Ross Draper

Early career in England

Born in Wolverhampton, England, Draper started his football career at his boyhood club, Wolverhampton Wanderers and spent seven years there before being let go by the club, which he said it was tough. Draper then joined Shrewsbury Town as a trainee before being released by the club as well. Following this, he wrote to local clubs for a trial before being invited to Conference National club Stafford Rangers. His trial at Stafford Rangers was successful, leading Draper to sign for the club on 8 August 2007. However, he was playing for the club part time. He made his debut for the club on 10 September 2007, in the 3–0 away defeat in the Conference National to Stevenage Borough. Despite facing suspension along the way, he made a total of 31 appearances during the 2007–08 season. After leaving Stafford Rangers, Draper went on to join Northern Premier League Premier Division club Hednesford Town. He made 38 appearances and scoring five times for the side. Draper revealed he worked in a range of jobs while playing part-time, quoting: "When I was at Hednesford I had a job at Birmingham Midshires. I worked with mortgages then in administration before I moved into the collections department."

Macclesfield Town

On 9 July 2009, Draper transitioned to playing full time football when he signed for League Two side Macclesfield Town. Draper revealed he had offers from clubs in the Conference National, but wanted to play in the Football League…

Elgin City

On 10 April 2023 following the sacking of manager Gavin Price, Draper was named a co-interim manager for the side alongside coaches Charlie Charlesworth and Stevie Dunn. Prior to this, he also began coaching for Ross County's U16 side. On 25 May 2023, Draper was appointed manager of Elgin City on a three-year contract, while also continuing to remain as a player. His first match as manager of the club took place on 15 July 2023, in a 2–0 loss against Motherwell in the group stage of the Scottish League Cup. Elgin City's losses in the Scottish League Cup saw the club eliminated in the group stage. The results in the league was mixed, as Elgin City earned two points in the first five league matches. Draper left the managerial position in early September 2023 when Barry Smith was appointed as the new manager of Elgin City. Despite this, Smith kept him as part of the club's coaching staff. After Smith left Elgin City in November, Draper returned to his caretaker capacity at the club. He managed Elgin City, including a win against Forfar Athletic on 21 November 2023. Having ruled out a permanent return as a manager of the club, Draper vowed that he will assist new manager Allan Hale for a coaching role.

As of match played 5 April 2025

Managerial record

As of match played 21 November 2023

Growing up, Draper was a boyhood Wolverhampton Wanderers supporter. Draper revealed that when he disclosed his previous occupation as a 'debt collector', his teammates had given him the nickname The Bailiff. Draper acknowledged the pain of playing artificial pitch but it's something he had to deal with. In February 2019, Draper said he's in favour of banning artificial pitches, due to suffer ankle injury four years ago. During the lockdown, Draper began trimming hair as a barber. In November 2015, Draper became a first-time father when his Scottish partner gave birth to a baby boy. Both him and his partner were married and together, they have two sons.