Ex-Portsmouth, Sheffield United and Brighton winger: 'I was told I'd never play again and walk with a limp - but carried on for 13 more years'

Paul Wood was told his football career was over and he’d walk with a limp as a consequence - yet defied doctors to play on for another 13 years.

The Pompey winger was devastated after being forced to retire in 1996 having suffered medial ligament damage to his right knee.

At the age of 32, it prematurely brought the curtain down on playing days which numbered Brighton, Sheffield United and Bournemouth, in addition to two Fratton Park stints.

Remarkably, he made his footballing comeback in Hong Kong for Happy Valley, before continuing playing with the Hawks and finally Dorchester in 2004.

Even then, Wood remained a regular in Masters tournaments until he reached 44, squeezing every last day out of a career which should have ended more than a decade earlier.

He told The News: ‘Pompey were playing at home to Derby (February 1996), I can remember it as clear as day.

‘We had a throw-in and it went over my head, so I spun around and went to get the ball, only for somebody to go through my right knee.

‘It was swollen, but I played on it for weeks afterwards, except I couldn't jog and didn’t train. I’d go out before a game with a limp and tried to get it warmed up. Yet after three games that was it, I had to get it looked at.

‘I had damaged medial ligaments, it looked like I had an egg underneath my knee, it was that big, really bizarre to look at.

‘A South African surgeon at the knee clinic said he’d clean all the bad bits out, but when I awoke he’d actually removed the tendon and wired it together to stop it hanging, so it was quite a bad injury.

‘Then he told me I was probably now going to have a limp - and won’t be able to play football again. I wasn’t expecting that!

‘Do you know what, six weeks later I was jogging and it didn’t feel too bad, but unfortunately the knee split and became infected, which put me back another couple of months. I even played a few reserve games, but had to retire at the end of the season.

‘I still wanted to play, though, and received offers from Hong Kong, South Africa, America and Australia. I thought the easiest would be Hong Kong. I’d just come back from injury, it’s a warm climate, I would go for that.

‘I was with Hong Kong Happy Valley for a season and did really well, so returned to England and played non-league football - and then ended up playing some of the best football of my career.’

It was former Pompey team-mate Billy Gilbert who tempted Wood to sign for Havant & Waterlooville in 1998.

That switch proved to be a resounding success, with the winger remaining until the summer of 2003, being crowned their 2001 Player Of The Season and featuring 137 times, with 48 goals.

He added: ‘At Havant, I had the confidence, knew what I was doing and massively enjoyed it with a really cracking set of lads.

‘After a spell at Dorchester, I continued playing in the Masters for Sheffield United, we even appeared in the Asia Masters, it just suited my game. Then I finally packed up at the age of 45.

‘For all the aches and pains I now have, that knee is not one of them. It’s not great when kneel on it, it hasn’t got a lot of protection, but it doesn’t bother me walking around - and didn’t prevent me carrying on for another 13 years after I was told to retire.’