EFL Q&A: Rotherham United’s Will Vaulks on Jonjo Shelvey, Dumbarton and Steven Gerrard

Yet that is exactly what Will Vaulks did at the age of 19 in 2013 – alone and with only £80 a week given to him by his dad on which to survive.

The hardship he endured and overcame, helping Falkirk to reach the Scottish Cup final in 2015, has given him a unique perspective on his profession.

Now at Rotherham, whom he has helped into the Sky Bet League One promotion places after their appalling Championship season last year, the 24-year-old midfielder shows in this week’s Sky Bet EFL Q&A that he is wise beyond his years.

Were you always a midfielder?

No, not really. I was as a kid and then when I was about 15 at Tranmere, the youth team needed a centre half for the FA Youth Cup, so I played there, did quite well and stayed at centre half for about four years after that. I signed for Falkirk as a centre half, then found my way back in midfield about three seasons ago. I’ve played all over the place really. I’ve had a little spell at right-back as well.

I moved back into midfield at Falkirk. Peter Houston was the new manager at the time and I think he wanted a bit more steel in the middle, someone who could get about the pitch. Then I started scoring goals there and doing alright so I stayed there. It was a weird one because I wasn’t out of the team, I was playing at the time. It just seemed like a natural step forward. It’s not ideal if you keep changing positions as I’ve done quite a bit in my career, but I definitely prefer midfield.

Best moment on a football pitch?

Scoring on my debut for Rotherham in the first game of last season against Wolves (a 2-2 draw in August 2016) in the English Championship after being away for so long and wondering whether I’d ever get back down to England to give it a shot, that was pretty good.

Another great moment was the Scottish Cup semi-final when we won to get to the final (Falkirk beat Hibernian 1-0 in April 2015). And then coming out at Hampden for the Scottish Cup final with all the fireworks going off, the massive 3-D writing on the pitch and the stadium almost full was one of the highlights, too.

I’ve never had the privilege of playing at Wembley but Hampden is the Scottish Wembley. The changing rooms are unbelievable and when you come out on to the pitch, you think you’ve made it in a way. We nearly won the final as well, which would have been the highlight of my career (Falkirk lost 2-1 to Inverness Caledonian Thistle). We got beaten in the last minute, but I’ll never forget it.

The semi-final was amazing as well because we were underdogs and it was my best mate in football, Craig Sibbald, who scored the winner. He still plays for Falkirk. He scored with a header and then we hung on, which was up there with my best feelings because I was really struggling with an injury. I got smashed early on in the game.

And I was a Newcastle fan as a kid, so coming out at St James’ was up there as well.

Is there one regret you need to put right?

At the moment, my mind is set on Rotherham. Last season was probably the worst year I’ve had, and it should have been my best because it was the biggest step of my career so far. But the way it went, both personally and for the team, setting records for bad reasons is never good, is it? It’s something to learn from. Right now, that is one regret that hopefully can be changed quickly this year.

Apart from that, I have made some decisions so far that have been tough. I had to put a lot on the line when I went to Falkirk. I wasn’t getting paid when I first went there. I had just been released by Ronnie Moore at Tranmere and I decided that instead of staying in part-time football in England, I’d go up to Scotland and try and prove myself. They had no wages to pay me for three or four months. I signed at the end of January (2013) and I lasted until the summer when a new manager came in. I thought: “Oh no, here we go again,” but he offered me a deal and then the rest is history. I played every game from then on.

Falkirk put me up in a flat and I borrowed 80 quid a week off my dad to survive. It was probably the worst part of my life from the point of view of my mental state. I had no money, I was in a little flat, I had no mates and I was four hours from home.

It was tough. Really tough at times. I was expecting to go there and play straightaway. That’s what I was told, but it didn’t come to fruition so I had to wait and eventually I got my chance. I’ve always tried to believe in myself because I knew I was good enough.

I remember my mum coming up to see me at one point and I thought: “I don’t know if I can keep doing this,” because it was depressing. But I hung on and it worked out in the end.

Falkirk is a little town literally bang in the middle of Glasgow and Edinburgh, the same distance from both. It’s got passionate fans, a great club which is run well and the best part of my career so far was spent there. I really enjoyed it, winning games, being up there and I had a great experience. I’m grateful to them for giving me my chance.

Hardest opponent?

Jonjo Shelvey. I was tasked with literally following him around the pitch wherever he went. It didn’t matter where the ball was, I was following him around, which he got very frustrated at.

I quite enjoyed it, but with the ability he has, he got a free-kick in the 44th minute or something, he played an 80-yard pass and they scored from it. That was the only time that I gave him 10 yards because it was a free-kick so I couldn’t really do anything about it.

The way he plays, he is someone you should look up to. I know he has a bit of stuff off the pitch, but he is very composed and confident in his own ability, probably arrogant but that’s what makes him so good. I admired him because he was getting wound up with me but he still tried to get the ball and then eventually his quality showed.

My task was just to wind him up and try and put him off his game. It was going quite well but I think they beat us 4-1 in the end. He was saying all game: “I’ll give you my top after the game,” then he came down the tunnel, we had a little laugh about it and he did give me his top. I said: “I’ll take that, but you won’t want mine.”

Rafa Benitez said to our manager that it had been quite effective because they had struggled to get him on the ball. It meant that other Newcastle players had to go try and win the game because he was their best player by a mile in the Championship.

Least favourite away ground?

I had some horrible ones when I was at Falkirk. I’ll say Dumbarton away, or Alloa. No, Dumbarton because there is only one stand the fans can sit in and the rest of the ground has a corrugated iron fence around it. It was always blowing a gale there. It’s called Dumbarton Rock because there’s a massive mountain right by it. I’d like to see a few of the English boys go up there to play and try and make it and then say the Scottish leagues are easy, because they’re not.

Cowdenbeath away was one of my first games sat on the bench. It has tyres and a stock car track around the pitch. And the dressing room is like a little shoe box. You can’t even get the subs in it. I just thought: “What on earth have I done here?” because I thought I was coming up to full-time football and it was ten times worse than the part-time pitches in England. But I wouldn’t change anything. I played there a few times in the end and enjoyed it.

But then contrast with that, I’d go to Ibrox twice a year, or Hibs’ ground or to Hearts, so there were some really unbelievable places as well. Ibrox is still the best ground I’ve played at, the loudest place I’ve ever played at – 55,000 fans and they don’t stop the whole time. Scottish fans are very passionate.

What’s your guilty food pleasure?

Fish and chips from the chippy with curry sauce. Me and my girlfriend like that now and then as a little treat. Just if there’s a gap between the games or if I’ve had a tough game. That would be the first one I’d go for.

Funniest thing you have seen in a dressing room?

Our gaffer Paul Warne was the fitness coach here when he took the manager’s job, so we needed a new fitness coach. This new fella Ross (Burbeary) came in. He was good at his job but quite quiet. We’d only known him for about a week when it came to his initiation song. There was this speaker on so we just thought he was going to sing a song, but the next thing he came round the corner in a mankini, he had a wig on, goofy teeth and he was just screaming  ‘Peanuts’ and did this ridiculous dance. It was funny because we weren’t expecting it. Obviously that fitted him in and we all get on well now.

Boyhood sporting hero?

Alan Shearer, no doubt. He was the one. I had his name on every top. I used to peel off doing his celebration in the garden with my brother.

My dad’s from around Newcastle and he brought me up supporting them. My brother supported Liverpool. I don’t know how he got away with it, but I just followed my dad from as far back as I can remember. That was it, sitting watching the games on the telly, him with a Newcastle Brown Ale and me with my Newcastle top on.

Alan Shearer scored every type of goal, too, that was the thing. When you’re young, you always like the goalscorers, don’t you? He was powerful with his heading and I just loved him.

If you had the power, what one thing would you change about the game?

I know this one for definite. I’d change how easily we get booked now and soft the game has gone. I think it’s really poor. I’m suspended this weekend so that’s probably why it’s touchy for me at the moment. I got a yellow for a ball that hit me when I was less than a yard away from it in the box.

I think the suspension rules are very harsh, too. I’ve started a lot of games this season, I’ve got five bookings and I’m suspended. I think we’ve only played something like 15 or 16 games. That’s one in every three games I’m getting a yellow card, none of them for anything violent. They have all been for little fouls or persistent fouling. I just think that’s very harsh. And we have to last on five bookings until December when it gets changed. So either you’ve got to change the amount of bookings you can get before being suspended or referees have got to allow the game to be a little bit more physical.

Our manager likes the physical side of the game, but there’s nothing he can do. He tells us to try and avoid the silly ones, but I don’t think I’ve had many silly ones this year. One at Portsmouth was harsh for not taking a free-kick quickly enough, but the rest of them have been for little fouls, which is kind of what I’m there to do. My game is based on getting in and about people.

We’ll have a lot of lads suspended this year, but we’re not a violent team. People sometimes say we’re too soft.

And I’d change a little bit the new age of footballers, the prima donnas, when they haven’t done anything in the game yet, only played in the Under-23s. That annoys me.

Most embarrassing moment in football?

One of the worst, which is going back years, was when I was on loan at Workington from Tranmere. We played Mansfield in the FA Cup and I think it was to get through to the First Round proper. I was doing well at the time, at a League One club in Tranmere, so going down to the Conference North was quite a big step down. I was only 18 but I thought I was quite good.

The ball fell to me in the box about four yards out. This was to take us to a replay away at Mansfield. I took a touch and I passed it straight under the keeper who just sat on the ball and then the final whistle went. It was the worst I’ve felt after missing a sitter to this day. I was gutted, but embarrassed as well because obviously I was playing at a higher level than a lot of the lads and I should have scored.

I loved my little spell at Workington but I left not long after that game to go to Falkirk so I didn’t have a chance to make up for it.

Which player in history would you like to play alongside?

Steven Gerrard, because of the way he played. Not necessarily that we would complement each other but just because he was the all-round midfielder, good at everything – his range of passing, scoring goals, driving his team forward. He would probably have been the player I could learn the most off as well.

I would have sat just behind him, let him do his stuff and maybe got the ball off him now and then.

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