Herschel Oulio Sanchez Watt (born 14 February 1991) is a former English professional footballer who played as a forward or winger.
He has represented England at under-16, under-17 and under-19 levels, and he is also eligible to play for Wales and Jamaica through his Welsh mother and Jamaican father.
Watt is a product of Arsenal's youth academy and came to prominence during the Gunners' 2008–09 FA Youth Cup winning season, and made his full debut for the Arsenal first-team in the League Cup the following season. He has featured on loan for a number of Football League clubs, including Southend United, two spells at Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday, Crawley Town and Colchester United. He signed for Colchester on a permanent basis following his release from Arsenal in the summer of 2013.
Early career Watt was born in Hackney, London, to a Welsh mother and a Jamaican father. As a promising youngster, he drew interest from FC Barcelona before being discovered by Arsenal scout Gary Nott as a seven-year-old playing in Victoria Park, London, for Sunday league side Senrab.
Club career Arsenal Watt signed his first professional contract with Arsenal in the summer of 2008 after joining as a scholar in 2007. He was a key member of the Arsenal under-18 double winning team during the 2008–09 season, and featured in all eight of Arsenal's FA Youth Cup fixtures, scoring a brace in the semi-final and netting in both legs of the final against Liverpool. Following his impressive season, he was handed a place in the starting line-up for the Gunners' traditional season-opening friendly against Barnet alongside strike-partner Andrey Arshavin, and was later named on the substitutes bench for a Champions League match against Standard Liège on 16 September 2009.
Watt made his professional debut a memorable one when he scored the opening goal in a 2–0 League Cup win against West Bromwich Albion on 22 September 2009. He had got himself onto the end of a rebound after Carlos Vela's shot was saved. He became the 85th debut goalscorer for Arsenal, the fifth under Arsène Wenger's reign, behind Thomas Vermaelen, Emmanuel Adebayor, Freddie Ljungberg and Samir Nasri. He also featured in Arsenal's League Cup fourth round victory over Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on 28 October, replacing Nicklas Bendtner after 76 minutes, and featured as a substitute once again in their 3–0 defeat to Manchester City on 2 December, replacing Craig Eastmond after 68 minutes. He signed an extended contract with the club in November 2009, and went on to score five goals in ten reserve games for the club during the remainder of the season. After his loan spells away from the club, Watt again signed a contract extension with Arsenal in October 2011, having scored five times in six reserve appearances in the 2011–12 season. Watt eventually left Arsenal without making a Premier League appearance for the club.
Southend United loan On 1 February 2010, Watt signed for League One side Southend United for an initial one-month loan. He went straight into Steve Tilson's starting line up for the Essex derby match with Colchester United on 8 February. The Shrimpers fell to a 2–0 defeat to their bitter rivals, with Watt featuring for the full 90 minutes. He made three further appearances against Tranmere Rovers, Milton Keynes Dons and Charlton Athletic, before returning to Arsenal. During his short spell with the club, he picked up head and ankle injuries.
Leeds United loans Following his loan deal with Southend, Watt signed a loan deal with fellow League One side Leeds United on 25 March 2010, which would see him stay with the club until the end of the season. After not being involved in Leeds' 1–0 defeat against Norwich City on 27 March, Watt was named on the bench for Leeds in their 3–0 home defeat by Swindon Town on 3 April, but would eventually make his debut for the club as an 88th-minute substitute for Jermaine Beckford in their 2–1 away win at Yeovil Town on 5 April. Watt also made a late substitute appearance in Leeds' 2–0 home win over his former club Southend on 10 April. Watt was named in the starting line-up for their game with MK Dons on 24 April, which Leeds won 4–1, providing two assists during the match. Watt's final loan appearance came as a substitute in the final game of the season against Bristol Rovers, helping the team earn a 2–1 win in a result which confirmed automatic promotion to the Championship for Leeds. He made six appearances for the club during his first loan spell, with five of those appearances coming from the bench.
On 3 August 2010, Watt rejoined Leeds United on a season-long loan deal. He made his second debut for Leeds in their first game of the 2010–11 season against Derby County on 7 August, a match which ended in a 2–1 defeat. Watt made an impact in the following game, a 4–0 League Cup win against Lincoln City. He first provided the assist for Luciano Becchio's seventh-minute goal, and then won Leeds a penalty which was converted by Neil Kilkenny. Watt suffered an ankle problem that prevented him from playing since appearing in Leeds' 2–1 defeat to Leicester City on 19 October.
Watt returned to action on New Years Day 2011 for Leeds' 1–1 draw with Middlesbrough at Elland Road, replacing Robert Snodgrass after 76 minutes to play his first game for almost three months. Leeds were drawn to face Watt's parent club Arsenal in the FA Cup third round, as Watt was granted permission by Arsène Wenger to play against his employers. Watt started the game for Leeds on 8 January, as he helped his team earn an impressive 1–1 draw at the Emirates Stadium. Between the replay which was to be held at Elland Road, Leeds faced Scunthorpe United in the league on 15 January. Watt opened the scoring on 17 minutes with his first goal since his Arsenal debut in September 2009. The match ended 4–0 to the Whites. Watt then featured in the FA Cup replay against Arsenal, in which Leeds were defeated 3–1 at home on 19 January.
Throughout his second spell with Leeds, Watt was hampered by a number of injuries that limited his playing time. He made 12 starts and 13 substitute appearances for the club as they ended their first season back in the Championship in seventh position, just outside the play-offs. His final appearance came in the final day win at Queens Park Rangers as an 85th-minute substitute for Max Gradel.
Sheffield Wednesday loan Having been prolific in the Arsenal reserve team since his return from his Leeds United loan, scoring seven goals in eight games and signing a contract extension, Watt joined League One high-fliers Sheffield Wednesday on loan on 23 November 2011 until 16 January 2012. After missing the Owls' 1–0 wins in League One and the FA Cup against Leyton Orient and Aldershot respectively, Watt made his debut on 10 December in a 2–0 away win over Oldham Athletic, earning his side a penalty in the process before being substituted on 88 minutes. After making two starts and two substitute appearances for Wednesday, Watt was omitted from the squad to face Charlton Athletic on 14 January, with manager Gary Megson announcing that Watt's loan spell with the club would not be extended. He stated that Watt was "not physically up to the demands" of League One football. Despite the lack of opportunities, Watt said that he had developed as a player since joining the club on loan, adapting to a different style of play for a club where there were "big expectations".
Crawley Town loan Following his loan spell with Sheffield Wednesday, Watt signed on loan for ambitious League Two club Crawley Town until the end of the season, with Crawley looking to achieve successive promotions. Watt made his debut for the club two days later in the FA Cup fourth round tie at Championship side Hull City, a match which Crawley won 1–0 and saw them reach the fifth round for the second consecutive season. Watt was instrumental in his first league game for the club on 7 February, when Crawley hosted Cheltenham Town. He levelled the scores at 1–1 with a 30-yard strike after Luke Garbutt had opened the proceedings for Cheltenham, before scoring the fourth goal for Crawley to bring the score to 4–1 after the half-time break. Despite Cheltenham grabbing a consolation goal, the result meant that Crawley leapfrogged the Robins to go to the top of League Two.
Watt helped the club to automatic promotion from League Two, making 16 appearances across all competitions in addition to scoring his two goals for the club.
Colchester United loan Watt, alongside Arsenal teammate Craig Eastmond, signed for League One club Colchester United on 27 September 2012, both on a three-month loan deal. They both signed alongside MK Dons striker Jabo Ibehre on the same day that Joe Dunne was appointed manager for the Essex club. Watt made his debut on 29 September in Colchester's 3–1 victory against Hartlepool United at the Colchester Community Stadium.
He started for the U's in a 1–0 win at Swindon Town and a 3–1 away defeat to Yeovil Town, before scoring his first goal in his fourth appearance for the club, securing a 1–0 win over Stevenage on 13 October with the only goal of the game. After the match, he described netting his first goal for the club and helping them win as "the best feeling ever". Watt provided two assists in his next match as Colchester overcame Carlisle United 2–0 on 20 October, setting up both Eastmond and Ibehre with low crosses. However, he was forced off in the second half after picking up an injury. He scored his second and final goal of his loan spell on 27 October when he came on as a second-half substitute for Gavin Massey, handing the U's a 2–0 lead in what would finish a 2–2 draw with Shrewsbury Town at the New Meadow. Watt was to play the final game of his stint with Colchester on 3 November, when the U's faced Essex neighbours Chelmsford City in the first round of the FA Cup, having been given the go ahead by his parent club to play in the fixture. Colchester lost the match to their Conference South counterparts by 3–1, as Watt suffered a torn hamstring, ruling him out for several weeks and cutting his loan short. United manager Joe Dunne confirmed that Watt was likely to return to the Emirates for treatment. Despite featuring just seven times in his time with the club, Watt left a lasting impression on Dunne, with the Colchester boss affirming his interest in signing the player should he decide to leave Arsenal.
Colchester United