A former Carlisle United defender is weighing up his options after five years in Australia.
Tom Aldred, 33, who started his career at Brunton Park also played on loan at Workington (10) and Barrow (11) but only managed five senior appearances for United.
Since then he has played at various clubs but most notably Accrington (84) and Blackpool (92), being skipper at Bloomfield Road.
He has spent the last five years with A-League outfit Brisbane Roar, but is set to depart the club this summer.
Aldred says he was originally convinced to make the move by Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler, and admits he’s got no regret, but is still ready for a fresh challenge.
He told the Blackpool Gazette: “It’s been an incredible journey, the opportunity came out of nowhere with what happened.
“The phone call came through from my agent saying Robbie Fowler was interested. That night he was doing a Champions League game, so I gave his name a Google and he was linked with Brisbane Roar. We met in the Tickled Trout in Preston off the motorway, and he sold me the dream- what he said was backed up.
“I had never been to Australia before, but I thought it looked like a cool place to live. At the time, I was well aware if it didn’t work out I’d be walking back with my tail between my legs. It all happened really fast, but here I still am now.
“I’ve been captain for five years, I’ve played over 100 A-League games, so I’ve ticked a lot of the boxes that I wanted to when I came over to the country. I didn’t see myself spending so long here, but as footballers you want to do as much as you can while you can. The next step is going to be another change in my career.
“You can never say never in football, but it’d have to be the right club.
“I know what the Football League is like now and there’s various teams, but it’d come down to logistics. At 33 people would say I’m senior now, but I’ve still got good years ahead of me. I feel great, I’ve played every game for the last two years.
“We’ll see what comes up, but you never know.”
