Biography
The son of West Ham United and Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince, Tom carved a reputation for attacking prowess at Blackpool that prompted City to sign him in July 2014 for a £1.6m fee that was decided by FA Tribunal. Despite offering clear ball playing talents he never established himself in Steve Bruce’s Premier League team and by October 2014 he was loaned out to Championship side Nottingham Forest where he made 6 appearances – he was then loaned to another Championship side Derby County in February 2015 where he scored eleven times in 18 appearances before leaving the Tigers for good in July 2015.
Thomas Christopher “Tom” Ince was born in Stockport into a footballing family and grew up in Italy before spending his youth career at Liverpool. He was unable to establish a first team spot at Anfield, his solitary first team appearance coming in September 2010 when he came on as substitute in a League Cup tie against Northampton Town – a tie that the Reds lost after a penalty shootout. He spent two months on loan at League One side Notts County in November and December 2010, scoring twice in 8 appearances, but was unable to make any further impression at Anfield.
In August 2011 Ince moved to Blackpool on a three year contract and in his first season he was an important part of the Tangerines’ side that recovered from Premier League relegation to reach the Championship play-off final at Wembley – Ince scored for Blackpool that day but West Ham United prevailed 2-1 and the Bloomfield Road side’s descent down the Football League ladder commenced. Ince remained at Blackpool for another year and a half, scoring 18 goals in the 2012/13 season and attracting overseas interest from the likes of Monaco and Inter Milan. He added a further eight goals in the first half of the 2013/14 season to take his Tangerines tally to 33 goals in 113 appearances. In January 2014 he was loaned to Premier League side Crystal Palace on a ‘try before you buy’ deal, but Tom’s one goal in 8 appearances failed to impress the South London side and he instead joining Hull City in the 2014 close season.
After a half season loan at Derby County that commenced in February 2015, Ince joined the Rams on a permanent deal in July 2015, earning Hull City a handsome £4.75 million fee. At Derby Tom rekindled the form he had shown at Blackpool, assembling a series of impressive attacking performances and plenty of goals during his two years at Pride Park – he netted 38 goals in 114 appearances for the Rams across both his loan and permanent spells.
In July 2017 Ince signed for newly promoted Premier League side Huddersfield Town for a fee of around £8 million, which netted Hull City a useful sell-on fee. He made 37 appearances for the Terriers but managed only three goals and a year later in July 2018 he was again on the move, giving Huddersfield an unexpected profit with a £10 million switch to Championship side Stoke City. Over the next two years Ince was a regular starter as the Potters consolidated their position in the Championship following relegation from the Premier League. Tom played less regularly for Stoke in the 2020/21 season and in January 2021 he joined Luton Town on a six month loan but managed only seven appearances as the Hatters secured a mid-table Championship finish. Ince returned to first team action for Stoke City in the first half of the 2021/22 season, scoring five times including a winner at the MKM Stadium against Hull City, days before the takeover of Acun Ilicali – by January 2022 Ince had taken his tally for Stoke City to fourteen goals in 103 appearances.
At the end of January 2022 Ince was loaned to Championship strugglers Reading, who were managed by his former England international father Paul Ince. After 15 loan appearances and two goals for the Royals his transfer was made permanent in June 2022. The leadership of his father seemed to galvanise Ince in the 2022/23 season as he scored nine goals in 39 appearances with the Royals competing for promotion in the early weeks of the season before a collapse in form and a points deduction led to Paul Ince’s dismissal and Reading’s relegation to League One. Still capable of bigger things, Tom signed for Championship side Watford in June 2023 and he contributed two goals for the Hornets in 29 appearances during his first season at Vicarage Road.
Ince was a regular England under-21 for several seasons, after having played at under-17 and under-19 levels. Between 2012 and 2014 he won 18 England under-21 caps, making his debut in September 2012 against Azerbaijan. He scored three times for the under-21s, twice against Sweden in February 2013 and once against San Marino in November 2013. The last six of his Under-21 appearances, including his final cap against France in November 2014, were earned while a Hull City player.
Details
Nationality: England
Date/Place of Birth: 30 January 1992, Stockport
Hull City First Game: 31 July 2014, AS Trencin A (Europa League 3rd Qualifying Round First Leg), 22 years, 182 days old
Hull City Final Game: 31 January 2015, Newcastle United H (Premier League), 23 years, 1 days old
Clubs
Liverpool (2008-2011), Notts County (2010-2011, loan), Blackpool (2011-2014), Crystal Palace (2014, loan), Hull City (2014-2015), Nottingham Forest (2014, loan), Derby County (2015, loan), Derby County (2015-2017), Huddersfield Town (2017-2018), Stoke City (2018-2022), Luton Town (2021, loan), Reading (2022, loan), Reading (2022-2023), Watford (2023-current)
Hull City Record
Career: 13 apps, 1 goals
Thomas Ince| Season | LGE App | LGE Gls | FAC App | FAC Gls | FLC App | FLC Gls | EUR App | EUR Gls | OTH App | OTH Gls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014/15 | 3 (4) | 0 | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 (0) | 1 | 0 (4) | 0 | – | – |