A quiet January 2024 transfer window burst into life midway through the month with the signing of striker Vadaine Oliver on loan; the Sheffield-born player coming to us from League Two side Bradford City. It was a deal that raised an eyebrow or two at the time for a couple of reasons. The first is that we weren’t short of attacking options – even if we weren’t sure of who best to partner Jamie Reid up top. The second is that Oliver was a loan signing from the division below. It’s not an obvious trajectory, but equally not unheard of.
There was, however, method to the so-called madness of the deal. Oliver had played under manager Steve Evans before; enjoying a fruitful spell together at Gillingham. Unsurprisingly, the boss was more than happy to secure his services in an attempt to consolidate our place in the 2023-4 League One promotion race. “Vadaine is an excellent signing for us,” said Evans. “He has always scored goals for me – over twenty when we worked together in League One. As a minimum, he works incredibly hard for the team and I’m delighted to work with him again.”
Vadaine Oliver: Before Boro’
As a native of the Steel City, it all started for the player at hometown club Sheffield Wednesday. It’d be at Hillsborough in 2010 that Oliver would turn pro. But opportunities to shine were limited and, two years later, the forward found himself in the market for a new club. He duly found one by dropping into the National League where Lincoln City were at the time – a one-year deal that yielded a reasonable return of goals. More importantly for hime, it grabbed the attention of Football League. And, in summer 2013, the forward earned a move to Crewe Alexandra.
In the years that followed, you could argue that Oliver couldn’t quite find that perfect fit. After a loan spell with Mansfield Town, the forward joined York City in 2015 – followed by Morecambe in 2017 and Northampton Town in 2019, with a loan spell at Notts County (2016) in the mix. His 2020 move to Gillingham, however, was seemingly the one; Oliver finding the net and even picking up a League One Player of the Month award. With his Gills contract up in 2022, however, the striker opted to move once more; heading back to Yorkshire (well, West not South) to sign for Bradford City.
