YOU never know who's watching.

That's the advice Flint Town United's stellar summer signing Nathan Craig will be passing on to youngsters as he embarks on a new coaching venture.

Craig, now 28, has seen-it-all in a football career that kicked off as a starry-eyed 12-year-old at Everton.

He was given his Toffees debut by David Moyes in the Europa League, represented Wales at all age levels up to the under 21s and made a name for himself at one of football's outposts, Torquay United.

"I'd been released by Everton as a 19-year-old after seven years there," said the Caernarfon-born player. "I'd signed for Caernarfon and was playing just to keep fit really.

"I was still trying getting my head round spending all those years at Everton and ending up with someone saying we don't want you anymore.

"But I wasn't the first and won't be the last to experience that disappointment. It's not nice when professional clubs spend all that time developing you and then shut the door on your face as a 17, 18 or 19-year-old.

"I wasn't rushing into anything and I'd just got a job at Travis Perkins in Caernarfon and was playing for my local team.

"We were getting battered 6-1 at Cefn Druids in the Welsh Cup. The next day I got a call saying there was a scout from Torquay at the game and that they wanted me to go down for a week's trial.

"To get singled out after a result like that proves one thing and that's you must keep trying your best because you never know who might be watching lout there.

"I did and they then asked me to stay on for a second week. They'd arranged a friendly and wanted to watch me play.

"So I rang Travis and told them the situation. They said they were short-staffed and if I didn't come back, I could say goodbye to the job.

"I took the gamble, stayed on and Martin Ling was the manager who signed me.

"He liked to play football and I had a great first season - played in every game and was really enjoying it down there."

But with the ups come the downs as Craig was once again about to experience.

"Martin Ling left and Alan Knill- who is now assistant manager at Sheffield United - came in as manager," added Craig.

"For some reason, he didn't want me and I went from being an ever-present one year to sitting in the stand the next season.

"We had a League Cup tie against Leicester early that season and I took a call from my agent saying that Bournemouth had been watching me and were sending a scout to watch the game.

"The only problem was I wasn't playing. And I always think of what might have been because Bournemouth were on the rise at that point."

Being relegated from the Football League and players taking a 20 per cent wage cut didn't do much to convince Craig that it was to say au revoir to the English Riviera and head back home to The Oval.

Craig, who is equally at home in midfield or defence, became a stalwart for Caernarfon, scoring close to a century of goals in his 200-plus appearances.

With a goals-per-game ratio like that, it was no wonder, he scored on his debut in new surroundings at Flint Town.

His free-kick in the 1-0 win at home to Newtown on the opening say of the Cymru Premier League season