Former Newcastle United, Morecambe, Grimsby Town and Accrington Stanley defender Liam Gibson becomes Harrogate Town's second close-season signing

Gibson, 26, has joined on a free transfer from Morecambe, where he was named as the players' player of the year in 2022-23, having made 51 appearances last term.

Gibson spent more than a decade at his boyhood club Newcastle United, before being released at the age of 22. His other clubs include Accrington Stanley and Grimsby Town.

The full-back has overcome a long-term battle with ulcerative colitis to rebuild a successful career in the EFL.

He has signed a two-year deal with the Sulphurites and his arrival followed on from that of recently-released Huddersfield Town midfielder Matty Daly.

Gibson said: “I’m buzzing to be here, as soon as I heard of the interest, I was itching to come down and get signed. I can’t wait to get started in July.

"I played here a few times with Morecambe and it just felt like a really homely football club, I couldn’t get down here quick enough.

"I want to take the form I had at Morecambe last season and bring it here to Harrogate and hopefully we can push on as a team to have a good season. I enjoyed my time there, but I’m a Harrogate player now and I’m focused on doing as well as possible.”

Head of player recruitment Lloyd Kerry added; “Liam has great experience at this level and knows what it takes to get out the league. Last season, he played 44 games in League One, so he ticks a lot of boxes for us and we think he’ll be a great signing.

"He’s reliable, consistent, strong physically and is very calm on the ball and we really feel he can strengthen us.

"There were a lot of teams interested in Liam, so we’re absolutely delighted he chose Harrogate Town.”