Former Bristol City and Rovers striker Brett Pitman may well be in the twilight of his career but he certainly hasn't forgotten where the back of the net is.
The 34-year-old, who currently plys his trade with AFC Portchester, is currently the highest scorer in the top nine tiers of English football after netting four in an 8-1 victory over Alresford Town. It took his season tally to 28 in just 18 league and cup starts.
AFC Portchester play in the Wessex Premier Division but look certain for promotion with 13 wins and a draw in 14 league matches. Pitman has fired in 22 goals during those run of matches, punishing every side but one.
He leads the goalscoring charts ahead of Leon Lobjolt, who has 26 goals for Leighton Town in the South Midlands Premier League. On their tail is Ryan Harkin of Highgate United and Biggleswade United's Taylor Rhiney who have scored 24 each.
Unsurprisingly, Erling Haaland leads the way for the most goals scored in the top four tiers of English football with 23 in all competitions - 18 of those in the top flight. There are eight players with nine goals in the race for the Championship golden boot.
Bradford's Andy Cook is top scorer in the Football League with 15 in all competitions while Peterborough's Jonson Clarke-Harris leads Rovers' Aaron Collins in League One with 12 goals.
Pitman came through the youth side of Bournemouth before moving to the Robins in 2010 for a fee around £1million. He spent two full seasons at Ashton Gate with 20 goals in 77 appearances but struggled for game time under Derek McInnes.
In November 2012, Pitman returned to Bournemouth on loan and made his move permanent in the January transfer window. He went on to represent Ipswich, Portsmouth and Swindon before joining Rovers for a brief spell in the 2021/22 season.
Having initially joined on a one-year deal, he scored four goals in 16 appearances for the Gas but injuries meant he dropped down the pecking order under Joey Barton and he left for Eastleigh on loan in February and was released from his contract at the end of the season.
Upon signing for AFC Portchester, Pitman spoke of his ambition to move into coaching once deciding to hang up his boots. He said: "It’s going to be different to what I’m used to but it is something I’m looking forward to and at this stage of my career it enables me to do some coaching as well, which is something I’m really looking forward to doing."
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