instances and orchestrating play on 4 occasions. But if that campaign’s winners, “Chelsea FC Reserves”, are the Kings of sand, then the title to characterise Bolton’s irrelevant mid-table mediocrity has yet to be coined. In the only true positive from that year, Eaves’ every-other-game contribution rate didn’t go unnoticed, resulting in the striker’s inclusion on the first team’s USA tour for pre-season 2011/12.

Facing off against the then infant Orlando City SC, Eaves would sustain a knee injury. Owen Coyle would later report that he’d avoided damage to the cruciate ligament of the knee, but the new Rotherham man was sidelined until the following summer. Returning from injury, game-time is crucial and it was something Eaves struggled to find with the reserves, this time showing for them on only 7 occasions, and much like his featuring, his output would also be slashed; contributing to only two goals, that return evenly split between scored and assisted.

Lucky breaks make every footballer, and Eaves would get his in the 12/13 season. Sanctioned fit enough to be loaned, the striker moved from Bolton to Bristol Rovers on a three month loan-term in September, 2012. League Two would be an easy acclimatisation for Tom Eaves, it’d be his third game before he made an impact when against Northampton Town he smashed home a right-footed shot from close-range despite being tightly marked by two opposition defenders. The opening goal of a 3-1 win for the Pirates, his Rovers loan spell overall was impressive: he’d score a further 6 goals and assist 2 in 17 cross-competition appearances. The 20 year-old demonstrated quite the arsenal of finishes: from in and out of the box and, perhaps surprisingly, exclusively with his feet, the technique of Eaves is something to behold. This is epitomised by his stunning chipped-goal in the 3-2 runout versus Torquay United. Now, by no means am I drawing likenesses between Eaves and the following, but in similar fashion to; Romelu Lukaku, Patrik Schick, Michael Smith etc. The striker’s skillset is often reduced and unfairly represented as pundits and fans alike invoke age-old footballing clichés when presented with the sight of a “big man”. Though still raw in his days at Bristol Rovers a number of his goals display incredible athleticism and high footballing-IQ to make the movement and be in the right places – that instinct is likely the reason for his success, albeit varied, at each of his past eleven clubs, Eaves is an incredibly underrated player, technically speaking.

Returning to Bolton in late December, the striker would briefly be on the fringes of the first team, making the bench against Milwall before securing his second loan of the year to Shrewsbury Town. A step up from his prior temporary move, he was just as prolific in League One, scoring goals in 10 appearances, his last three a hat-trick against Crawley Town. His impressive form would lead to his recall, however history repeated itself as, similar to his time at Oldham, Eaves was only granted a cameo-role, featuring three time for Bolton in the closing spell of their season. 2,666-minutes, 3 assists and 14 goals – truly a breakout year.

Then would come the first dance between Eaves and Rotherham United. It would be late September before Bolton allowed the striker to take temporary leave from them, signing for Steve Evans’ side on a three-month loan. Fond of a transfer or two, Evans immediately threw his new-man into the trenches, debuting on the day of his signing in a 1-1 draw against Walsall. Unable to breakthrough and hold his position, Bolton would cut the loan short by a month, his only real highlight for the Reds being a bullet-header against Hartlepool in that campaign’s EFL Trophy run. In news that’ll frighten the superstitious, his Rotherham loan marked a drastic and sudden downturn in form.

Eaves would return to Shrewsbury on loan, this time only scoring twice, though he did contribute an impressive seven assists in 25 games. His nomadic ways would then continue: enduring a 5-game goal-barren loan spell at Yeovil Town, before another relatively dry loan stint at Bury.

Released from Bolton Wanderers upon the expiration of his contract, Eaves signed permanently for Yeovil, having a season-long spell as a permanent Glovers player. It wouldn’t be until his next move where he’d rekindle his form, but Eaves managed 40 games back in League Two, turning out all across the frontline, playing 6 of those games as a winger. After notching up 3,278-minutes, Yeovil decided to not extend Eaves’ stay, and at the end of that year, the Liverpudlian signed on a free transfer for Gillingham, climbing back up the English professional hierarchy to League One.

To some degree, the Gills had chanced upon Eaves. He’d rediscovered some sort of goalscoring form, though he wasn’t near as prolific as his time at Bristol Rovers, or his first spell at Shrewsbury. George Michael once sang about the need for and the importance of faith, and Gillingham saw fruit from placing theirs in the striker. Across his two-years with Gillingham, Eaves endeared himself to the faithful of Priestfield Stadium with 38 goals in 84 games. For those who fancy getting carried away at what could grace the pitch at the NYS, enjoy this 18-minute compilation of goals here – though be warned… none are quite as glorious as that one scored by Georgie Kelly at Priestfield, or the one that Matt Crooks got there either!

Returning to a point from earlier regarding Eaves’ game, and with that compilation as evidence, one can see some of what the Millers are getting for themselves. None of that impressive technical ability has vacated his game in the slightest, those highlights demonstrate his killer touch, dribbling ability, technique and two-footedness and there’s visibly a maturation to his game. His movement now seems razor-sharp, his use of his body is mightily impressive – imposing himself over helpless defenders on the route to goal, he looks to have developed a poacher’s instinct and there’s a general confidence about him thanks to his 340 senior professional games, to date.

Buoyed by an impressive two-years of endless personal success, Eaves rejected new terms tabled by Gillingham to test the waters of free agency. While it might be somewhat of a sour end to his time at the Gills, the rebuilding of his career with the Kent-based club served him well, propelling him upwards once more, to the Championship, signing a three-year deal with Hull City.

Speaking to the New York Talk podcast (episode here), Ant of the To Hull & Back podcast spoke to the Rotherham-based hosts and audience about Eaves’ somewhat odd time with the Tigers. God loves a trier and so do football fans, as Eaves reportedly found himself a figure of cult adoration for his efforts in the Orange and Black shirt. While the Hull mood toward Eaves’ exit seems generally indifferent, there are positives to be taken from his spell in the East riding of the county – the main one being the sense of hope regarding his championship ability. Ant is to be taken as a reliable source and it’d seem that fault lies with club/management rather than the playing party as the big man was very much a square peg in a round hole. Neglected in a system that put more emphasis on inverted wide-men, he would contribute to only 7 goals (5 scored, 2 assisted) but did remind everyone at Rotherham of his talents, netting a hat-trick in a 3-2 win over the Millers in the 2019/20 FA Cup.

The next two seasons would be similarly underwhelming, scoring 4 goals in 20/21 and 5 last time out in 21/22. Aside from scoring, he’d assist 7 goals over those two campaigns – while its a marked drop-off from days gone by, the fact his output has never properly ground to a halt should guarantee at least some contribution once he’s up and running in a Millers kit.

His signing for Rotherham may lack the appeal of others made during the window, but its smart for the safeness it seemingly brings, statistically. The only concern then, seems to be his injury record, picking up a calf niggle after re-joining the Rotherham ranks, he revealed whilst being interviewed on the “A Greek and an Irishman Walk into a Bar” show that he’d suffered a similar problem for Hull in a league tie against Sunderland. Going back to his Bolton days we can see that he’s not got a clean history of health, which is something that misaligns with the club’s recent policy on injury records – inconsistent fitness being grounds for the release of Joe Mattock and Mickel Miller, something that likely also had a hand in the release of Angus MacDonald.

Turning optimist, Eaves seems poised to have a large role over the course of his three-year commitment to Rotherham. Presuming this staff is here for the long haul and that they continually opt for the 3-5-2 setup, the Scouser fits the bill of linchpin. Smith, previous, never truly set the world alight in a goalscoring sense, but his value to the team was always clear: a lightning rod to target play too, and an experienced frontman to be at the vanguard of scoring efforts, Tom Eaves’ profile, physically and as a player is similar, fitting this current style like a glove. Listed at 1.93 metres (6’3″) and a broad, imposing one at that, the competent playmaker could be both provider and finisher for a team that varies its approach from wing-play to centralised build-up.

But above all, Eaves has a solid amount of Championship experience, an attribute that’s been near paramount in the recruitment made during this summer window period. Alongside Grant Hall, Richard Wood, Conor Washington and to a slightly lesser extent, Ben Wiles, the towering striker will be looked to for leadership – be that via his on-pitch efforts or in the dressing room.

Arriving on a free, there is potential for this to be quite the signing should the Millers garner some sort of return from the forward. Seemingly a good addition to the dressing room, a unique option up top and likely in or around the apex of his prime years, the club has granted a former loanee a lifeline and the player seems hungry to prove his value as a second-tier striker, a project that the staff are more than capable of fashioning results from, but only time will tell.

Featured Image Credit; Rotherham United Official