Former Cambridge City midfielder Stuart Sinclair said that the FA Cup was key in his development as a professional football.
Sinclar, 29, played 36 times for Cambridge City before spells at Bedford and Dunstable before eventually moving to Arlesey. It was there that he came up against current Bristol Rovers manager Darrell Clarke, who was then manager of Salisbury, in the first round of the FA Cup in 2011.
Clarke was so impressed by Sinclair that he snapped him up in 2012 and he formed part of the team that gained promotion to the National League in 2013.
Clarke then left Salisbury to be assistant at Rovers in 2013, and when he was promoted to the top job a year later, Sinclair was one of his first signings.
He has since became an integral part of the Rovers team, and featured in their 4-1 win over Cambridge United in the Carabao Cup at the start of the season
“I was lucky, that’s how my career got rolling the FA Cup,” he told the Bristol Post.
“I was at Arlesey Town and the gaffer came down and then I was to Salisbury, it all snowballed from thre.
“That’s the magic of the cup. I like to think I worked hard too, but the cup definitely helped. It have me a chance as someone who was not going to be a footballer.
“That wasn’t my career path from there. I enjoyed playing but it was in the past – I’ve been fortunate, very fortunate.
“The FA Cup has been a mixed bag for me. I got lucky in the start then it’s been hit and miss here at Rovers. It would be amazing to get a run in it and make sure we’re consistent.”
