Ben Chapman

Ben began his youth career at Bettshanger at the age of five before moving to Dover Athletic at under 13 level and remained at Crabble up to under 18s level. He then had a break from football when he went away to Winchester University. When returning to Kent post University in 2018 he signed for Deal for the 2018/19 season.

Ben built connections to Deal through his father who runs a groundcare company and helps out at the Charles Ground from time to time and it was him who first introduced Ben to Deal manager Derek Hares and the then Assistant Manager Steve King.

After attending a few training sessions, Ben recounts the moment when he first signed for Deal: “I met Kingy in some random car park to sign my registration forms on a Friday evening after work and then made my first appearance for Deal the next day. The rest is history as they say!”

Ben has established himself as a combative centre midfield player who is not afraid of a challenge and also liable to pop up in the box and get a fair share of goals each season. In his years at Deal, Ben has been joined by his brother Tom and cousins Alex and Rory Smith.

Of all the members of the current Deal squad, Ben has the most appearances for Deal and was an ever-present in the 2024/25 season.

2025/26 will be his seventh season at the Charles Ground.