MEAKER IS IN HIGH SPIRITS AT BITTON
The Toolstation League is not normally a place to see former Premier League players in action, but ambitious Bitton can boast one of their own in hot-shot Michael Meaker.And, despite having played at the highest level domestically with his first club, Queens Park Rangers, in the early 1990s, the 36-year-old Meaker remains as hungry as ever to spearhead the club's multiple push for honours this season.
Before last night's Somerset Premier Cup home date with Yeovil Town, Bitton were still in the hunt for silverware in five separate competitions.
And that has convinced Meaker, enjoying something of an Indian summer himself after leaving the professional game six years ago, he made the right move when he dropped down two divisions to join as player-coach from Mangotsfield United last season.
He said: "We've got a great team spirit on and off the pitch, and that's so important.
"Since I've been in non-league football I've won two titles - with Mangotsfield and Hounslow - and the atmosphere in the bar after games at both clubs was brilliant.
"In my second spell at Mangotsfield it wasn't so good and Andy Black (manager) had been pestering me for ages to come to Bitton.
"The chairman, John Langdon, who deserves so much credit for the club's progress, came up with a great deal and it was one of the best moves I've made in non-league football."
Meaker's professional career began at Loftus Road in 1990 and he commanded a £550,000 transfer fee when Jimmy Quinn took him to Reading in 1995.
A free transfer switch to link up with Ian Holloway at Bristol Rovers followed and saw west Londoner Meaker put down his roots in the area before he moved into the semi-professional game with spells at Northwich, Henley, Southall, Mangotsfield and Hounslow following brief spells at Swindon and Plymouth in 2001.
A former Wales Under 21 international, Meaker spent his professional career playing on the right wing and was never a prolific marksman, but a switch to centre-forward in recent seasons has reaped dividends.
He said: "It's been an amazing run and I think I've scored over 200 goals in the last five years.
"I got (a club record) 44 goals at Hounslow one year and scored 38 for Southall in another.
"I've got 15 this season and 12 in the last nine games and it is going well for me personally.
"I'm settled in Bristol now and want to continue playing for Bitton. The club has looked after me.
"Clubs from a higher level have been sniffing around, but I want to stay.
"There are others in the team, like Jon McAlinden, Danny Hallett and Tom Warren, who could also play at a higher level, but they are happy where they are and a lot of that is down to the manager."
Away from the pitch, Meaker is busy running the No 1 Football Academy at venues in Bristol, including Next Generation in Westbury on Trym and Bitton's Recreation Ground.
It offers coaching for children aged five upwards, with one-to-one fitness training for youngsters and adults also available.
Meaker's academy has been recommended by West Ham striker Bobby Zamora and Norwich's Jamie Cureton, among others, and current players from both Bristol clubs often provide a helping hand on the coaching front.
He said: "I was a bit unlucky to drop out of the League when I did as I was offered a great contract by Swindon but then Jimmy Quinn left and it didn't work out.
"I could have joined Orient, but I was better off playing part-time and working outside the game.
"The academy is doing really well and running that keeps me fit as well.
"I also work in the football agent side of things, helping out Louise Fellows, and I've got players not just locally but from all over the place on my books.
"I speak to people like Jimmy Quinn all the time and have got a lot of good contacts in the game.
"That will help if I ever want to go into management myself, but I'm not looking at that at this moment in time.
"I'm still enjoying playing football, but I'm not only in it for enjoyment. I'm still playing at a good level and I want to win things.
"And I think I've got a good chance with this Bitton side."
