Sam Groombridge

DOB: 8th January 1988

Position: Centre-back

Season of first appearance: 2009/10

Season of last appearance: 2010/11

Full Appearances: 30

Substitute: 9

Goals: 1

Also played for:

Gravesend & Northfleet, Sevenoaks Town, Thamesmead Town, Chatham Town, Tilbury, Slade Green, Croydon, Holmesdale, Bromley, Whitstable Town, Sittingbourne, Maidstone United, Erith & Belvedere and Corinthian

Player Profile:

Sidcup-born player who started his career with Gravesend & Northfleet and progressed through the club's junior ranks into the first-team squad during the 2004-05 campaign.

In November 2004, Sam was loaned to Kent League outfit Sevenoaks and, after returning to the Fleet, he made one substitute appearance in the Conference at the end of 2004-05 aged 17.

He captained the Fleet's youth team during the 2005-06 season but, in September 2006, Sam left the club and joined Kent League side Thamesmead. He usually played as a right-back for Thamesmead and Sam stayed with the club until January 2007 when he signed for Chatham.

He went on to make 17 Isthmian League Division 1 South appearances (three as sub) without scoring for Chatham before the end of the 2006-07 campaign. Sam stayed with the club for the start of 2007-08 and on 15.9.07 was in the Chatham side that lost 3-0 at home to Margate in the FA Cup. Sam had made ten league appearances (one as sub) without scoring when he moved on to Tilbury in January 2008.

He spent the remainder of 2007-08 with the Isthmian League Division 1 North outfit and featured 16 times (twice as sub) in league matches without scoring before leaving the Dockers at the end of the season.

Sam joined Slade Green of the Kent League in the summer of 2008 and became the club's captain aged just 20. However, he only made 19 appearances during 2008-09 due to a knee ligament injury that kept him out of action for an extended period.

Sam started the 2009-10 campaign with Combined Counties League outfit Croydon but left them in September 2009 after scoring once from six outings. His next move took him to Holmesdale and Sam scored twice as they beat Sporting Bengal 3-2 in the Kent League on 20.10.09.

In November 2009, he joined Conference South club Bromley and Sam played a few games for their reserves before signing for Margate at the start of December 2009.

He made his debut in a 2-2 draw with Harrow at Hartsdown Park in the Isthmian League Premier Division on 5.12.09 and from then on Sam was a regular in the side at centre-back. On 16.1.10, he scored his first goal for Margate when he knocked home a loose ball following an Aaron Lacy free-kick in a 1-1 draw with visitors Ashford (Middlesex) and Sam wore the number five shirt nine times up to and including a 3-2 home defeat against Hendon on 6.2.10. He then went out to the Middle East for an extended trial with a club there and missed seven Margate matches altogether.

Having returned to the UK, Sam made his first appearance for four weeks when he came on as a substitute in a 2-1 win at Billericay on 13.3.10 and he then featured as a sub in three of the next four matches but, after a 1-1 draw at Boreham Wood on 27.3.10, he sat out four games completely. He made his first start for over two months in a 1-0 defeat at Wealdstone on 7.4.10 but then missed Margate's last three matches as the club avoided relegation despite finishing in the drop zone. Sam had made a total of 14 appearances (four as sub) and scored once during 2009-10.

On the eve of the new season, Margate manager Iain O'Connell spoke about Sam to the Isle of Thanet Gazette and said: "Tough-tackling centre half but he's the worst 12-minute runner in the world. Even Bungle (keeper Jamie Turner) beat him!"

Sam didn't feature at all in the first five games of 2010-11 but on 11.9.10 he wore the number three shirt in a 3-0 win at Binfield in the FA Cup. He then sat out another seven matches before playing at centre-back in a 5-2 home defeat against Thamesmead in the Isthmian League Cup on 12.10.10. Sam's stop-start campaign continued with a sub outing in Margate's next game - a 5-1 win over Whitehawk in an FA Trophy tie at Hartsdown Park on 16.10.10 - and then a three-match absence before he wore the number five shirt in a 2-0 home defeat against Bromley in the Kent Senior Cup on 2.11.10.

In November 2010, Sam was loaned to Isthmian League Division 1 South club Whitstable and he made four league appearances there before returning to Margate towards the end of December 2010.

On 27.12.10, Sam finally made his first Isthmian League Premier Division appearance of the season when he played at centre-back in a 2-0 home defeat against Cray and he then featured in three of Margate's next five games, once as a substitute.

He was moved into a defensive midfield position for a 1-1 draw with Hendon at Hartsdown Park on 25.1.11 and from then on Sam was a regular for the remainder of the campaign, almost always featuring in his holding role. However, his last outing of the season was at centre-back in a 3-3 draw with visitors Kingstonian on 30.4.11 and that turned out to be Sam's final game for Margate. He'd made 25 appearances (five as sub) without scoring during 2010-11 and then left the club shortly after the campaign ended.

In the summer of 2011, Sam joined Sittingbourne and he made 11 appearances (three as sub) without scoring for the Division 1 South outfit before moving on to Maidstone in December 2011.

Former Margate star Jay Saunders was the Stones player-manager at the time and Sam scored once from 17 Division 1 South outings up to the end of 2011-12.

In the summer of 2012, he featured in some friendlies for his old club Chatham but Sam ended up signing for Whitstable in August 2012.

By October 2012, he'd left the Oystermen after only playing three times and Sam then spent some time playing for North Kent Sunday League side Valley Rovers. He was the subject of an approach from Hythe at the start of November 2012 - Whitstable still held Sam's registration - but the move didn't happen.

In January 2013, Sam's exile from senior football ended when he signed for Kent League side Erith & Belvedere.

In the summer of 2013, he moved on to Corinthian who played in the Southern Counties East Football League, formerly known as the Kent League.

Early in May 2014, Sam rejoined Erith & Belvedere, following Corinthian manager Matt Longhurst to the Southern Counties East Football League club. Sam became Longhurst's assistant as well as playing for the Deres.

Sam then finished his playing career at Corinthian where he also became a coach. Further coaching spells at Rusthall and Epsom & Ewell followed. Sam became UEFA B qualified and returned to Erith & Belvedere as a coach in summer 2025. In September 2025, he was appointed interim manager after joint managers Billy Hamblin and Jamie Phipps resigned.

His younger brother Ashley was briefly on Margate's books during the 2009-10 season and then joined the club again for 2011-12 but never featured in the first-team. Ashley later had a spell with Ramsgate.