Bristol Rovers will forever thank Cardiff City transfer decision | OneFootball

Tom Lockyer would go on to make over 250 appearances for the Gas

Tom Lockyer isn't a name synonymous with Cardiff City, despite beginning his career in South Wales.

The Welshman was let go by Cardiff at 15 after being told he wasn't big enough to play at centre-back. Ultimately, it was Bristol Rovers who became the beneficiaries of some misjudgement as they picked up Lockyer after his release.

Rovers brought Lockyer in and kick-started a career which saw him play in the National League all the way to becoming a goalscorer in the Premier League with Luton Town.

Many neutral fans today see him as a Luton hero, but it was Bristol Rovers where Tom Lockyer made a name for himself.

Bristol Rovers gained a beloved captain in Tom Lockyer

Tom Lockyer joined up with Bristol Rovers' youth academy upon his release from Cardiff City. After appearing in some league squads during the first half of the 2012/13 season but never coming off the bench, he made his league debut at the club a month after his 19th birthday.

His first season as a regular member of the side saw Rovers relegated from the football league. However, he remained a key fixture in the side, which became only the seventh side to go back-to-back from the National League to League One between 2014-2016.

Ahead of the 2016/17 season, Lockyer would begin to replace Mark McChrystal as Bristol Rovers' captain, captaining the side at just 21-years-old in their first season back in League One since 2010/11.

That season would see Lockyer receive his first senior Wales international call-up, albeit not making his full debut until the season after, replacing Ben Davies at half-time in a 1-1 draw against Panama.

The Welshman would continue to be a stalwart of a solid mid-table League One side for another few seasons before deciding to move on to pastures new at the end of the 2018/19 season when his contract expired.

Premier League promotion and goalscorer - Tom Lockyer post-Bristol Rovers

Despite captaining his side for three seasons and being capped by Wales all by the time he turned 24, Lockyer's career hit the next level when he decided to make the move to then-Championship side, Charlton Athletic.

His first season in the second tier resulted in relegation, but he made a good enough impression to be immediately snapped up by a Championship side, arriving at Luton Town ahead of the 2020/21 season.

Luton's unlikely rise to the Premier League is well-documented and, as a result, so is Lockyer's.

The 2022/23 season proved to be almost perfect for the centre-back. Lockyer missed just seven games of the regular season, scored the goal which sent the Hatters to the play-off final and captained his side out at Wembley.

Unfortunately, Lockyer's play-off final was cut short after 12 minutes following collapsing on the field. Whilst minor surgery was able to allow him to play again in the Premier League, scoring his first goal in Luton's first win against Everton, another cardiac arrest against Bournemouth in December 2023 has halted his career to the point where he is yet to play since.

Cardiff release disappointed Tom Lockyer, but was very beneficial in the end

Speaking to the Central Club podcast in 2023, Lockyer said: "In a way [being released from Cardiff] was the best thing that ever happened to me.

"There were loads of talented lads, a lot more talented than me [...] but a lot of them just went on to fizzle out. Me getting released and having to go to Bristol Rovers and end up playing men's football was the best thing that ever happened to me."

Tom Lockyer felt that if he had stayed at Cardiff, then he'd have fallen by the wayside, much like many of those in his age group did. Instead, he became a legend at Bristol Rovers and then went on to play in the Premier League - a dream held by many.