Date of Birth: July 25th, 1978
Place of Birth: I was born in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, although I moved to Nottingham when I was four.
Residence: Currently living in Wimbledon.
Occupation: I work as editorial assistant on The Non-League Paper, and assistant editor on Team Talk magazine.
Favourite Band/Singer: My favourite bands include The Stereophonics, Travis and Oasis, while my favourite solo artist has to be Robbie Williams.
Favourite Film: I'm not a big movie buff, but the best I've seen in recent months was Gladiator.
Who at Sutton could go on to play at Football League level?
I certainly think Ryan Palmer could return to the full-time game. He's been at Fulham and Brighton already, and at 20-years-old, he's still young enough to have another crack at it. He's the fittest player at the club, great to have alongside you with his pace, and I'm sure he'd jump at the chance to go pro again to avoid the early morning starts he's having to get used to in his new job as a postman.
Who would be your room mate?
It would probably be Richard Horner. Seeing as we're the only two in the squad from north of Watford Gap (although Nko claims to have been born and bred in Lancashire - I'm not so sure!!), we've been trying to start a bit of a clique at the club since Rich arrived. On top of this, the lads are all convinced that we are both older than we actually are. We've told them that we have long paper rounds as kids up there, but they still don't believe that I'm 22 and Richard's 24.
What are your footballing ambitions?
If you'd asked me this question last year, the answer would have been simple - to play at Wembley in an FA Vase or Trophy final. Now the old stadium is being knocked down, I'll have to change it to playing in a Trophy final anywhere in the country!! My other main ambition is simply to play at the highest level possible. This time last year I was playing in the Northern Counties East League (the equivalent of Ryman Division Two), went up to the UniBond Division One for a spell and now I'm playing in the Ryman Premier Division. The next rung on the ladder is the Conference, and you never know whether you're good enough to play at a certain level until you reach it and have the chance to prove yourself.
What are your professional ambitions?
I don't really have any professional ambitions. Obviously it's every kid's dream to be a pro and play for England, but if you don't get picked up by the time you're 17 or 18, you've usually missed the boat. There's always the odd exception like Ian Wright and Stuart Pearce, but I don't think I'll be joining them. The other thing that you have to consider is the financial aspect. A lot of players in the lower divisions don't earn big salaries, and don't have the security of a long career. I've got a good job with prospects and have the added bonus of what I earn from playing football. I think that's one of the reasons why it's not so surprising when Non-League sides knock Second and Third Division teams out of the FA Cup - there are a lot of good players in Non-League who could easily play in the Football League, but would be financially worse off by going full-time.
What went through your mind when you saw the kit for the first time (be honest)?
Being totally honest, I wasn't shocked, disgusted, or anything like that, because I'd already seen it loads of times in Team Talk and on TV in past FA Cup runs. I must admit that amber and chocolate brown wouldn't be my first choice in a poll, but they are Sutton's traditional colours and that shouldn't be changed. We do enjoy playing away though!!
Do you find the playing surface at Sutton acceptable?
I certainly don't think it's one of the worst in the division. The main problem this year has been the weather, and when it rains, the far side of the pitch turns into a lake. There's not much you can really do about that - apart from start swimming when you get stuck in Brooker's Corner!! There are very few pitches in Non-League football that don't get badly cut up at some point, and I think that anyone that was there will agree with me that Maidenhead's was the worst we have seen this season. The best without doubt was Aldershot, although I only managed to get on it during the warm up, and after that (I know I'm going to upset a few of you here) I was very impressed with the playing surface at Carshalton on Boxing Day.
How would you improve the Sutton ground?
In an ideal world you'd have the fans closer to the pitch. I know a lot is made of Italian clubs playing in the centre of enormous stadiums with the fans so far away on the other side of an athletics track, and the same applies at Sutton, although on a much smaller scale obviously. When we have played at the likes of Farnborough, Billericay and Carshalton, the fans are right there next to you when you are trying to defend a corner, and you hear all the banter and abuse, as Neil Baker will testify from the Farnborough game. At Sutton we look behind the goal and see a sand pit at one end and acres of grass at the other.
Why do you play for Sutton when you could get more money elsewhere?
I don't know what other clubs pay down here, I don't know what the other players are on, and I certainly haven't been offered any more than I earn at Sutton. The money side of things doesn't interest me that much anyway. What I earn from playing football is very handy to have, but I see it simply as a bonus in addition to my salary from work. Yes, if someone turns round and offers you ridiculous money to do something you enjoy, you'd be a fool not to consider it. But at the moment I'm very happy playing in a very good side at a club where I am settled. I can tell you that I currently earn a lot more than I did playing for Arnold and Lincoln, I'm paid on time and in full every week. Not once have I had to knock on John's door and speak to him about money, and that counts for a lot. I know that this isn't the case at a lot of clubs around the country.
Is it Sutton's plan to really go for promotion next season?
I honestly don't know. As players, we are there to go out and perform on a Saturday afternoon (although we haven't been doing much of that recently) and get us as high up the table as is possible. We still haven't written off winning the title this year, although our recent run has left us with an extremely difficult task. The strange thing about this league is that everyone is beating each other and it really is wide open. A run of nine or ten wins and you are right back up there, as Gravesend & Northfleet have proved. What John has said in the paper, and it is quite true, is that there has been a big turnover of players since the end of last season, and it takes time for a new side to settle, especially with so many young players involved. With this in mind, perhaps building for the future is the club's number one priority. But as I have already said, from a player's perspective we just want to produce results good enough to get the club in a position to go up, and let the powers-that-be sort out all of the political issues that go with it.
Do you enjoy it at Sutton?
Of course - I wouldn't be here if I didn't. Obviously moving from the Midlands in the summer was a big step for me and you do wonder whether your new club will be as friendly as your old one. I'd been at Arnold for four years before my brief sojourn at Lincoln, and to be honest, I don't think I'll ever play for another club where the team spirit and camaraderie was as good as it was there. We had a side with an average age of about 22, and most of us had grown up together, either through going to the same school or playing in junior football together. I needn't have had any worries though, as everyone at Sutton, from the top to the bottom, made me feel welcome when I first arrived. The crack in the changing room and on the coach is always good, and with people like Andy Riley and Danny Bolt around, there's always plenty to laugh at. The only thing that hasn't been so enjoyable in my time here so far is the fact that we've had so many blank Saturdays - but maybe the weather will be kind to us from now on and we can get back to enjoying ourselves on the pitch.
What do you think of the Sutton support?
I've been waiting for this one!! All of the supporters I have met and had chance to speak to have been great, and I am sure all of those that I haven't are of the same ilk. The atmosphere generated by our fans at Carshalton was fantastic, so much so that when we came out you would have thought that we were the home side. At Farnborough too, when we went a goal up, the reaction was great. I only hope that we can start producing the goods again so that we can experience that kind of atmosphere for the rest of the season.
Do you know if anything is happening with Rob Haworth?
Can't help with that one I'm afraid. All I can say is that while he was here, Robbie gave us an added dimension and we probably played our best football this season with him leading the line. He was great in the changing room and provided many a laugh during his month on loan, but we all knew that he was only meant to be here for that amount of time, and would eventually be going back to Dagenham & Redbridge. You also have to ask yourself - would you, as a player, want to swap playing in front of 20,000 against a Premiership side on Match of the Day for the Ryman League Premier Division? I know that I wouldn't if I was in that position. Rob has spent most of his time on the bench since he left us, but he'll be waiting for that one lucky break to prove himself at Conference level.
As I said in answer to one of the previous questions, we all want to play at the highest level possible, and Robbie will be no different to anyone else in that respect. Recently John has brought in Paul Whitmarsh, who made a very promising debut against Hitchin and I'm sure that he'll prove to be a great acquisition. There's also Boothey who is a great target man to have alongside someone like Paul, and let's not forget Richard Thompson. Thommo's been in and out of the side, but he's another proven striker at this level who has done well whenever he's played this season. With young Matt Gray scoring hat-tricks left, right and centre for the youth team and reserves as well, I think we've got plenty of quality options up front.