24th September 2006

Yeovil, Somerset

Midfielder

George Birch, a wide/attacking midfielder from Somerset, signed for Exeter City as a scholar/trainee after finishing school in 2023 and as a full professional in 2025. He scored his first senior goal in the 10-1 FA Cup defeat at Manchester City. 

As an under-16 age group player, he started playing for Exeter City under-18s in the Youth Alliance in early 2023 having earlier arrived from Yeovil with fellow future trainee Kye Cooper. Starting as a scholar/trainee in July 2023, George played regularly for the under-18s in league games as well as featuring in both of the club's FA Youth Cup ties in the 2023/24 season. Continuing into the following season he again appeared in the Youth Alliance and FA Youth Cup without ever featuring for the first-team.

Although he hadn't yet appeared for the first-team George signed a professional deal in May 2025 and soon made his league debut as a late substitute in the opening-day defeat at Doncaster Rovers on 2 August 2025. This was soon followed by his first competitive start against Cheltenham Town in the first round of the League Cup before undertaking, after making further appearances in the EFL Trophy, a three-month loan period with Weston-super-Mare from October 2025. Returning to St James' Park in January 2026 George was immediately included in the squad to face Manchester City in the FA Cup and, coming on as a subsitute, scored City's only goal in the 10-1 defeat. 

Slipping out of first-team contention after his brief outing in Manchester, George returned to Weston for another loan spell in March 2026 in advance of signing a contract extension through until the end of the 2026/27 season which included the option of a further season.