Jasper Moon

A look at some of the best players I’ve seen in the past few years at either U18s or U23s level or currently playing in non-league who've either left a really positive impression or whose careers I follow with genuine interest to see how they're doing every week.

Player: Jasper Moon

Age: 21
Position: Defender/Midfielder
Club: Barnsley

Everybody will remember March 2020.

It was the month our lives changed abruptly as the UK went into lockdown overnight and that dreaded fear of the unknown dominated our lives.

The empty feeling of isolation and longing for yesterday in the days and months which followed still makes people shudder; nobody ever wants to experience those emotions again, and for Jasper Moon that period was another bitter blow in what had become a horrible first-year pro season at Barnsley.

Jasper Moon, having overcome so much, in a Barnsley FC shirt (Photo: Stu Forster).

Signed at Oakwell three summers previously in June 2017 when he uprooted from Coventry (his hometown) to c/o Grove Street in order to complete his youth team scholarship after being let go by Leicester after eight years in their academy, by the pandemic he was already used to independence, overcoming homesickness, and living miles away from home.

As a YT player, he passed his driving test and was steering in the right direction on the pitch too.

His performances both at centre-back and in a defensive-midfield role earned him a professional contract and he even spent time out on loan at York City towards the tail end of the 2018/19 campaign - making his senior debut in a 1-0 win over Southport at Bootham Crescent (on the same day as the infamous tunnel bust up involving Joey Barton at Oakwell).

At this point, with Barnsley also promoted to the Championship that year, it's fair to say things were going well; he was playing for the U23s regularly, and progressing nearer to the first team.

And then it changed.

A collision with an opponent in an U23s game against Wigan in September 2019 where the other player landed on him resulted in a broken leg. It's one of the worst things that can happen for any player and, with his season seemingly over, the pain on the inside soon became as visible as the pain on the outside as anxiety and worry took over his mind.

Still just 18 at this point and downbeat and dejected during the initial stages of his rehab; experiencing that horrible sense of loneliness of being stuck in a gym whilst all his team-mates were out on the training pitch, he needed resilience and an undisputed mental strength from within his soul to overcome it. It was probably the worst experience of his career to date. 

When Adam Murray (his old youth team boss) stepped in as caretaker manager soon after his injury, replacing the departing Daniel Stendel, more pondering followed. Would he have got that first appearance for Barnsley under ‘Muz’ had it not been for the injury? Who knows? It added to the already despondent turmoil he was feeling inside. He was at rock bottom.

Having dug deep to get back fit and overcome the mental, as much as the physical challenge, of playing in his first game again for the U23s, he'd made an impression on Gerhard Struber (by now the first team manager) and was on the brink of breaking into the first team again just as he was previously before that broken leg.

After that horrible winter period, brighter times now seemed to be on the horizon.

Then came the pandemic.

The rigmarole of wondering when the next football match would take place or whether the season would just be panned altogether. What would happen now? In loneliness and isolation again due to lockdown rules, it was back to square one.

Fast-forward two years, from that dark period to the present day, and it's to Jasper's immense credit as a person as much as a player, that he's just finished the season with 25 appearances under his belt in the Championship.

Things could have gone better on the pitch as Barnsley got relegated and went through three different managers. He found himself in and out of the team (which happens) but, importantly, on a personal level it's been a crucial breakthrough year for him. Every player needs it if they're to carve out a decent career and I've got so much admiration for his courage and commitment to overcome those dark moments and get to where he is now.

Jasper actually made his first Barnsley appearance in December 2020 (away at Rotherham) before figuring again later in the season against Preston, and then on the final day at home to Norwich which his first start (and on his mum's birthday) and was memorable for THAT photo featuring Todd Cantwell.

Todd Cantwell... and Jasper Moon (Photo: James Williamson).

Everything he’s experienced in the past five years at Barnsley has been beneficial for him. From learning how to cope in the darkest of moments, to living away from home and gaining independence, to growing into the person he is today, whilst improving aspects of his game via the methods of the various coaches and managers whose sessions and games he's participated in.

As a player he's technically aware, good with his feet, is composed and solid enough and has a finely ripped physique and he'll improve with age. Through his own mindset, every experience is something he can turn into a good one.

And as a lad, he's conscientious, caring and will remember little things which mean so much to people. He's got a warm and smiling personality who'll be great with the kids on matchdays because, deep down, he's just a big kid living a dream himself - and with how he's adapted and overcome the challenges to get to where he is, I've got so much respect for it.

Unfortunately he didn't score any goals last season so his topless celebration GIF swinging his shirt about in the air couldn't ever be used on Barnsley’s Twitter feed - though he did score a half-volley rocket (from the Moon) in an U23s game against his hometown club about 18 months ago which subsequently won him the 'Goal Of The Month' award.

You've done yourself and your family proud with how you've overcome the low points to be who you are today though, Jasper, and I'm sure when you bag that first goal of your career, you'll remember the moment forever and simultaneously create something the young kids in the stands who love Barnsley Football Club will also remember for a long time too.

A good player. A lovely lad. Good luck next year (as I know it'll be another big season for you) and however things pan out, I'll be following it with interest.