Words John Edwards

Altrincham will have a goalkeeper with Football League experience between the posts when the new season gets underway after landing highly-rated Luke Hutchinson from Bolton Wanderers on a long-term loan.

The Bury-born keeper met his new team-mates at Alty's Egerton training ground yesterday and is seen by Phil Parkinson as the ideal candidate to fill the number one jersey while Ethan Ross continues his recuperation from an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

After significantly strengthening his squad in other areas with a string of key summer signings, the Alty boss addressed the dilemma of Ethan needing more recovery time and was delighted with the outcome of a meticulous selection process that ended with Luke joining us on loan for the entirety of next season.

"I'm really pleased to have got Luke over the line," he said. "He is a young, up-and-coming keeper who has already gained plenty of experience from previous loans with Marine and Crawley Town.

"Currently, he has just signed a new two-year deal at Bolton, which shows how highly they regard him. Speaking of Bolton, I'd like to say a big thank you to them for helping us get this done.

"It has been a long time coming, because a lot of due diligence has gone into it, a lot of planning and research for the type of keeper who is going to suit our needs and us suit them for a loan as well.

"We feel we have found our man in Luke, and hopefully he can continue his progression with us and help us move forward as well."

After completing his first training session under the watchful eye of Ethan at Egerton, Luke, who turns 23 at the beginning of September, looked forward to finding his feet and developing an understanding with the rest of Alty's defence during the pre-season programme, in readiness for hitting the ground running on August 9th.

In an AltyTV interview to be published shortly, he said: "I'm really excited to be here and can't wait to get started.

"I feel the loan spells I've already had really benefitted me. The National League North, with Marine, was a great platform for a young keeper and gave me experience that should stand me in good stead for the coming season.

"There was a lot of pressure making my Football League debut, when I went to Crawley, but I really enjoyed it and felt I did well.

"I've been hoping for a loan here at Alty for a while now, because it's not far from where my home is but also because it's a really good club with a great fan base. I'm here now, and I'm really happy about that and excited for what the new season might hold for us."

Though he's still only 22, the 6ft 2in keeper has been in and around Bolton's first-team squad for the past five years after joining them at the age of eight and working his way through the junior ranks.

He was an unused substitute for their 2019-20 opener against eventual League One champions Coventry City, and he was on the bench six times last season, as they narrowly missed out on a place in the League One play-offs.

After joining Crawley on an emergency loan last April and making his League One bow against promotion-chasing Leyton Orient, he returned to the Toughsheet Community Stadium to find a new two-year contract being drawn up for him that he duly signed last month.

"We are pleased Luke has signed his new deal," said Bolton boss Steven Schumacher at the time. "He is a brilliant lad, and his attitude is first-class. You don't spend as long as he has at a football club, coming all the way through from being a kid, without having the right character.

"The loans he has had have been massive for him. You have to go out and find a way in senior football, and he has done that."

Luke played the first half of Bolton's behind-closed-doors friendly with Tranmere Rovers earlier this month before answering the call from Alty and heading to The J.Davidson Stadium to be part of what we all hope will be another concerted push for promotion from the Enterprise National League.

A warm welcome to Alty, Luke, and we wish you every success over the course of the 2025-26 campaign.

*Watch out for the AltyTV interview with Luke in full, here on the club's website and our social media channels.