Veteran forward Whalley agrees new Accrington deal

Accrington Stanley forward Shaun Whalley has signed a new contract for the 2026-27 season. The 38-year-old first played for the club from 2006 to 2008 and returned in the summer of 2022, making 220 Stanley appearances so far across both spells. He has scored five goals in 34 games this season, with Stanley travelling to Oldham Athletic for their final League Two fixture of the campaign on Saturday.

"Everyone knows what Shaun's about, everyone knows what he gives on the field, his levels of performance, but what they don't see is how he is around the dressing room, on the training field, and he's just a top, top, top player," Accrington boss John Doolan told the club website. "You're always mindful of people's ages and stuff like that, but he's like a fine wine, he just keeps maturing, he just keeps getting better and better, so let's hope that happens again next season, and I'm sure it will. " Whalley began his career at Chester and has also played for Wrexham, Southport, Luton Town and Shrewsbury Town, spending seven years with the latter.

"Everyone knows I love it here and I feel that the people here love me, so I want to continue playing for Accrington," he said. "Obviously, the manager's going to look to recruit other players in the summer and it'll be exciting to see who we can bring in, and then going forward, I'm looking at having a really positive season, individually and as a team. "