Will Atkinson

Bradford City In January 2012, he signed on loan with Bradford City until the end of the season. He scored his first goal for the "Bantams" on 28 February, in a 4–0 win over Barnet at Underhill. In July 2012 he signed a one-year contract with Bradford City. On 11 August, he made his first appearance since signing permanently, in a 1–0 win over Notts County at Meadow Lane. He scored his first goal of the season on 3 November, opening the scoring in a 1–1 draw away to Northampton Town in the first round of the FA Cup. He scored his second goal of the season in the replay on 13 November, which finished 3–3, and also scored his penalty in the resulting shoot-out which Bradford won 4–2. On 12 February 2013, he scored his first league goal of the season in a 3–0 win away to Wycombe Wanderers. Having played in all seven matches of Bradford's run to the 2013 final of the League Cup, including victories over Premier League sides Wigan Athletic, Arsenal and Aston Villa, he played at Wembley in the 5–0 defeat to Swansea City. He was a 78th-minute substitute in the play-off final victory over Northampton Town.

Southend United

In July 2013, Atkinson signed a two-year contract with Southend United, reuniting him with his former Hull City boss, Phil Brown. He was an ever-present in the league for the "Shrimpers" in the 2013–14 season, and helped the club to secure a play-off spot, where they were beaten by Burton Albion at the semi-final stage. He was a first-team regular in the 2014–15 campaign as United again secured a play-off place and played the first 80 minutes of the play-off final as Southend beat Wycombe Wanderers to win promotion into League One. He signed a new two-year contract in June 2015, and went on to make 39 appearances in the 2015–16 campaign as Southend posted a 15th-place finish. Atkinson scored four goals in 41 games in the 2016–17 season as United finished in seventh place, one place and one point outside the play-offs. He scored two of these goals in a 3–0 win over former club Bradford City at Roots Hall on 19 November, which earned himself a place on the EFL team of the week. He chose to leave the club in the summer after feeling that he "wasn't made to feel valued or wanted by Southend".

Mansfield Town On 30 May 2017, Atkinson joined EFL League Two club Mansfield Town as manager Steve Evans's 11th summer signing. He was transfer-listed by Mansfield at the end of the 2017–18 season. However, he remained at Field Mill and was praised by manager David Flitcroft for his contribution as a squad player during the 2018–19 season, before being released in May 2019.

Port Vale On 4 October 2019, Atkinson signed a short-term deal with Port Vale, 12 years after briefly playing for the club on loan. He was signed by manager John Askey following injuries to Tom Conlon and Manny Oyeleke, leaving him to compete with Luke Joyce, Jake Taylor, Scott Burgess and Ryan Lloyd for a place in central midfield. He was up to match fitness after having spent a full pre-season training with Doncaster Rovers. He made his "second debut" for the club the following day, playing at right-back in a 3–1 home win over Morecambe, and in doing so set a club record for the longest time between appearances as his previous game for the club came 11 years and 11 months earlier. He scored his first goal for the club on 22 October, when his injury-time strike secured a 2–1 victory over former club Bradford City at Valley Parade. In January 2020, he signed an extended deal to keep him at the club until the end of the 2019–20 season. However, he was not retained at the end of the campaign.

Non-League On 5 November 2020, Atkinson signed with National League North club Alfreton Town. He played 13 games before the 2019–20 season was curtailed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in England. New manager Kevin Maher gave him a contract extension in January, praising Atkinson's work ethic and character. He played 35 matches in the 2021–22 campaign but was not offered a new contract in the summer, much to his surprise. He played 37 league games in the 2022–23 season, with Boston posting a 15th-place finish, and was one of 13 players released by the club.

Atkison signed with Mickleover of the Southern League Premier Division Central on 26 June 2023. There he transitioned into a ball-playing centre-back. He made 45 appearances in the 2023–24 season, including in the play-off semi-final defeat to AFC Telford United. Despite this relegation, he stayed on at the club. He was confirmed to be staying out at the end of the 2025–26 season after being named as Players Player of the Year.

Style of play Atkinson is a central midfielder but is versatile and can play at wide right, wing-back and right-back.

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Southend United

2025–26 Northern Premier LeagueDivision One Midlands 2026–27 Northern Premier LeagueDivision One Midlands

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Honours Rochdale Football League Two third-place promotion: 2009–10

Bradford City Football League Cup runner-up: 2012–13 Football League Two play-offs: 2013

Southend United Football League Two play-offs: 2015