Barnsley supporters may still be confused by repeat of West Ham deal

After a disastrous loan term that ended without the West Ham forward scoring and an equally unsuccessful second loan spell at Oakwell Stadium, Barnsley supporters will not be thinking fondly of Frank Nouble.

At the age of just 17, Nouble left Chelsea’s renowned academy to sign a five-year contract with West Ham United in July 2009 instead of moving to East London and joining the first team.

Not quite a month later, the striker made his Hammers Premier League debut. He replaced West Ham great Carlton Cole on the bench during the team’s 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers on the road.

Nouble showed promise during his Football League loan stints at West Bromwich Albion, Swindon Town, and Swansea City. In January 2011, he moved to Barnsley for the balance of the 2010–11 season.

Frank Nouble’s Barnsley troubles

Prior to Nouble making his debut, Barnsley were experiencing a mediocre season. With 29 games played, they were ranked 12th in the EFL Championship and had won 11 of their losses.

With just 35 goals in their previous game, the Tykes were trailing a Portsmouth team that was eight spots lower and fighting for relegation.

Most importantly, Barnsley still had dreams of making the playoffs. They had a substantial 17 games remaining to close the deficit; they were six points behind Leeds United in sixth position.

The team was aware that they would need to score more goals in order to have the best opportunity of moving up the table. To supply that, Nouble joined the team that included Kieran Trippier and John Stones, two talented defenders who would go on to represent England.

Despite having more than ten recognised strikers in the lineup, none of Barnsley’s forwards were scoring frequently. In the club’s hierarchy, Nouble supplanted players like Chris Wood, a future star in the Premier League, Garry O’Connor, Andy Grey, and Marlon Harewood.

After acquiring the striker, Mark Robins, the manager of Barnsley at the time, made a statement. He declared: “Technically brilliant and a big talent.”

“He’s not been seen on this stage yet, but I have no worries about his attacking abilities.”

As it happens, Robins ought to have been concerned about the South Londoner’s goal-scoring prowess. Nouble made one assist in the Tykes’ 4-1 thumping of Leicester City and started four games for the Tykes in which he scored no goals.

Three months after signing, in March 2011, the striker was loaned to Charlton Athletic for a month before being returned back to West London.

Strangely, Nouble returned to Oakwell Stadium under Keith Hill a year later, but this time the team was in 16th place in the division, far worse than before. They continued to ignore their problems scoring goals and turned to Nouble for a rematch.

In his second stint, the forward did not fare any better, managing just one assist and going scoreless in six games. After making six appearances and helping them to one draw, he left when they were in twenty-first place.

Nouble’s journeyman career

Nouble’s contract with West Ham expired at the end of the 2011–12 season, marking the end of his second and last loan stint with Barnsley.

The striker signed with Wolves but left after just one season to play just five times for Suffolk Town. In September 2014, he relocated to Coventry City, a League One team.

Before heading home with Gillingham, Nouble made an odd transfer to the now-dissolved Chinese second-tier team Tiānjīn Tiānhƪi. Then came moves to Plymouth Argyle, Southend United, Newport County, Colchester United, Leyton Orient, and Torquay United.

The 32-year-old is currently a player with Yeovil Town, a former Football League team, where he won the 2023–24 National League South, his first professional title.

Nouble has had a lengthy career that has seen him play for numerous clubs in three different countries, but Oakwell Stadium supporters will undoubtedly not have many positive memories of his time at Barnsley.

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