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{{For|other people of the same name|William Hoskins (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2012}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Will Hoskins
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==Playing career==
===Rotherham United===
Hoskins was born in [[Nottingham]], [[Nottinghamshire]], where his career began at local club [[Notts County F.C.|Notts County]]'s School of Excellence, before he joined [[Rotherham United F.C.|Rotherham United]]'s youth system in [[South Yorkshire]].<ref name=ScoutKnewTalent>{{cite news|title=Moment scout Pat knew Will was the one|url=http://www.sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk/sport/sheffield-sport/moment_scout_pat_knew_will_was_the_one_1_4227808|accessdate=14 February 2012|publisher=sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk|date=9 February 2012}}</ref> Hoskins was heralded as a talent when, at just 17, he came into the [[first team]] fold at Rotherham and made an impact, scoring both goals in a 2–1 win at [[Wigan Athletic F.C.|Wigan Athletic]] in December 2003. However, he had a stop–start early career, only making one start under managers [[Ronnie Moore]] and subsequently [[Mick Harford]].{{fact}}
[[Alan Knill]] took over as manager halfway through the [[2005–06 in English football|2005–06]] season, with the Millers halfway through their first campaign back in [[Football League One|League One]], and saved the club from a second successive relegation. As youth coach Knill brought Hoskins up through the youth ranks at Millmoor and handed him 12 further starts that season. Hoskins reciprocated the faith shown in him by being the only one of six out-of-contract players at the end of the 2005–06 season to sign an immediate contract renewal. Knill offered the youngster an initial one-year deal, stating that, should Hoskins prove himself in the first team, he would be rewarded with a new contract before Christmas.{{fact}}
Hoskins had an excellent [[2006–07 in English football|2006–07]] pre-season alongside his new strike partner [[Delroy Facey]], notably scoring twice against [[Scottish Cup]] finalists [[Gretna F.C.|Gretna]]. However, he suffered a slight injury before the first match of the season and [[David Hibbert|Dave Hibbert]] had to step up to take his place. Hoskins returned to the squad less than a week later, coming on as a second-half substitute against [[Huddersfield Town A.F.C.|Huddersfield Town]]. The following week he came off the bench to score the winner against [[Blackpool F.C.|Blackpool]], securing his place in the starting eleven for the Millers. He was in the team consistently, but never had a regular strike partner due to injuries.{{fact}}
By the end of December he had scored 15 goals in 22 appearances—seven of those in successive away games—making him the third highest scorer in [[Football League One|League One]].<ref>[http://home.skysports.com/topscorers.asp?cpid=11 League 1 Top Scorers] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061022005001/http://home.skysports.com/topscorers.asp?cpid=11 |date=22 October 2006 }}</ref> Due to his consistent excellent performances he was awarded the Player of the Month award in October and was valued at an estimated £750,000+ by ''[[The Guardian]]''.{{fact}}
===Watford===
After turning down a contract extension, Hoskins signed for [[Premier League]] club [[Watford F.C.|Watford]] along with teammate [[Lee Williamson]] on 5 January 2007 for a combined fee of £1.2 million. He made his debut on 13 January 2007<ref>{{cite web|title=Tactical Formation|work=Football-Lineups.com |url=http://www.football-lineups.com/wiki/_match3151.php | accessdate=20 January 2007}}</ref> after coming off the bench against [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]]. He struggled to make an impact at Watford in the [[2007–08 in English football|2007–08]] campaign, making only three appearances. He did move on loan to [[Football League One|League One]] side [[Millwall F.C.|Millwall]] in September 2007, where he made 12 appearances, netting four goals in his spell. He then returned to Watford and after months of speculation, he signed for [[Nottingham Forest F.C.|Nottingham Forest]] on loan.
On 12 August 2008, Hoskins scored his first goal for Watford, an 88th-minute winner against [[Bristol Rovers F.C.|Bristol Rovers]] in the first round of the [[2008–09 Football League Cup|2008–09]] [[Football League Cup|League Cup]]. On 24 January 2009, Hoskins scored the third goal in the sixty-seventh minute which led to the 4–3 victory against Crystal Palace in the third round of the [[FA Cup]].{{fact}}
===Nottingham Forest===
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