FC Halifax Town; New signing Loan aiming to be in from the start with Shaymen

It was perhaps inevitable that new signing Joel Logan's first action in a Halifax shirt should be as a substitute.
Joel LoganJoel Logan
Joel Logan

The winger joined Town on loan from Guiseley last week and made his debut off the bench in the 3-0 win at FC United on Saturday.

Logan only joined Guiseley in November, but all nine appearances for The Lions have been as a substitute.

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The 22-year-old has tried to look on the bright side since his move to Nethermoor, and is determined to take his chance from the start at The Shay should it arrive.

“I’ve nothing against Guiseley but I’m hungry - I want to play and I want to progress,” he said. “A lot of people may not have come out on loan at this time of the season but helping Halifax try to get promoted is more than a privilege.

“It’s been frustrating at Guiseley but I try to take the best out of every situation, so watching on the sidelines I see who is doing things right, what can I learn off them to get in the team. It’s a constant process.

“I do a lot of running and exercise outside of football, I train full-time. It’s about your attitude - it’s easy to be labelled as a sub but you’ve got to keep professional and when you get the opportunity, like I have here, you take it.

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“I don’t let being sub get me down - I try to learn and progress and become a starter.”

Logan started at Bolton’s academy while they were in the Premier League and played with the under 16s and reserves sides.

He then moved to Rochdale where he was an unused substitute in their 4-1 defeat to Premier League Stoke in the FA Cup fourth round in 2015, having made one of just four starts for the club in the previous round’s 1-0 win against Nottingham Forest.

“I had a great five or six years at Bolton but unfortunately it didn’t work out due to injury,” he said. “Then I went to Rochdale and made my debut as a 17-year-old. I played a few games there and enjoyed my time under Keith Hill, he taught me a lot.

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“But I felt it was time to move on, get some games and kick-start my career.”

To do that, Logan joined Hednesford Town, where he played alongside left-back Cohen Bramall, who now plays for Arsenal.

“He’s a great athlete, bit of a moaner! But he’s a great lad and hopefully he’ll do well and we’ll see him in the Premier League at some point,” Logan said.

“With Cohen going to Arsenal it shows that if you can go down one way you can go back up the other way.

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“I was young at Bolton and I needed some games and experience. I’ve got that now. But I don’t look at any level of football and think ‘I’m better than this’ - you work hard and you progress if you do well.”

After two goals in 18 appearances, was snapped up by Guiseley. However, after failing to establish himself as a starter there, he had no hesitation in joining The Shaymen.

“It’s an opportunity I jumped at,” he added. “It’s a big club and they’re in a great position in the league. It was a no-brainer. I had a word with the manager and heard about his philosophy, which was right up my street.

“It was an excellent performance on Saturday, we moved the ball well, our game management was perfect, really professional.

“The score replicated how training is and the professionalism of the lads.”