Eoin Toal

Eoin Toal (born 15 February 1999) is a Northern Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Bolton Wanderers and the Northern Ireland national team.

Early and personal life Toal was born in Armagh.

Club career Toal began his career with Armagh City, captaining the youth team and making his first-team debut in 2015 aged 16, making over 50 appearances for the club in all competitions, before moving to Derry City in 2017. He served as club captain for Derry City, making 155 appearances for the club in all competitions. He started and played in the 2019 League of Ireland Cup final, and even converted one of the penalties in the penalty shootout, but it wasn't enough as they lost to Dundalk. It was reported in 2024 that Bolton paid £50,000 for the defender.

Toal picked up an ankle injury towards the end of his time at Derry, choosing to play through the injury as he did not want to miss their matches in the UEFA Europa Conference League against Riga. In doing so, he worsened the injury which caused him to miss Bolton's pre-season, as well as the start of their season. Upon his return from injury, he played for Bolton's B team to build up match fitness. He then stepped up his recovery by playing matches in the EFL Trophy. After more matches for the B team, as well as the EFL Trophy, Toal made his Football League debut on 2 December 2022 in a 1–1 draw against Bristol Rovers, with Toal being praised for his performance. Three weeks later he scored his first Bolton goal, scoring the equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Lincoln City. He received praise from his teammates for how well he had played during the start of his Bolton career and was named Bolton Player of the Month for December 2022. On 2 April, he started in the 2023 EFL Trophy final which Bolton won 4–0 against Plymouth Argyle. He was forced off towards the end of the match after a challenge by Sam Cosgrove, with Bolton manager Ian Evatt accusing Cosgrove of injuring him on purpose. A few days later, it was revealed the injury would possibly keep Toal out for the rest of the season. Toal recovered much earlier than expected though, allowing him to return for Bolton's last few games of the season. On 4 March 2024, he signed a new three-year contract with Bolton. A week later, he scored his first goal as captain in a 2–0 win against Plymouth Argyle — the same team that injured him in the EFL Trophy final in 2023, gaining a small measure of revenge. Bolton won the 2026 EFL League One play-offs and gained promotion to the EFL Championship. Toal played in both legs of the semi-final, but missed the final due to an injury picked up in the semi final. He still lifted the trophy as captain.

International career Toal first played international football with the Northern Ireland under-15 team. He captained the under-21 team on multiple occasions. His debut came seven months later on 17 October when he started in a 1–0 qualifier defeat against Slovenia.

Career statistics Club

International

Honours Derry City League of Ireland Cup runner-up: 2019

Bolton Wanderers EFL Trophy: 2022–23 EFL League One play-offs: 2026