Freddie Ladapo

DOB: 1st February 1993

Position: Striker

Season of first appearance: 2014/15

Season of last appearance: 2015/16

Full Appearances: 56

Substitute: 2

Goals: 25

Also played for:

Colchester United, Thurrock, Chelmsford City, Bishop’s Stortford, Woking, Nuneaton Town, Kidderminster Harriers, Hayes & Yeading United, Grays Athletic, Crystal Palace, Oldham Athletic, Shrewsbury Town, Plymouth Argyle, Rotherham United, Ipswich Town, Charlton Athletic, Huddersfield

Player Profile:

Towering, athletic striker, born in Romford, who began his senior career at Colchester United, having been in the academies at both Colchester and Southend United.

He made his Football League debut for Colchester at home to Brentford on 26.12.12. He made four first-team appearances for the club in 2012-13. During his time at Colchester, he had a number of loan spells with Thurrock, Chelmsford City, Bishop's Stortford, Woking and Nuneaton Town.

In 2014, he left Colchester to join Conference club Kidderminster Harriers, spending time on loan at Hayes & Yeading United and Grays Athletic before signing for Margate in January 2015.

Freddie made his Margate debut in a 2-1 defeat at home to Dulwich on 17.1.15. He scored on his next appearance, a 2-1 win in the Isthmian League Cup tie at home to Folkestone on 27.1.15. This was followed by two goals in a 3-0 win at home to Bury Town in the Isthmian League on 7.2.15. Freddie then grabbed the winner in a 1-0 victory at Leiston on 17.2.15. He scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 win at Met Police on 31.3.15.

Freddie remained a regular in the team for the rest of the season, playing in the 1-0 play-off final win against Hendon at Harrow Borough on 17.5.15 – setting up the winning goal for Ryan Moss. Freddie finished the season with 10 goals from 19 appearances (none as sub).

Freddie stayed at Margate for 2015-16 as we entered the National League South. He clinched the Thanet Cup with a penalty in a 4-3 win at Ramsgate on 21.7.15. In the league, he got off the mark in our second game at Whitehawk with a goal after coming on as a sub in a 2-2 draw on 11.8.15.

Margate struggled in the early months of the campaign and Freddie didn’t start to score regularly until November, beginning with a brace in a 4-1 win at home to Havant on 7.11.15. He also scored in a 2-1 win at Hemel Hempstead on 21.11.15.

Freddie had a first half penalty saved as Margate lost 3-0 at St Albans City on 5.12.15 – manager Terry Brown’s last game with the club.

The appointment of Nikki Bull as manager seemed to rejuvenate Freddie and he scored in the first three matches of Bull’s reign – the winner in a 1-0 victory at home to Gosport on 19.12.15, the winner in another 1-0 win against Maidstone at Hartsdown on 26.12.15 and Margate’s goal in a 1-1 draw at Dartford on 28.12.15.

Professional clubs were now looking at Freddie and Margate turned down four bids for him in January - two from a Football League club and two more from a Conference outfit (believed to be Barrow) - with the player himself choosing to stay at Hartsdown after a fee had been agreed with a second Conference club.

Nikki Bull told Kent Online: "Their financial offer to us was acceptable but Freddie decided to turn it down. He was only ever going to leave Margate for league football. But as I said to him late Monday night, if he keeps doing what he’s doing he’ll continue to have people watching him. I said don’t be disappointed that you’ve not gone and to be fair he wasn’t, he was very level-headed.

"There was disappointment (on his part) last week when the league club was turned down but, when he saw the facts of the bid, he agreed that the figure being offered was not acceptable."

He added: "I didn't expect Fred to go in the January window because in this day and age clubs like to do their due diligence when it comes to non-league players. They tend to scout them over four to six months rather than just a couple."

Ironically, this period saw Freddie go seven matches without a goal for Margate, a run that ended with a strike in a 3-2 win at Chelmsford City on 20.2.16.

Freddie’s last game for the club was on 19.3.16 when he scored a penalty in a 2-1 defeat at home to Hayes & Yeading.

In March 2016, Freddie spent four days training with Crystal Palace during which he scored a hat-trick for their Under 21s in a 5-0 win over Watford.

Nikki Bull told Kent Online: "Freddie's attitude has been excellent the whole time. When bigger clubs look at players like him the big question is always can they do it at the higher level with better players around them, and I think Freddie's display [against Watford] proved he could.

"His dream, like every player, is to play in the Premier League but for now we need him to carry on giving his all for Margate and that's what he's been doing."

Having missed matches against Wealdstone and Concord Rangers, on 30.3.16, Freddie signed a two-and-a-half year deal with Palace with the London club agreeing an undisclosed fee with Margate believed to be in the region of £50,000 with add-ons.

Freddie finished the season with 15 goals for Margate from 37 appearances, plus two as sub.

Primarily a member of the development squad at Palace, Freddie joined the first-team on their tour of North America in July 2016. He spent 2016-17 on loan at Oldham Athletic and Shrewsbury Town.

Freddie made one Premier League appearance for Palace as a sub in a 4-0 defeat at Manchester United on 30.9.17.

In January 2018, Freddie joined League One Southend United. He was due to sign for AFC Wimbledon earlier the same day and arrived at the Wombles’ stadium for a medical before walking out midway through.

Freddie was released by Southend at the end of 2017-18 and joined Plymouth Argyle, becoming their top scorer with 19 goals in 2018-19 as they were relegated from League One. Freddie was named as League One Player of the Month in October 2018.

In June 2019 he signed a three-year deal with Rotherham United for a club record fee of £500,000. The Millers won two promotions from League One during Freddie’s time at the club. He also came on as a sub as the Millers won the EFL Trophy against Sutton United at Wembley on 30.4.22 in front of 30,688.

Freddie left Rotherham in the summer of 2022, signing for Ipswich Town on a free transfer. He scored 21 goals as Ipswich won promotion from League One in his first season at Portman Road.

In January 2024, Freddie joined League One Charlton Athletic on loan until the end of the 2023-24 season.

Following Ipswich's promotion to the Premier League, Freddie joined Huddersfield Town for the 2024-25 season.