From working as a sheet metal worker galvanising dustbins to being part of a winning Wolves team at Anfield and scoring against Manchester United.
You could certainly never accuse Sammy Troughton of being a "load of rubbish".
It was on Boxing Day some 26 years ago that the young Irishman made his Wolves debut in a 3-1 defeat at Ipswich.
A skilful midfielder, that afternoon at Portman Road was the prelude to what turned out to be 20 appearances for Wolves during that 1983/84 season in which despite the declining fortunes of the time the teenager's talents certainly shone out.
And it was very much Roy of the Rovers stuff given his previous existence prior to crossing the Irish Sea from Belfast - playing part-time with Glentoran while employed in that slightly different industry.
"I came over for a week's trial initially and played a couple of reserve games," Troughton recalls.
"In one of those we beat Coventry who were top of the reserve league at that time.
"The gaffer - Graham Hawkins - and his assistant Jim Barron were at that game and having seen me play made me an offer which I was delighted to accept.
"It was a great chance for me to come across from Ireland and try and play for a team in the First Division, the top flight as it was then.
"As well as playing for Glentoran I'd also worked as a sheet metal worker making galvanising dustbins so there were certainly plenty of headlines for people to play with!"
It was always going to take time for the 19-year-old to make the transition from the part time of the Irish League to life in the First Division.
It took several weeks of training with the first team in the morning and apprentices in the afternoon to pick up the pace at which he was now required to operate, but injury to Kenny Hibbitt offered the chance of that debut in East Anglia.
Despite Wolves' defeat, Troughton kept his place - indeed his third outing saw him score against Norwich at home and ultimately he went on to make 19 consecutive appearances in league and cup.
And in what was one of those ever-curious Wolves seasons of the early Eighties, they managed to combine the very bad - failing to win in 14 at the start of the season prior to Troughton's arrival - with the very good, victory at Anfield courtesy of Steve Mardenborough.
"That game at Anfield was something else," Troughton recalls of only his fifth Wolves appearance.
"I remember sitting on the coach next to Tony Towner as we travelled the day before the game and saying, 'imagine if we get back on here tomorrow and we've managed to come away with a point'.
"'Unbelievable'," he replied. "And yet we ended up taking all three!
"I remember Bruce Grobbelaar coming out of his goal as he tended to do to try and dominate the area and Steve getting a header in which gave us the lead.
"From there on we ran around chasing shadows, they had one hell of a team!
"It was like Custer's Last Stand as we tried to hang on, I remember Ronnie Whelan heading against the bar at one point.
"They had so many other chances as well but we defended heroically and somehow came away with the win
"It was a strange time really because on our day we could be a match for any team, as proved by that Liverpool result and others.
"But then we were also on the end of a few hidings, at Aston Villa and Arsenal as I recall, and with the team having got off to such a bad start we just couldn't find any consistency.
"I did also manage to score against Manchester United at Molineux, another special moment given my family are all United fans.
"It could have ended up going over the stand, but thankfully managed to find the roof of the net." (pictured below)
Despite Wolves picking up from Christmas which indeed co-incided with Troughton's arrival, things did get worse again later on in the season and ultimately a relegation ensued which was to prove the first of three in succession.
For a young player who had made such an impact, and indeed seen the sort of quality in town at Molineux, that was difficult to take.
"I joined the club at a similar time to Danny Crainie who was a very good player and there were many others such as Kenny, Geoff Palmer and John Humphrey," Troughton says.
"And John Burridge in particular always had a story or two to tell!
"The spirit in the dressing room was very good and it was all very positive despite the results.
"We were a very tight knit group, both on the pitch and socially, and would often go and visit supporters' clubs and the like.
"It was just a real shame that we ended up getting relegated, not least because it also proved the end of my time at Wolves."
There is a story around suggesting Troughton ultimately had to depart Wolves due to the fact they failed to meet a £5,000 payment to Glentoran based on the player making 20 appearances.
Troughton can't quite recall the detail, but given Wolves' financial travails of the time it probably carries some mileage.
However it was also injury and the arrival of a new man in the hotseat - Tommy Docherty - which ended this Irish love affair just as soon as it had begun.
"The manager changed with the Doc coming in and at the start all was o-k," says Troughton.
"But then during the pre-season I had problems with injuries, a back problem and a tight hamstring, and ultimately I think the Doc had to offload players.
"It was a big disappointment as I'd done reasonably well in my first season and having played 20-odd games with the club in the First Division I'd like to have thought I could have done well in the Second as well.
"But these things happen in football, and so it was that I moved on."
Moved on but not without a spot of help from a Wolves influence, as Derek Dougan helped arrange a move to pursue a new career in South Africa.
Troughton enjoyed plenty of success with two league championships and several more cup successes in his new life, representing top clubs in the league such as Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates.
A bad knee injury ultimately curtailed his career, but he was to remain in South Africa on the next rung of the football career ladder, this time moving into coaching.
"I'd always been quite keen on coaching particularly as I came to the end of my playing career," he explains.
"I started off at the bottom at amateur level and then moved my way up, spending nine years at the University of Pretoria.
"Then I managed to work as assistant manager at a couple of clubs in the Premier League before getting the job at Mpumalanga Black Aces last season and helping them get promoted into the Premier League.
"That was the situation until a few weeks ago, when halfway through the season we were sitting third from bottom of the league and a few things came to a head.
"I was pleased with the efforts of the players who were working extremely hard but I just felt the management weren't quite supporting us with the necessary investment.
"Just like in England, the gap between the top two divisions is fairly major and we were still being run like a First Division club.
"I just felt like I'd come to a dead end, but have since managed to pick up a new position as coach of the Thanda Royal Zulu's in Durban.
"They were in the Premier League last year but we beat them with the Aces and so they were relegated - if I'd known what was to follow I might not have been so keen to win the play-off!"
As league football continues in South Africa there is of course one major event looming on the horizon in the country next summer.
The 2010 World Cup.
Troughton, now 45, admits that World Cup fever is already growing, and he himself can't wait for the tournament to come around.
"Everyone is very excited about the competition and we actually train right next to one of the World Cup stadiums in Durban," he says.
"It's a beautiful stadium which will also host one of the semi finals and I'm hoping it might give a bit of inspiration to our lads just to train so close to it.
"I'm hoping to be able to get to a few games and it's just a shame the Republic of Ireland didn't make it through against France.
"Having said that Northern Ireland were also doing well and had a decent chance of qualifying until results didn't go their way over the final few fixtures."
Yet even with the World Cup just around the corner the Barclays Premier League remains big news over in South Africa.
A whole host of games are televised in the country, giving Troughton the chance to keep tabs on his one and only English port of call.
"We do get to see a lot of the Premier League over here," he says.
"And I saw Mick's (McCarthy) interview after the Burnley game with everything that had happened with his team selections - and I think he was absolutely right to do what he did.
"As a manager or coach you have to take whatever decisions you feel necessary for the good of your club and I think it was a clever move to make use of his first team squad.
"They had a decent run of results before Christmas and I hope they can continue that and stay away from the bottom of the table.
"It's great to see a manager like Mick given time to do what he's done at Wolves since he arrived.
"Some clubs chop and change at the first sign of problems but you always need that stability to be able to do the sort of job which Mick has done."
Troughton still harbours plenty of fond memories from his impressive albeit brief sojourn in Wolverhampton almost three decades ago.
"It was great because it wasn't really expected of me and I didn't really expect it but I played a few games and it was just a pity I couldn't add to it," he says.
But there are also no regrets about the opportunities that he has since enjoyed in South Africa, not least in part due to the climate, where as Britain shivered in the last week's Big Freeze Durban relaxes at a cool 26 degrees.
"Moving to South Africa didn't also help me continue in football but also enjoy a different lifestyle as well," adds Troughton.
"I'm in Durban now, living in an apartment right on the beach.
"It's just great to get up in the morning, pull back the curtains and open the window to let in some of the sea air."
Presumably it also beats galvanising dustbins….
* THIS article appeared in the matchday magazine for Monday's game with Manchester City.
