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Gary Madine accepts he may never be able to escape his past – but in looking to the future at Bolton Wanderers he has every reason to be optimistic.
Regardless of what direction his career takes him at the Macron Stadium and beyond, reminders of past indiscretions are bound to follow.
Jailed in October 2013, he served five months of an 18-month sentence for two assaults inside four weeks at separate nightclubs in Sheffield, an indelible mark was made on the Gateshead-born striker’s record. But since his release from prison in February 2014, Madine has made efforts to not let his mistakes define him.
His previous club Sheffield Wednesday welcomed him back publicly as a player but evidence suggests they never truly forgave and forgot.
Madine admits he is disappointed never to have been given a decent shot in the Championship by the Owls, to repay their faith during his darker days, but equally he is hungry to make a fresh start.
Neil Lennon has given him that opportunity and his early performances on pre-season tour suggest he could be the kind of fearless front man who goes down a storm with Wanderers fans.
We caught up with him in the Austrian sunshine, shortly after his first start for the Whites, and asked how difficult it had been to move on from the last chapter of his life.
“People will always mention it, and it’s something I have to get used to, but anyone who meets me off the pitch will tell you I’m not an arrogant person, I’m not that kind of person,” he told The Bolton News.
“What I did as a younger lad I can’t take back, the nightclub thing has got in the way of my football career, but anyone who knows me knows I’m not that person.
“The Sheffield Wednesday thing disappointed me a lot. When we got promoted I’d scored all those goals, even though I’d missed three-and-a-half months of the season. But I never really got my chance in the Championship.
“I made maybe 11 starts in two-and-a-half years at Wednesday, so I want to prove them wrong. I want to come here, get my head down and score as many goals as I can because I’m better than that.”
Madine spent most of last season out on loan, including a spell at Blackpool where he caught the eye of Lennon in a blustering performance at the Macron.
Wanderers were first in the queue when he was released at Wednesday, although Leeds United attempted a late hijack on the deal.
“I wanted to get things done early,” Madine explained.
“I definitely didn’t want to spend all summer sweating about where I was going to be.
“Thankfully I managed to have a good game against Bolton just before the end of the season and the gaffer watched me again.
“He showed some faith in me and I want to repay him.”
Madine opened his account unofficially with a well-taken goal against SC Paderborn on Monday evening but is not setting personal targets this season.
“It’s not worth putting the pressure on myself,” he added. “I’ll give 100 per cent, that’s all I can promise.”
But taking the wider view, the striker believes there is enough quality in the Wanderers camp to improve on last season’s desperately disappointing 18th-placed finish.
“I wasn’t here last season but I’d imagine to improve is what the manager would expect,” he said.
“Looking at some of the players here there are some unbelievable talents. Mark Davies is like another [Andres] Iniesta in training, he’s something else, so if we can keep hold of players like that I’m sure we’ll get better.
“When I first came the gaffer said that he’d had too many players out injured last year. If he’d kept everyone fit it might have been a different story.”
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Regardless of what direction his career takes him at the Macron Stadium and beyond, reminders of past indiscretions are bound to follow.
Jailed in October 2013, he served five months of an 18-month sentence for two assaults inside four weeks at separate nightclubs in Sheffield, an indelible mark was made on the Gateshead-born striker’s record. But since his release from prison in February 2014, Madine has made efforts to not let his mistakes define him.
His previous club Sheffield Wednesday welcomed him back publicly as a player but evidence suggests they never truly forgave and forgot.
Madine admits he is disappointed never to have been given a decent shot in the Championship by the Owls, to repay their faith during his darker days, but equally he is hungry to make a fresh start.
Neil Lennon has given him that opportunity and his early performances on pre-season tour suggest he could be the kind of fearless front man who goes down a storm with Wanderers fans.
We caught up with him in the Austrian sunshine, shortly after his first start for the Whites, and asked how difficult it had been to move on from the last chapter of his life.
“People will always mention it, and it’s something I have to get used to, but anyone who meets me off the pitch will tell you I’m not an arrogant person, I’m not that kind of person,” he told The Bolton News.
“What I did as a younger lad I can’t take back, the nightclub thing has got in the way of my football career, but anyone who knows me knows I’m not that person.
“The Sheffield Wednesday thing disappointed me a lot. When we got promoted I’d scored all those goals, even though I’d missed three-and-a-half months of the season. But I never really got my chance in the Championship.
“I made maybe 11 starts in two-and-a-half years at Wednesday, so I want to prove them wrong. I want to come here, get my head down and score as many goals as I can because I’m better than that.”
Madine spent most of last season out on loan, including a spell at Blackpool where he caught the eye of Lennon in a blustering performance at the Macron.
Wanderers were first in the queue when he was released at Wednesday, although Leeds United attempted a late hijack on the deal.
“I wanted to get things done early,” Madine explained.
“I definitely didn’t want to spend all summer sweating about where I was going to be.
“Thankfully I managed to have a good game against Bolton just before the end of the season and the gaffer watched me again.
“He showed some faith in me and I want to repay him.”
Madine opened his account unofficially with a well-taken goal against SC Paderborn on Monday evening but is not setting personal targets this season.
“It’s not worth putting the pressure on myself,” he added. “I’ll give 100 per cent, that’s all I can promise.”
But taking the wider view, the striker believes there is enough quality in the Wanderers camp to improve on last season’s desperately disappointing 18th-placed finish.
“I wasn’t here last season but I’d imagine to improve is what the manager would expect,” he said.
“Looking at some of the players here there are some unbelievable talents. Mark Davies is like another [Andres] Iniesta in training, he’s something else, so if we can keep hold of players like that I’m sure we’ll get better.
“When I first came the gaffer said that he’d had too many players out injured last year. If he’d kept everyone fit it might have been a different story.”
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