Tranmere Rovers confirmed on Friday afternoon that they have signed attacker Omari Patrick after a successful trial period.
The 28 year old has signed a one-year contract with the Wirral side after impressing in pre-season games against AFC Fylde, Preston North End and Blackpool having scored against the latter.
Promotion winner and relegated sufferer – Patrick’s career so far
Patrick began his career in the non-league system and started his career with non-league side Beaconsfield SYCOB. He signed his first professional contract at Kidderminster Harriers in 2015 before moving onto Barnsley and Bradford City.
During his time at Bradford, the attacker had a loan spell at Wrexham where he scored five goals in ten appearances which helped the Red Dragons avoid relegation to the National League North. After 31 appearances for the Bantams he moved to Carlisle United in 2020.
Despite a seven game spell at Burton Albion in-between, the attacker made 109 appearances for the Cumbrians, scoring 21 goals. He was a member of the side that won promotion to League One in 2022-23 and scored the equalising goal in the Play Off Final to send it to extra time.
At the beginning of last season, the 28 year old joined Sutton United but the season didn’t go to plan and Patrick departed having rejected a new contract following relegation to the National League. The attacker finds himself back up north with League Two Tranmere Rovers ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Will Tranmere benefit from having Patrick in their squad?
After signing for the Super White army, manager Nigel Adkins was pleased to be adding Patrick to their squad ahead of the new season:
“The experienced attacker has impressed during the last few weeks he has been with us and we are looking forward to working with him over the coming season as he joins our ambitious, hard-working squad of players.”
The addition of Patrick no doubt adds League Two quality to Tranmere’s squad ahead of the new season, despite the relegation with Sutton last season. Patrick’s preferred position is on the left-wing but does have the versatility to play on either wing and up front, having played in the latter position for Carlisle during their promotion season.
The former Sutton attacker likes to take on his opposition by standing them up and beating them in 1v1 situations with his pace and trickery. He is capable of running in behind the defence and is two-footed, hence why he has the versatility to play on either wing.
Despite being part of a relegated Sutton side last season, Patrick still showed his ability in League Two. He scored six goals in all competitions from an expected goals (xG) figure of 3.53 showing his ability to finish opportunities from difficult positions. He consistently tested opposition keepers with an average of 2.24 shots per 90 minutes with a shot accuracy of 80%, with most of these occurring after getting the better of his full-back in 1v1 situations.
His ability to beat defenders is shown by his successful dribbles over the past two seasons. Patrick completed an average of 1.98 in 2023-24 and 1.73 per 90 minutes despite the latter coming in the season when he played as a striker.
Despite his attacking attributes, Patrick was left out towards the end of Matt Gray’s tenure at Sutton due to his lack of defensive responsibility. Sutton’s defence was exposed numerous times down the left-hand side, with the left-back often being outnumbered. A change of club with a more stable defence at Tranmere might suit Patrick more and a change of system may offer the opportunity for him to flourish.
The upcoming season at Tranmere could offer Patrick the opportunity to get back to his consistent best and having won promotion from the League Two play offs with Carlisle, the Wirral side have got themselves a talented individual with experience of promotion, which is what they will be aiming for this coming season.