Tony Pulis recently called time on a long and successful career in football, but it could have all been very different for the Welshman who came through the ranks at Bristol Rovers.
The 65-year-old enjoyed a good career with the Gas, Newport County, Bournemouth and Gillingham as a player before going on to manage at the top level, leading Stoke City to the Premier League and an FA Cup final in a memorable era for the club from 2006-13.
Born and raised in Newport, Pulis was spotted by Rovers as a teenager and went on to play 150 times for the club across two spells in the 1970s and 1980s, but his route into the professional game was challenging.
Pulis suffered three serious injuries by the time he was 20 years old. His career was in danger at that point, but he told the Under The Cosh podcast the "Wonderful people" at Rovers helped him through the dark times to establish himself in the game and give him a platform for his subsequent successes.
"I had two operations," he recalled. "I had a cartilage out when I was very young, 16 or 17 years of age, and then I did my knee ligaments and I was out for ages with them, and then I had an ankle operation when I was 20.
"That kept me out for about nine or 10 months, but the great thing about Bristol Rovers at the time was they had some wonderful people there. They had Bill Dodgin, old Bobby Campbell, Colin Dobson and Don Megson.
"They were really good people and they gave me an extra year. They must have seen I was struggling, but they gave me that extra year and that extra year gave me enough time to establish myself back, maybe not as good as I was before I had the injury, but good enough to eventually make a living out of the game."
Pulis obtained his coaching badges while still in his early 20s when he was playing for the Pirates, but he was also a dogged defender during his time in the blue and white quarters.
Looking back, he can picture himself on the train to Bristol making a promise to himself to make it as a professional.
"I was at Bristol Rovers when I was 15 and at 16 I joined as an apprentice," he said. "When I left that station, I looked back and said ‘I’m going to make this work, I’m not going back home, I really want to make this my life’.
"I can remember sitting on the train with two other lads who were also apprentices at Bristol Rovers and when the train left the station, I promised myself I would give it absolutely everything. Luckily, I’ve had a wonderful career."
Pulis would manage 10 clubs, starting out with AFC Bournemouth, where he won the Third Division title. He also had stints in charge of Bristol City, Gillingham, West Bromwich Albion and Middlesbrough among others, but his best moments in management came in his second spell with Stoke after first taking charge from 2002-05.
Gas player-coach Glenn Whelan was one of Pulis' pivotal players from his Stoke team that was promoted to the Premier League in 2008 before establishing themselves in the top flight for a decade.
Whelan, now aged 39, was signed midway through the promotion campaign and went on to play more than 300 games for the Potters.
Pulis has huge respect for the 91-cap Republic of Ireland international, who has made 15 appearances for Rovers this season after making several crucial contributions in last season's promotion campaign. This year, his primary focus has been his coaching duties, but the midfielder has been available for selection when called upon.
"We signed Glenn from Sheffield Wednesday, a great pro," Pulis said. "Every time the season finished, I thought ‘I’ve got to replace Glenn, he hasn’t got the pace, he hasn’t got this’ and you would find faults.
"Every time I replaced him, within a month of that player having some games, Glenn would be back in the team. I’ve got so much respect for Glenn in terms of proving me wrong, someone hitting him on the head all the time and him getting up again and again. My respect for him is amazing.
"He can be dour. He’s one of those Irish half-full or half-empty (types). You could catch Glenn either way with it, but what a wonderful kid."
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