Ben Heath is a goalkeeper who joined the Club at the end of October 2016, after a spell with Rugby Town, having also played at Step 4 level for Daventry Town. He made his Diamonds debut the following day in a dramatic game at Spalding United, then continued to impress when deputising for the Club’s regular stopper Matt Finlay during the 2016/17 season. He assumed first-choice keeper status for the 2017-18 season, and had an impressive campaign as the Club conceded only 25 league goals and he recorded 22 clean sheets in the 42 league games.

18/08/21: Ben Heath has moved on to a fresh challenge and leaves the Club with our very best wishes for the future.

21/08/21: Ben Heath joined St Ives Town.

31/12/21: Ben Heath joined Corby Town.

03/07/22: Ben Heath signed for Stamford AFC.

11/11/22: Ben Heath signed on dual registration with Cogenhoe United.

11/08/23: Ben Heath signed for Corby Town.

14/10/23: Ben Heath signed for Spalding United.

30/12/23: AFC Rushden & Diamonds are thrilled to announce that 28-year-old goalkeeper Ben Heath has returned to the Club from fellow Northern Premier League Midlands Division side Spalding United.

Ben is of course no stranger to the Club. He is an AFC Rushden & Diamonds centurion having previously made 148 appearances between November 2016 – February 2020, ranking 8^th on the all-time list. Whilst with the Club, Ben was a key part of the Southern League Division One Central promotion-winning squad of 2017/18.

Since leaving the Diamonds, Ben has featured for St Ives Town, Stamford AFC, Corby Town and most recently Spalding United. He featured 24 times for Stamford as they won the Northern Premier League Midlands Division during the 2022/23 season, and lined up against the Diamonds earlier this season for Corby Town.

Diamonds’ Assistant Manager Tom Lorraine spent 3-and-a-half-years playing alongside Ben Heath for the Club and upon learning of the imminent departure of George Rose, made Ben his first phone call: “I am absolutely delighted that we have been able to bring Ben back to the Club. A player with his characteristics is exactly what we need at this time. As fans will know he has a history with the Club from his time here before, being an integral part of our promotion-winning side from Step 4 in 2017/18. Since leaving the Club he has spent time at a number of very strong clubs at Step 4, and therefore will bring a wealth of experience to the team which will be crucial to us and is something we need with such a young squad. Not only this but most importantly he is a fantastic goalkeeper who will use his skills to bring stability to our defence. We are very excited to have Ben onboard and I’m sure our supporters will give Ben the Welcome Back he deserves!!”

Ben is available for selection for our New Year’s Day clash against Corby Town in the Northern Premier League Midlands Division.

20/06/24: We are delighted to announce that Ben Heath will be returning to the Club for the 2024/25 season. Ben rejoined the Club in January 2024 and played an integral role in ensuring our survival, putting in a whole host of commanding performances and breeding confidence to the rest of the team, and our supporters.

Ben will be looking to hit the 200 appearance mark for AFC Rushden & Diamonds this season and had this to say: “I’m really excited to remain at the Club and look forward to seeing what the squad can achieve this year after the turnaround we showed last year. Let’s hope we can replicate that form for the entire season and see where it takes us!”

31/01/25: The Club would like to place on record its sincere thanks and best wishes to Ben Heath, who has departed the Club today. Ben re-joined the Diamonds with the Club rooted to the bottom of the Northern Premier League Midlands Division part-way through last season, and was a key figure during what became the Great Escape, finishing the season with a number of saves in the penalty shoot-out win at Sixfields against Kettering Town in the Hillier Senior Cup Final. Ben has also been an ever-present in the league this season. With 148 appearances in his first spell with the Club and 47 appearances this time around, Ben’s 195 appearances puts him 5^th on the all-time list at AFC Rushden & Diamonds, and second behind only Billy Turley in the goalkeeping position across both RDFC and AFC Rushden & Diamonds.