Phoenix Patterson swaps Waterford for Fleetwood Town

Waterford have confirmed Phoenix Patterson's move to Fleetwood Town.

Having scored six goals in all competitions in the second half of the 2021 season, the 22-year-old was one of the main creative outlets for the Blues during the past season as they made a bid for promotion from the First Division, scoring 17 goals before adding three more in the promotion play-offs.

His form saw him earn the PFAI First Division Player of the Year award. However, a 1-0 defeat to UCD in the promotion/relegation play-off decider on 11 November saw the club miss out on progression to the Premier Division.

Moving for an undisclosed fee, Patterson will now be plying his trade at Fleetwood in League One from 1 January.

"I would like to thank all the fans, from the moment I joined and the one-and-a-half years after that, they were great with me and showed a lot of support for me and the lads on the pitch," Patterson told the Waterford club website.

"The fans mean a lot to me; I will always be a Waterford fan and I'll try and get back over in the summer when we have a break to come and see everyone because the club has been a big part of my career as it helped me become the player I am today – thank you."

Speaking to Fleetwood's website upon completion of the transfer, the English-born forward added that the ties between his new club and Waterford - Andy Pilley is chairman and owner of both clubs - paved the way for the move.

"I'm very happy to have signed here," said Patterson. "I’ve always wanted to come and play football in England so I’m happy that Fleetwood has given me this chance to come and test myself in League One, I can’t wait to get started in January. The connection between Waterford and Fleetwood helped this move, I was just trying to