Shaun Whalley

Early career

With Chester, Whalley played mostly for the youth and reserve teams, but he made his Football League debut for the club in a 0–0 draw with Cambridge United on 18 September 2004, coming on as a substitute for Darryn Stamp. His debut came just one day after he signed a professional contract with Chester; manager Ian Rush had only included him on the substitutes' bench as a result of injuries to Daryl Clare and Michael Branch. The following week, he was part of the side that defeated Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough Stadium in the second round of the Football League Trophy. Whalley made three further senior appearances for Chester, all as a substitute, before leaving the club in the summer of 2005. In August of that year, Whalley moved into non-League football with Runcorn as one of several new signings for the Northern Premier League outfit. He made his first appearance for the club in the 1–1 draw with Frickley Athletic and subsequently established himself as a regular first-team player. Whalley scored his first goal for Runcorn in the 5–1 defeat of his hometown club, Prescot Cables and he netted again the following week in the loss to Matlock Town. He went on to play 21 league matches for Runcorn before joining Witton Albion in March 2006. During his short spell with the club, he scored 6 goals in 18 league appearances.

Accrington Stanley

In September 2006, while at Witton, Whalley spent five weeks on trial at League One club Crewe…

Whalley is a winger but can also play as a striker. On his arrival at Southport, manager Liam Watson said "Shaun will fit right into our style of play and with the players we have here". Whalley's former teammate Paul Mullin described him as "an absolute express-train down the wings", and said that he possessed good ability on the ball.

As of match played 18 April 2022

Whalley was born in Prescot, Merseyside but raised in Widnes. Growing up, Whalley was an avid fan of Liverpool. As a child, he played football for his local teams until 2001 when he was spotted by Norwich City. He went to play for their academy, where he played for three years before leaving in 2004. He subsequently returned to Merseyside and joined Southport, where he played several reserve-team matches. In the summer of the same year, Whalley turned professional when he signed for Football League side Chester City. Whalley's father, Neil Whalley, was also a professional footballer in the early 1990s. He too played in midfield and made more than 50 appearances for Preston North End, where he was also captain for a period of time. He has stated that he has had problems with alcohol and gambling, but has moderated his use of both.