Hobie Verhulst (born 2 April 1993) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Eredivisie club AZ. He formerly played for MVV, Volendam, and Go Ahead Eagles.
Verhulst joined the AZ youth academy from Kooger Football Club (KFC) in 2004.[1] By 2010, he was part of the senior squad as a backup goalkeeper, sitting on the bench for UEFA Europa League matches against Sheriff Tiraspol and BATE Borisov and several Eredivisie games during the 2010–11 season.[2] In 2013, he won the Beloften Eerste Divisie with Jong AZ.
Failing to make a first-team appearance for AZ, Verhulst left on a free transfer to Eerste Divisie club MVV in July 2014.[3][4] At MVV, Verhulst served as the backup to Jo Coppens. He made his professional debut on 6 February 2015, replacing the injured Coppens during a match against Sparta Rotterdam.[5] Three days later, he played a full match against Jong Twente.[6] Verhulst made three appearances for MVV, conceding six goals.[7]
After one season, Verhulst moved to Volendam, where he became the first-choice goalkeeper.[8] Over three seasons, he played more than 100 matches and was named Player of the Season for 2016–17 by the club's supporters.[9]
In the summer of 2018, Verhulst joined Go Ahead Eagles. During the 2018–19 season, Verhulst won the Bronze Shield as the best goalkeeper of the first period in the Eerste Divisie.[10]
In 2020, Verhulst rejoined AZ, initially as a backup to Marco Bizot.[11] He made two first-team appearances during Bizot's suspension and played four matches for Jong AZ in the Eerste Divisie.[7]
In the first half of the 2022–23 season, Verhulst became AZ's first-choice goalkeeper after spending the previous season behind Peter Vindahl.[12] However, following the winter arrival of Matthew Ryan, Verhulst lost his starting spot. After Ryan became eligible to play on 20 January 2023, Verhulst did not make another appearance that season.[13]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| AZ | 2010–11 | Eredivisie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2012–13 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 2013–14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| MVV | 2014–15 | Eerste Divisie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| Volendam | 2015–16 | Eerste Divisie | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 35 | 0 | |
| 2016–17 | 37 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 43 | 0 | |||
| 2017–18 | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 107 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 118 | 0 | |||
| Go Ahead Eagles | 2018–19 | Eerste Divisie | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 44 | 0 | |
| 2019–20 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | – | 31 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 67 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 75 | 0 | |||
| AZ | 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021–22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | — | 29 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 199 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 233 | 0 | ||
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