RONAN CURTIS

Born: 29 March 1996

Came from: Port Vale   Went to:

First game: 13 January 2026   Last game: 17 January 2026

Appearances: 2 (2/0)   Goals: 0

A right-footed, left-winger, Curtis was born in Croydon as the youngest of eleven siblings, ahead of his family moving to St Johnston in County Donegal when he was ten. He is also the godson of Chris Coleman, who played for and managed Wales.

In the Republic, he played youth football for Kildrum Tigers and Swilly Rovers before joining Derry City's academy in 2014, making his debut the following year, in May 2015. In total, he would go on to make exactly 100 appearances for the League of Ireland Premier Division side, scoring 24 goals for the Candystripes. During this period, he also won eight caps and scored once for the Republic of Ireland under-21 side.

In May 2018, he moved to League One Portsmouth for a transfer fee in the region of £100,000 (with a £20,000 international cap bonus) on a two-year contract.

In five seasons with Pompey, he made 226 appearances and scored 57 goals, including a brace in his seventh game for the club as they beat Derek Adams’ Argyle side, 3-0 at Fratton Park in September 2018. He went on to win the club's Young Player of the Season award for 2018-19. Later that year, in November, he also made his full Republic of Ireland debut, coming on as a half-time substitute in a goalless friendly against Northern Ireland at the Aviva Stadium. Curtis also featured in Pompey's two Football League Trophy finals at Wembley, finishing with a winners' medal in 2018-19 and a runners-up medal the following season.

His 57 club goals made him Portsmouth's top scorer of the 21st century. However, in 2023, he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Despite this, he was offered a new contract at the end of the 2022-23 season as he made his recovery, though it was later confirmed that he had turned down the contract, continuing to train with the club as he stepped up his recovery process.

In January 2024, he moved to AFC Wimbledon after a successful trial, initially on a short-term contract until the end of the 2023-24 season. In total, he played 17 times and scored five goals for the club. At the end of the season, it was announced he was in discussions over a new contract.

However, he declined further time in south-west London and became Darren Moore's first signing for League Two Port Vale in May 2024, shortly after their relegation, on a three-year contract. He scored five goals in 42 league games throughout the 2024-25 campaign, helping the team to secure an immediate return to League One, via an automatic promotion place, playing regularly alongside future Pilgrim, Laurent Tolaj.

Curtis remained at Vale Park following the club’s promotion to League One and in January 2026, Argyle made a move for the winger, identified by Argyle's Director of Football Derek Adams as a signing for Tom Cleverley's Pilgrims. He became the Pilgrims’ first signing of the transfer window, putting pen to paper on a two-and-a-half-year contract. In total, he had played 73 times and scored 11 goals for the Staffordshire club ahead of his arrival in Devon.