Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
CUP RUN BEATS A TROLLEY DASH FOR SEAGULLS’ DAN
BRIGHTON defender Dan Burn reckons he owes his top-flight career to the FA Cup – and pushing trolleys at Asda!
The giant centre-half faces Derby in the fifth round today aiming to prove he is Premier League class after signing from last season’s giant-killers Wigan.
The then League One club famously beat Bournemouth, West Ham and mighty Manchester City, after which Burn was mobbed by delirious fans. The FA Cup run took the Latics all the way to the quarterfinals before eventually losing to Southampton.
But as he bids to persuade Brighton boss Chris Hughton he is up to the task of challenging Shane Duffy and Lewis Dunk, Burn admits he will also think back to the days when he pushed supermarket trolleys in the North East.
“Normally the lads getting picked up to play in the youth teams are spotted around 15 or 16. But I didn’t end up signing for anyone,” said Burn, who was snubbed by his boyhood heroes Newcastle.
“Instead, I went into the sixth form and was working at Asda pushing trolleys. So if you had said then that I would be in the Premier League, I’d have laughed at you!
“But it helped me become even more determined and focused. I realised I didn’t want to do that for the rest of my life.
“It was good at the time because I was earning the money to do the things I wanted to do at the weekends. But I always knew in the long term that I didn’t want to be there and I wouldn’t be there in future.
“I do think it helped. Later, when I had the down times in my career, I knew then it could be worse. I could be back at Asda doing that every day.”
Burn, now 26, has certainly done it the hard way.
He played for non-league Blyth Spartans before eventually kicking off his career at cash-strapped Darlington, where he had to wash his own kit and bring his own packed lunch.
“I remember I made my debut against Torquay away in League
Two and we got beat 5-1,” he added.
“Everyone was absolutely gutted, but I was just so excited to be out there.
“I got in the car on the way home and was cheering as if I’d won the game. Even though we’d just been battered.
“I think if I was in the car now and you’d told me that I went on to play in all the divisions and the cups and I was at a Premier League team I probably wouldn’t have believed you.” For now, the FA Cup is the best opportunity for Burn to play games, considering he is up against Irish international Duffy and England star Dunk for a place in Brighton’s Premier League team.
But his knock-out expertise – he also scored in the League One Play-off Final for Yeovil against Brentford at Wembley – could prove useful.
“Scoring at Wembley was a great memory – and last season with Wigan when we beat Man City, who were probably the best team in the world at that time, was a big day for the club.
“That cup run was what got me the move to Brighton too, because not even Championship teams were looking at me before that.”