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Lewis Oliver Haldane (born 13 March 1985) is a Welsh former under-21 international footballer who scored 75 goals in 414 league and cup games in a 14-year career.
A winger, he was a youth player at Southampton and Trowbridge Town before he turned professional at Bristol Rovers in 2002. Loaned out to non-League Weston-super-Mare, he broke through into the Rovers first-team in 2003–04. He was loaned out to Conference club Forest Green Rovers for a part of the 2004–05 and 2005–06 campaigns. He stormed into the Bristol Rovers first-team picture with sixty appearances in 2006–07. At the end of the season, he helped the club to win promotion into League One through the play-offs. He also played in the club's defeat in the EFL Trophy final. A first-team regular in 2007–08, he lost his place and spent the 2008–09 season on loan at Conference side Oxford United.
He joined Port Vale on loan at the start of the 2009–10 season before joining the club permanently in January 2010. He recovered from a serious infection following an insect bite sustained at the start of the 2010–11 season, only to be struck down with a Bone fracture leg at the start of the 2011–12 campaign. The injury eventually forced him to retire from professional football in October 2012. However, he later returned to play semi-professionally with Yate Town, before signing for Frome Town in November 2014. He retired following a brief return to Yate Town in January 2016.
The teenager made 16 appearances in 2004–05, all but one as a substitute, picking up one goal against Leyton Orient in the League Trophy. In April 2005 he joined Conference club Forest Green Rovers on loan. He played six games before returning to Bristol, following the dismissal of manager Ian Atkins. He began the 2005–06 season on loan at Forest Green, putting in seven appearances before heading back to Rovers in September. He played 32 games for the League Two side, scoring three goals, two of them at the end-of-season clash with Macclesfield Town. During the season, he was utilized on the right of midfield rather than his usual role as a striker.
He played a remarkable sixty competitive games in 2006–07. The highlights of the season included playing in the Football League Trophy final at the Millennium Stadium and playing in the play–off final at Wembley Stadium. In the League Trophy final, the "Gas" lost 3–2 to Doncaster Rovers, a game in which Haldane was man of the match, but at the play-off final at Wembley they defeated Shrewsbury Town 3–1. Haldane started both games but finished neither. At the end of the season, he put pen to paper on a three-year contract.
He made 38 appearances in 2007–08, as the "Pirates" adapted to life playing at a higher level. His only goal of the campaign was a late winning header over Millwall on 17 November. At the reverse fixture he set up Craig Disley's winning goal. He joined Oxford United on a season-long loan in July 2008, following the arrival of Jeff Hughes at Rovers. He played 46 games for the Conference side, but remained on the transfer list at the Memorial Stadium upon his return.
Due to sign permanently for the "Vale", he was instead only able to re-join the club on loan on 31 December 2009, having failed to gain a release from Rovers. That release was eventually secured however. Haldane signed for Vale on 27 January 2010, just days before the transfer window closed. He was sent off in his first game as a fully signed Vale player, to his great disappointment. He was offered a new contract by the club at the end of the season, and quickly signed the two-year deal.
In the 2010–11 pre-season, Haldane was rushed into hospital after being bitten by a blandford fly during a training session. The unusual illness kept him bed stricken, and cost him his place in the team's trip to Ireland, giving Gary Roberts a chance to earn a contract. He spent two weeks in hospital. He had to wait until November before he had returned to match fitness, and even longer before returning to full fitness. Following his recovery he managed to finish the season with 27 appearances to his name.
Haldane won his first start of the 2011–12 campaign in a League Trophy clash with Tranmere Rovers; however, he landed awkwardly after an aerial challenge, the result of which was a double leg Bone fracture and another lengthy spell on the sidelines. By January 2012 the bone had completely healed, however, manager Micky Adams confirmed that another operation looked likely. Three months later he took to the field again in a reserve team clash with Burton Albion. He was allowed to prove his fitness when he was offered a new six-month contract in May 2012. However, two months later he went under the knife again to remove scar tissue from his left ankle. The leg injury proved too severe, and his retirement was officially announced on 7 October.
In February 2009, Haldane was selected to represent England C for the fixture against Malta under-21s. However, he was forced to withdraw because he had previously represented Wales at under-21 level.
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