All 24 EFL League Two clubs' goalkeepers ranked from best to worst | OneFootball

FLW has ranked all 24 fourth-tier clubs' main men between the sticks

The 2024/25 League Two season has once again served up plenty of drama.

With the promotion and play-off races looking set to go the distance, it is pivotal for those vying for a place in League One in particular to have a reliable pair of hands in net.

There is a strong mix of experienced keepers and up-and-coming shot-stoppers throughout the fourth tier, and with that being said, FLW has ranked every club's starting or most-used goalkeeper from best to worst.

Owen Goodman has been the standout performer across the division from a goalkeeping perspective, with the 21-year-old a key reason behind AFC Wimbledon's promotion bid.

The Crystal Palace loanee is alongside Burnley's record-breaking shot-stopper, James Trafford and Illan Meslier of Leeds United in terms of the most clean sheets in the EFL, having recently hit 20 shutouts across all competitions.

If it wasn't for his services, Johnnie Jackson's side's final weeks of the season could've been extremely different, with Goodman preventing a league-high amount of goals too, with Wimbledon also bearing the league's meanest defence.

2 Matt Macey

Matt Macey was the first signing of the season for Colchester United, ironically as a replacement for the aforementioned Goodman.

However, the former Arsenal academy graduate has proven to be an inspired piece of business by Danny Cowley as Colchester have enjoyed an extremely strong run of form from mid-season onwards, which has catapulted them from mid-table obscurity to having a shot at the play-offs.

Similarly to Goodman, if the 30-year-old wasn't between the sticks, the Essex outfit might have had nothing to play for at this stage, as Macey also ranks within the top three keepers in the division when it comes to clean sheets and goal prevention.

3 Sam Walker

Bradford City are looking to achieve a return to League One for the first time in six years, with plenty of experience among the Bantams ranks to call upon.

Sam Walker has provided a wealth of it between the sticks for Graham Alexander's side who have surged up the standings during the second half of the season, with the former Charlton Athletic man enjoying a fine season, keeping more than 15 clean sheets in all competitions.

The 33-year-old has been one of the main reasons behind a momentum shift at Valley Parade since the turn of the year that has fired Bradford into automatic promotion and title contenders, with a standout run of 10 clean sheets in 12 games from January through to March, which included six successive clean sheets on home turf.

Alex Bass is one of the fourth-tier's most experienced goalkeepers, and his presence has been more-than welcomed at Notts County after an inconsistent defensive campaign for the Magpies last term.

The former Portsmouth man also ranks extremely high when it comes to clean sheets and goal prevention, with his knowledge of the game proving as useful a weapon for Stuart Maynard as David McGoldrick's exploits at the other end of the pitch, as he currently possesses the best save percentage in League Two.

Notts have a couple of crucial encounters in NG2 against Bradford and Doncaster Rovers still to play, and keeping a shutout in both could go a long way to defining their season.

Filip Marschall is one of several high-potential goalkeepers in League Two, currently on loan at Crewe Alexandra from Aston Villa.

The man who featured once in Villa's run to the UEFA Conference League semi-finals last term has been a steady pair of hands for Lee Bell to call upon at such a young age.

At 21 years of age, there is still plenty of potential for the England youth international to fulfill, which was proved when he signed a new contract at Villa Park halfway through the season after keeping nine clean sheets prior to the announcement.

Whilst a consistent run of shutouts have been hard to come by since, the majority of them have come at the Mornflake Stadium, despite Crewe's mixed bag of results on home turf which has been a detrimental factor in their play-off bid.

6 Tommy Simkin

Tommy Simkin is yet another shot-stopper with a bright future in the game, having spent the season on loan with Walsall on loan from Stoke City.

Whilst Saddlers fans may not forgive the Potters for recalling Nathan Lowe in January, keeping hold of Simkin has yielded mixed results as the England youth international showcased earlier in the season exactly why he is so highly-rated at the Bet365 Stadium, which has become a hotbed for goalkeeping talent over the years.

However, Walsall boss Mat Sadler has opted to utilise Sam Hornby's services in recent weeks despite the loss of a 12-point lead at the top of the table since January, and Simkin will be frustrated that he hasn't been selected in order to try and halt the slide.

7 Glen Morris

Gillingham's inconsistencies this season have been laid bare in both boxes, although club stalwart, Glen Morris continues to shine between the sticks, despite being the oldest keeper in League Two at the age of 41.

The Kent outfit have the best defensive record in the bottom half of the division, which is a testament to the former Crawley Town man's contribution, although it remains to be seen how much longer he will stick around at Priestfield.

With Gareth Ainsworth recently taking charge, if the Gills are able to fire the goals in themselves, the former QPR boss certainly has some strong foundations to build from.

8 Grant Smith

It has been a strong first season back in the EFL for Bromley's Grant Smith, with the 31-year-old among one of the most consistent keepers in League Two as the divisional newcomers have enjoyed a strong, consolidatory season.

Smith rarely featured for Lincoln City during his previous stint in the lower reaches of professional football, but has averaged 3 saves per 90 minutes for the Ravens and has kept a double-figure tally of clean sheets as the side managed by former shot-stopper, Andy Woodman, look to record a top-half finish after achieving promotion from the National League last term.

Teddy Sharman-Lowe's season between the sticks at Doncaster Rovers has been mixed, despite Grant McCann putting plenty of faith in the Chelsea loanee.

He is yet another England youth international honing their craft for a side chasing promotion to League One, but hasn't quite lived up to the same performance levels showcased by Marschall and Simkin.

Sharman-Lowe has also kept a double-figure tally of clean sheets and was an impressive figure in Rovers' run to the FA Cup Fourth Round, but is let down by a low number of saves per 90 minutes and the second-worst goal-preventing record in the division.

10

Port Vale have had two experienced goalkeepers to call upon this season, and whilst Ben Amos is the current number one at Vale Park following Connor Ripley's exit in February, the current Swindon Town man remains Darren Moore's most-used shot-stopper this season at present.

Ripley kept nine shutouts in 23 games for Vale at the start of this season as the club looks to make an immediate return to League One, although he has had a somewhat indifferent start to life in Wiltshire as the Robins' season continues to peter out.

Harrogate Town are set for yet another season of mid-table obscurity in League Two, but do possess a strong goalkeeper in the form of James Belshaw.

The former Bristol Rovers man is also among those to have kept more than 10 clean sheets in the league this season despite an inconsistent season for the Sulphurites.

At 34 years of age, it remains to be seen how many more seasons he features for under Simon Weaver, but the long-serving manager can definitely trust Belshaw's experience, with the keeper having one of the highest save percentages in the fourth tier.

12 Paul Farman

Paul Farman is yet another one of the division's most-experienced figures in net, and his presence has aided Barrow's start to life under former Solihull Moors boss, Andy Whing.

At Damson Park, Whing utilised the services of many up-and-coming keepers such as Simkin, Hornby and Nick Hayes, and has potentially shown where Farman's future lies by picking Wyll Stanway in recent matches.

However, the majority of the 35-year-old's clean sheets have come since the former Coventry City defender's appointment in January as the Cumbrian outfit distanced themselves away from relegation trouble.

13 Nick Townsend

The 2024/25 season has been a defensive disaster for Newport County, and if it wasn't for Nick Townsend, the Exiles could be staring relegation in the face.

Nelson Jardim's side have the worst defensive record in the division and unsurprisingly, one of the worst across the EFL as a result, although the former Birmingham City man has still managed to keep a double-figure tally of clean sheets in the process.

However, Townsend is also among the top 10 when it comes to goal prevention and when it comes to saves per 90 minutes, despite also shipping the most goals on average.

14 Jay Lynch

Jay Lynch has made over 100 appearances for Fleetwood Town, but only made his first league appearance of this season on Boxing Day.

Despite suffering relegation from League One last term, the Fylde Coast side haven't shown enough consistency to mount a run for the top seven.

However, since the 32-year-old's reintroduction, the Cod Army have shown signs that they are improving as a defensive unit, with Lynch keeping two of his clean sheets against high-flying Walsall and AFC Wimbledon.

15 Gabriel Breeze

The past couple of seasons have been disastrous from a Carlisle United perspective, with back-to-back relegations from League One to the National League looming.

However, one of very few bright sparks at Brunton Park this term has been the consistent breakthrough of 21-year-old Gabriel Breeze, who replaced Harry Lewis as number one back in November.

Since then, the academy graduate has produced the most saves in the division per 90 as well as having an extremely high save percentage of 70% as a result, meaning that if it wasn't for him, the Cumbrians' points total could be far, far worse.

16 Jack Bycroft

Whilst the aforementioned Ripley has been a predominant feature in the Swindon net since his January arrival, Jack Bycroft remains the Robins' most-used keeper in a season of mixed fortunes.

Bycroft has featured over 20 times in all competitions for the Wiltshire outfit, but has also had two lengthy spells sitting on the bench, which highlights a season of individual inconsistency, as he is among the keepers in the division who have conceded the most per 90 minutes.

17 Luke McGee

Luke McGee has been one of Tranmere Rovers' better performers across two extremely difficult seasons at Prenton Park, with the former Portsmouth man managing to build on his clean sheet tally of last season this time around.

The 29-year-old has managed to pick up form as the Whites have managed to build a distance between themselves and the bottom two heading into the season's final stretch with a run of four clean sheets in five games, with the standout being a 1-0 victory away from home against Bradford.

However, the former Peterborough man hasn't fared well when it comes to goals conceded per 90 and his save percentage across the campaign.

18 Jordan Wright

Despite Grimsby Town's position in the race for a play-off spot, keeping the ball out of the net has been the Mariners' one major shortcoming.

David Artell's side are the only club within the cluster of sides who can realistically secure promotion in one form or another who have shipped over 50 goals, with almost three-quarters of them conceded by Jordan Wright.

Town have utilised four goalkeepers overall this season in the league, meaning that if they are to be promoted, recruiting a dependable number one must be a priority.

19 Ryan Boot

Ryan Boot has been a mainstay in the Chesterfield net in the past three seasons, although the current campaign has been one of inconsistency from a personal point of view.

Boot has one of the lowest clean sheet tallies out of the goalkeepers on this list despite the fact the Spireites are pushing to cement a top-half finish, and also found himself dropped to the bench for a two-month period in place of 19-year-old, Max Thompson.

20 Jamie Jones

Jamie Jones has featured at Championship level previously in his career, but the veteran goalkeeper has struggled to pin down a regular place in the Salford City lineup amid competition from Sunderland loanee, Matty Young.

The former Wigan Athletic man is also among the weakest in the division when it comes to concessions, conceding 1.4 goals per 90 minutes on average, as well as the bulk of the figure the Ammies have shipped across the season as a whole.