SHAUN'S EPIC JOURNEY

JOHN LYONS TALKS TO FORMER ASTON VILLA DEFENDER SHAUN TEALE ABOUT HIS INCREDIBLE FOOTBALL CAREER...

IF THERE'S a lesson that Shaun Teale can pass on to those attempting to follow in his footsteps and make it to football's summit, then never giving up is probably the one that springs to mind.

The powerful centre-half is best remembered for his successful days with Aston Villa in the early 1990s, but it shouldn't be forgotten that he had a lengthy journey to get there.

Southport-born Teale was released by Everton as a youngster and joined Ellesmere Port before switching to his hometown club. Then came moves to Northwich Victoria and Weymouth before, at the age of 24, he finally got his Football League break with Bournemouth.

It wasn't until the ripe old age of 27 that he got his top-flight chance with Villa - and grabbed it with both hands.

The moustachioed centre-half formed a commanding centre-half combination with Paul McGrath and helped Ron Atkinson's side win the Coca-Cola Cup in 1994, beating Manchester United 3-1 in the final at Wembley.

That was one of his career highpoints, but it may not have been possible if he hadn't kept the faith in his own ability and had that education in Non-League.

"You need a certain amount of talent and, on top of that, if you have a desire, will and self-belief, there's always a chance," he said. "If you have no self-belief, you have no chance - who is going to believe in you if you don't believe in yourself?

"I got released by Everton at 17. All I wanted to do was be a professional footballer and it's the same for hundreds and thousands of kids. I learned enough at Everton to go forward and Non-League provided me with a great grounding.

"It's a big wide world when you go into Non-League at that age. I was playing against ex-professionals who knew all the tricks of the trade. You had to learn to look after yourself pretty quickly or you would get bullied.