Last updated 13:41, Wednesday, 07 May 2008

Fifteen years ago, a shy, ungainly teenager called Rory Delap walked through Carlisle United’s front gates, barely able to believe his luck after being handed a YTS place by the skin of his teeth.

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Stephen Hindmarch

Fast forward 13 years and another teenage hopeful, Stephen Hindmarch, took the first steps on the road to a career as a professional footballer at Brunton Park, batting away offers from a string of top Premiership clubs after being rated as one of the best young players in Cumbria.

Today both players are experiencing completely contrasting fortunes and vastly different emotions.

Delap, who was fortunate to be handed a chance with Carlisle after doubts over whether he was good enough, is basking in the glory of captaining Stoke City to promotion to the Premiership.

Now 31, the strong-running midfielder with a throw that rivals Steve Backley can look back on his career with pride and contentment, having commanded a total of £5 million in transfer fees after playing for top clubs like Derby County, Sunderland and Southampton and winning 11 international caps with the Republic of Ireland.

No one quite knows the state of mind Hindmarch now finds himself in, having been flung on to the scrapheap by United after the end of his YTS amid claims he didn’t have the heart or desire to make the grade.

It’s an ignominious ending to his time at Brunton Park which began with Carlisle pulling off one of the biggest coups in youth football circles by securing the signature of the Keswick youngster who was coveted by Newcastle United.

Glenn Roeder, the former Newcastle manager, was so convinced by the youngster’s talent that he reputedly made a personal pitch to Hindmarch's parents for the teenager to switch his allegiance to the Geordie giants.

Last season Hindmarch, right, seemed to be fulfilling his potential when Neil McDonald made him the third-youngest debutant in the club's history – after Delap and Tony Hopper.

This season, the 18-year-old midfielder has not even got anywhere near the fringes of John Ward’s first-team squad, showing no interest in making the sort of football sacrifices that can only come from deep within.

It’s a startling and sad contrast to how Delap’s career has progressed even though opinion was very much divided about the youngster raised by Irish parents in Great Corby, near Carlisle.

And the two cases prove that talent and natural ability will never get you where you want to be unless it’s backed up by hard work, endeavour and a burning desire and determination to be the best you can be.

That’s why Delap is the perfect role model for the next generation of Brunton babes who will be joining the club straight from school this summer.

He was undaunted by the doubts which surrounded the decision to sign him full-time when he left the city’s Newman School – he was handed the last YTS place in fact – and determined to prove wrong his doubters.

Even Delap himself readily admits he is not a naturally-gifted player, but his hard work, athleticism and dedication to fitness have enabled him to enjoy a richly rewarding career and make an exceptionally good living to set himself up for retirement.

Even in the autumn of his career, his hunger for the game was evident when he suffered a horrific double fracture of the fibia and tibia – his leg effectively snapping in half.

But Delap defied doctors who said he would never play again by returning to action for Stoke at the start of the season – four months ahead of schedule.

That took bottle and determination so helping Stoke return to the top-flight for the first time in 23 years must be so satisfying for him.

Hindmarch is trying to pick up the pieces of his de-railed career, with only unfashionable, perennial strugglers Shrewsbury showing an interest.

Let’s hope he grabs a second chance, otherwise he could end up kicking himself in 10 years.