Josh O'Brien

For the rower, see Joshua O'Brien (rower).
Josh O'Brien
O'Brien playing for Salford in October 2022
Personal information
Full name Joshua Manfred O'Brien
Date of birth (2003-02-07) 7 February 2003
Place of birth Dublin, Ireland
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Indy Eleven
Youth career
20??–2020 Seattle Sounders FC
2020–2021 De Anza Force
2021–2022 Watford
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022–2023 Salford City 2 (0)
2022–2023 → Telford United (loan) 10 (1)
2023–2024 Hamilton Academical 8 (0)
2024– Indy Eleven 34 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:15, 7 July 2025 (UTC)

Joshua Manfred O'Brien (born 7 February 2003) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for USL Championship club Indy Eleven.

Early life

O'Brien was born in Dublin, but moved to the United States at ten weeks old due to a change in his father's job.[1] O'Brien's father is Irish and his mother, Nicole, is German.[1] O'Brien has four brothers; Aran represented Santa Clara University and Ethan played for the University of Notre Dame.[1] O'Brien was educated at Eastside Catholic in Washington state and Archbishop Mitty in California.[1]

Career

Youth career

O'Brien began his career with the Crossfire academy, though moved to Northern California to join developmental team De Anza Force in 2020.[1] He attended the University of Washington, but in 2021 put his studies on hold to join English Premier League club Watford on a one-year contract (with the option of a further year) following a successful trial.[1] O'Brien had been recommended to the club by the brother of Northern Ireland international George Saville.[1] O'Brien was released by Watford in the summer of 2022 and joined the development squad at Salford City of EFL League Two.[2]

Professional career

O'Brien made his senior debut for Salford on 30 August 2022, playing the full ninety minutes of a 2–1 win over Liverpool U21 at Moor Lane,[3] and his first league start came against Northampton Town, keeping a clean sheet in a 1–0 win at Sixfields.[4] On 12 December he joined Telford United on loan.[5]

O'Brien joined Scottish League One side Hamilton Academical in August 2023, making 10 total appearances for the South Lanarkshire club.[6]

On 1 February 2024, Indianapolis-based club Indy Eleven announced the signing of O'Brien ahead of the 2024 USL Championship season.[7] The USL Championship club's owners had been interested in signing O'Brien since he joined Watford's development squad in 2021.[8] O'Brien made his first appearance with the Eleven in their 2–1 season opening defeat against Oakland Roots as a substitute in the 75th minute, replacing Younes Boudadi.[9] O'Brien scored his first goal for the Eleven on 1 June in a 2–1 away win against Pittsburgh Riverhounds.[10] On 20 November 2024, Indy Eleven announced O'Brien would return for the 2025 season.[11]

O'Brien scored his first goal of the 2025 season, and second for Indy Eleven, in a 1–1 draw against Birmingham Legion FC on 28 June in the USL Cup.[12]

Personal

O'Brien's brother, Ethan O'Brien, is also a professional footballer. Ethan joined his brother at Indy Eleven in 2024.[13] Ethan O'Brien was transferred to MLS Next Pro side Huntsville City FC in November 2024.[14]

Career statistics

As of match played 5 July 2025.[15]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Salford City 2022-23 League Two 2 0 0 0 0 0 2[c] 0 4 0
Telford United (loan) 2022-23 National League North 10 1 0 0 — 1[d] 0 11 1
Hamilton Academical 2023-24 Scottish League One 8 0 0 0 0 0 2[e] 0 10 0
Indy Eleven 2024 USL Championship 25 1 5 0 — 0 0 30 1
2025 USL Championship 9 0 2 0 3 1 0 0 14 1
Total 34 1 7 0 3 1 0 0 44 2
Career total 54 2 7 0 3 1 5 0 69 3
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup, Scottish Cup, U.S. Open Cup
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup, Scottish League Cup, USL Cup
  3. ^ Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
  4. ^ Appearance(s) in FA Trophy
  5. ^ Appearance(s) in Scottish Challenge Cup

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Leventhal, Adam (6 August 2021). "Josh O'Brien, the Irish-American who went on trial at Watford and ended up winning a pro deal". The Athletic. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  2. ^ "Josh O'Brien". Salford City Football Club. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  3. ^ "EFL Trophy (Sky Sports)". Sky Sports. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  4. ^ Cox, Lewis (20 December 2022). "Kevin Wilkin hoping Telford loanee will be success". Shropshire Star. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Josh O'Brien joins AFC Telford United on loan". Salford City Football Club. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  6. ^ McGilvray, Andy (2023-08-05). "Hamilton Accies boss not finished in transfer market despite double signing". Daily Record. Retrieved 2024-02-01.
  7. ^ "Indy Eleven Announces Addition of Defender Josh O'Brien". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-02-01.
  8. ^ Healy, Tommy. "Irish American defender Josh O'Brien signs with USL Championship team Indy Eleven". extratime.com. Retrieved 2024-02-01.
  9. ^ "Recap - OAK 2:1 IND". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  10. ^ "RECAP - PIT 1:2 IND". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
  11. ^ "Indy Eleven Announces Returnees for 2025". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  12. ^ "Jägermeister Cup Recap-IND 1(7):1(6) BHM". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2025-07-07.
  13. ^ "Indy Eleven Announces Signing of Notre Dame Standout Ethan O'Brien". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  14. ^ HNT. "News | HuntsvilleCityFC.com". HNT. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  15. ^ Josh O'Brien at Soccerway. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
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