Thursday 20 August 2015 11:04, UK
Ahead of Cardiff City's Championship clash with Wolves on Saturday, Anthony Pilkington talks to Sky Sports about his non-league roots, pub football and changing shirt colours…
People say never forget where you've come from. Anthony Pilkington is certainly one of those who will not be doing so any time soon. The state of the art facilities now afforded to him at current club Cardiff City are in stark contrast to his far more humble beginnings.
Released by Blackburn Rovers at the age of 15, following a short spell in the Manchester United academy, Pilkington was forced to contemplate the prospect that his dream of becoming a professional footballer may not come true.
After leaving Ewood Park, Pilkington initially dropped off the radar of the professional clubs in the North West. He joined non-league side Atherton Colleries of the North West Counties Premier Division and also continued to pursue his education at Myerscough College in Preston.
Not content just with his weekly outings for Atherton, Pilkington also played alongside friends for amateur side Darwen Catholics – representing the local working men's club – in the third division of the Sunday pub league.
Despite being a world away from the riches handed to youngsters on youth team development schemes at professional clubs, Pilkington still remained in love with the game that he always hoped would provide him with a living.
More than 10 years on from those days, Pilkington, who now has eight international caps with the Republic of Ireland to his name, insists the footballing education he received on the parks in his hometown of Blackburn was the perfect foundation for his life as a professional.
"I was playing against all the fellas that had been out the night before, seeing them all being sick on the sidelines. That was an eye opener," the 27-year-old said.
"It doesn't get any lower than that really in terms of grassroots. It was a lot different from being brought up playing at Arsenal with all the technologies and stuff like that. The cotton wool and all.
"It was definitely a grounding. I was playing in the non-league at stadiums where there were 15 or 16 people watching because it was that cold and there were no roofs on stands.
"It was a long journey for me to get to where I am now, but it was a good one as well. I really enjoyed everywhere I have been, even the non-league and playing in the pub league with my mates. I never stopped enjoying the game and I think that was key really. I wouldn't have done it any other way."
Pilkington soon began to demonstrate his promise, scoring a hat-trick in a 3-0 win over FC United of Manchester in November 2006, much to the delight of former Atherton manager Alan Lord.
I was playing against all the fellas that had been out the night before, seeing them all being sick on the sidelines. That was an eye opener
Lord brought Pilkington to the less glamorous surroundings of the Alder House Stadium at the beginning of 2006 before resigning from his post at the end of that season. He remained in contact with Pilkington, though, in his role as a teacher at Myerscough College, and would soon play a pivotal part in the midfielder's meteoric rise through the divisions.
Lord's close friendship with then-Stockport County assistant manager Peter Ward was crucial and the glowing recommendation he gave to Ward offered Pilkington a route back into the professional ranks.
Moves to County, Huddersfield Town and Premier League Norwich City soon followed and Pilkington, though proud of his beginnings, admits the step up in standards fulfilled him with a burning desire not to return to his non-league roots.
"When you're playing in non-league it's not as professional and there's no proper pre-match routine," he added. "Obviously the higher up you go the more professional it gets, so every step up things were being done slightly differently in terms of preparation and recovery. But in the non-league you turn up and play and that's about it. There was hardly any training as there were games every Saturday and Tuesday, so you were just turning up and playing.
"It was part of the game I had seen and didn't want to go back to, having seen the training ground and facilities after moving up to Stockport and then Huddersfield. Each club has been bigger and bigger. It was a good learning period for me and I kept working hard, moving up the steps, some bigger than others. In the end I got to where I wanted to be which was playing in the Premier League."
Three years in the Premier League with Norwich saw Pilkington score 14 times in 75 matches, but, following their relegation in 2014, he was sold to Championship rivals Cardiff.
His debut campaign with the Bluebirds was disrupted throughout by a persistent hamstring injury however, and he managed to make only 21 appearances, scoring just once. The early season dismissal of manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and subsequent appointment of Russell Slade added to the disruption, while the continued dispute between fans and owner Vincent Tan over the club's shirt colour did nothing to lift the mood or atmosphere around the Cardiff City Stadium.
But in January, Tan's decision for Cardiff to finally revert back to their traditional blue kit from the red strip they had worn for the previous two and half seasons was met by huge praise from the Cardiff fans.
Pilkington feels the renewed unity between the fans and club can act as a perfect springboard for a promotion challenging campaign.
"If the fans are getting right behind the team it's a lot easier. At the start of last season the fans may have been more concerned about having a go at the team and not turning up in the right frame of mind to support the lads," he said.
"If the atmosphere around the ground is brilliant it pushes the players on. Hopefully the atmosphere will stay the same as it was towards the end of last season and help us get to where we want to be and that's challenging at the top."
Cardiff were denied their first victory of the season on Tuesday night against Blackburn, conceding an equaliser two minutes from time to draw 1-1. It was Cardiff's third successive draw of the new campaign, following stalemates with Fulham and Queens Park Rangers. Though his side are yet to notch up their first win, Pilkington has high hopes for Cardiff this term.
"For a club like Cardiff we have to be right up the top of the league challenging for promotion. Come the end of the season there will be a few teams up there and hopefully we'll be one of the them, giving ourselves a chance to get promotion back into the Premier League," he said ahead of Saturday's match with Wolves, live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 17.00.
"The Premier League is the best league in the world and it's one of the hardest. You want to test yourself against the best and play in the biggest stadiums. There's no better place to be playing your football, so it's a massive motivation for all the lads to try and get back there this season."
