ORIENT GAVE ME A TASTE FOR SUCCESS

MOST 36-year-old would be worried if they didn't have club heading a club into the start of pre-season.

- CHRIS DUNLAVY

Not Jamal Fyfield. Such is the veteran defender's reputation that he has been inundated with offers since leaving Braintree at the end of last season.

"I'm still in discussions," explains the centre-back. "There's still an offer on the table from Braintree. There's a couple of other clubs trying to acquire me. I'm just trying to test the market, see what's out there and get the best deal." And whilst he ponders his next move, Fyfield took time out to reflect on a 600-game career that started at his local club Leyton Orient, took in a glorious Wembley double with York and he hopes will stretch on for several years yet.

FIRST CLUB

I joined Leyton Orient as an Under-14 and ended up getting a scholarship. It was great because I’m East End born and bred.

My mum still lives about five minutes from the stadium and you can hear the crowd when they score. I used to literally walk past the ground every day on my way to school.

I never played for them professionally but I learned from some great coaches - Martin Ling and Ian Culverhouse, Dean Smith and Andy Scott.

Maidenhead was the first club I played for, and that was an eye opener. Not just because the pace is faster but also because you're playing with people who've got mortgages to pay and kids to feed.

I was 18 or 19, thinking football was just a bit of fun, but I very quickly got told that wasn't the case. Fortunately I had a great manager in Johnson Hippolyte - or Drax as he was known - and he showed me the ropes.

BEST MANAGER

Gary Mills, below, my manager at York City. He had an amazing career himself, playing under Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest and winning the European Cup.