From Wembley and the Premier League to a bobby on the beat in Bridport - the policeman who played for Portsmouth, Southampton, Reading and Oxford United
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Yet these days Matt Robinson is a neighbourhood policeman in the Dorset market town of Bridport.
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Hide AdNow in his 14th year on the beat wearing PC 90 on the collar, he has worked for constabularies in Wiltshire, Hampshire and Dorset.
It’s a far cry from when Robinson was an attacking left-back racking up 361 appearances in the Premier League and Football League.
However, in 2007 he turned to a new profession while seeing out his playing days as a part-time footballer in non-league.
And it’s a job the former Southampton man continues to revel in.
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Hide AdRobinson told The News: ‘When you finish playing, unless you are really prepared for it, it creeps up on you a little. You think “Blimey, what else am I going to do?”.
‘At first I thought about journalism, I always wanted to write about sport before it got saturated like it is now.
‘I was going to do a degree which was laid on by the PFA, but my football career had come to an end and pretty much straight away I needed to do something rather than spend a period studying.
‘A friend mentioned the police force and I thought “Do you know what, I’ll give it a go”.
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Hide Ad‘It’s quite a secure job, you’re getting paid every month, which is definitely not always the case as a footballer!
‘Do you know what, it gives you an outlook. After you’ve done something like professional football, you almost need bringing back down to earth a bit, seeing stuff that’s quite horrible at times.
‘You have to be reasonably fit to be able to chase someone, there are a lot of times when you need to get physical and there’s a bit of a fight going on, but it’s not as gruelling as you’d think.
‘There’s a bleep test which you must pass at level 5.5 every year, which is literally a jog. For someone who has come from a professional football background, it’s not too bad at all.
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Hide Ad‘You have to be quite resilient and have a thick skin, both for playing football and being a police officer, as you do get a fair bit of stick and, occasionally, abuse.
‘There’s a bit of an adrenaline buzz every now and then, though, and you get into situations where you have to think quickly. It's quite a fun job to do.’
He helped the Blues avoid relegation after a last-day triumph at Bradford in May 1998, before departing for Reading and aiding their 2001-02 promotion to the Second Division.
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Hide AdYet he has been a policeman for almost as long as he spent as a professional footballer.
Robinson added: ‘I’ve been on the front line for the police for most of my career. I prefer being on the go to sitting in an office doing admin, it’s more enjoyable being out and about.
‘I’ve been in a few departments and had attachments here and there, while I was a temporary sergeant for nine months.
‘But I want to continue living in Sherborne and when you’re promoted you get posted wherever, you don’t choose.
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Hide Ad‘I work in response, the blue light, answering the 999 calls that come, but recently have moved a little into the neighbourhood side of it.
‘And I’m really happy where I am.’
A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron
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