First game you watched live as a supporter?
I’m going to say it was Liverpool v Parma Calcio 1913. It was a pre-season game. I don’t know how old exactly I was, but I just remember that first initial moment walking up the steps and seeing the pitch. It was in pre-season, so it wasn’t even a big game, but I think that first moment, that first impression of live football, was special at the age of seven or eight.
First football hero?
I’m going to say Robbie Fowler. There’s two really, Robbie Fowler and Steven Gerrard, but more so Fowler from when I was young. I remember having my first Liverpool kit with Fowler on the back, so I’d have to go with him.
First football boots?
I think they were Puma Kings, and my dad also had a pair. They’re the ones that stand out that I can first remember.
First kit?
I think it was the Liverpool white and green away kit from 1995/96.
First mentor in football?
I don’t think I’ve ever had a sit-down mentor, but obviously I think I’d go with my Dad in terms of being there from a young age through good and bad moments. I think the older I’ve got, he’s kind of let me be in terms of me being more experienced and understanding the mental side of the game. Certainly from a young age, when I remember getting released from Liverpool and bouncing back from that, he was just positive about the whole thing.
He told me to just go and enjoy football and play with my mates again, and that’s certainly what I did, and then got picked back up again a couple of months later at Tranmere Rovers. It’s about never getting too high and never getting too low, trying to stay level-headed the whole way and enjoy the process.
First professional game?
Milton Keynes Dons away in November 2008. I remember everything about it. There were about 8,000 fans there. I just remember being so nervous.
We travelled down from Tranmere on the day of the game, which was about four hours, but I wouldn’t change it for the world and loved every minute of it. We got beat 1-0, but I’d done really well in the game and got Man of the Match, so it was a proud moment.
First professional goal?
It was against Bristol Rovers on my fifth or sixth start for Tranmere. I remember it wasn’t a great free-kick, but I’ve always fancied myself on free-kicks, and I stepped up and managed to score. Still to this day, it is another moment I look back on that I was really proud and really happy about.
First red card?
I remember being sent off in Sunday League when I was younger and used to play in midfield. I was getting to an age where, when I was at Liverpool, I idolised Steven Gerrard. When Gerrard was younger, he loved to tackle and all that stuff. I remember getting a red card after a mis-timed tackle, and my dad wasn’t too happy with it.
