Have you heard the one about the striker who put himself in danger of receiving a club fine – even before he had actually signed for the club? A genuinely interesting tale 👇
Step forward Stephen Elliott, or ‘Sleeves’ as he is universally known in footballing circles.
Very often he and his staff would attend for part of it. And very often the curfew for the players would gradually get put back, sometimes as a result of a co-ordinated flurry of text messages from the entire squad, on other occasions due to a rousing rendition of ‘Super Mick’. “Most managers will work you very hard during pre-season but also give you a night or two to go for a few pints and let your hair down.
“I don’t think he was massively bothered, he was laughing about it more than anything and I’m not even sure if I would have been fined, but you certainly knew you have to follow the rules when you worked with Mick.”Just over a year into his Molineux career, he missed a penalty in a League Cup shootout when Wolves were knocked out of the competition at the Don Valley Stadium by Rotherham.
Like many talented young Dubliners, he attracted the attention of a number of UK-based scouts, and City took particular interest when he notched five goals in the space of half an hour during an appearance for Stella Maris, based in Drumcondra in Dublin. “They had just been relegated to League One when I signed my first contract, and I actually did that at McDonalds on Wilmslow Road!
“Training with those guys every day could only help me get better and gave me the belief that I could hold my own in that situation.” “I built up a great affection for Sunderland once I was there but originally it was more to do with signing for Mick,” he says. “I’m not saying for a minute I could have made a massive difference but, when it happened, I was one of the players in form and would like to think I could have helped the team.
With his talent and track record, there was plenty of excitement and optimism around Elliott’s capture but, as he explains, it never quite worked out. “Myself and my partner – now my wife – had moved down from the North-East with three young kids and maybe that was also difficult, more so for my wife but perhaps subconsciously with me as well.
“It was no surprise to me that they got promoted the season when I left because Mick is a great manager and because of the nucleus of the hungry squad that they had. “I did enjoy some good moments at Wolves and when you play for a fabulous football club like that you can never complain – it was a privilege.”
“It’s just ironic I scored against them not long after I left – I think I probably scored more goals against Wolves than I actually did for them.” He also works with Improtech Soccer, coaching young players within their education system and has, for the last 18 months, been the head of Darlington’s Academy.
“Having been in their position trying to come through I think it helps, and it is probably different to coaching senior players, which is another ambition I have for some stage in the future. “Wolves is a great football club which has had its ups and downs recently, going down to League One and back, which shows you football goes through different cycles,” he says.
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