Sunday 25 January 2015 12:48, UK
Olly Lancashire hopes there will be one interested spectator in Madrid when he leads out Rochdale against Stoke in the FA Cup.
The League One side have made the fourth round for the second successive season and their reward is a home tie against Premier League opposition on Monday. It is a big occasion for club and captain, but for some of Lancashire's former team-mates, big games are the norm every week. Lancashire came up through the Southampton academy at the same time as Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott and Adam Lallana and shared a house with the trio, now of Real Madrid, Arsenal and Liverpool respectively. "There were about 17 of us in the same house," said the defender. "My age, there were seven of us. Unfortunately four aren't playing any more but obviously Gareth and Theo have done well. Then there was Adam Lallana, David McGoldrick, Nathan Dyer. "It was a good house to live in, some very good times. I'm very good friends with Adam Lallana and Gareth Bale. "It's great to see those boys doing so well but you want a little bit of that yourself. You've just got to keep working hard and hopefully one day it will happen." While Walcott, Bale and Lallana quickly made their mark at the top level, Lancashire spent three spells on loan at Grimsby before being released by Southampton in 2010. Two years later he was released by Walsall but the nadir was a season at his home-town club of Aldershot. Injury restricted him to only 15 appearances and at the end of the campaign he was made redundant after the club went into administration. Lancashire admitted he questioned his future in the game, saying: "There were definitely times. "My injury didn't seem to get any better. I had operations and injections and there were times when I sat down with my girlfriend and my dad and discussed it. But thankfully now that's behind me and I can look forward." In the summer of 2013, the 26-year-old headed north to sign a one-year contract at Rochdale and his career has been back on an upward trend ever since. He quickly established himself as a key member of the side and was given the captain's armband on a permanent basis following the departure of Peter Cavanagh last summer. Settled with his girlfriend and four-and-a-half-month-old son Bobby - "a little northerner" - Lancashire is at last looking back up the leagues. And it is the tale of another former Southampton and Rochdale player, Liverpool striker Rickie Lambert, that provides encouragement. Lancashire added: "I'm not saying I could play for Real Madrid but obviously every player wants to play as high as possible. "I'm in League One at the moment and everyone wants to play Premier League or Championship. I'm still quite young and hopefully with Rochdale and the gaffer here I can keep improving. "You've only got to look at Lambert, who played at Rochdale. To see what he's done is inspirational. I think as footballers, and as people, you should never stop dreaming."
