Billy Sharp bagged his sixth promotion in 21 years as a professional at the end of last season – then promptly signed a new contract at Doncaster Rovers to extend his career into his 40s.
“I thought about retiring two years ago when I didn’t get another contract at Sheffield United.
I didn’t think I could wear another shirt,” the boyhood Blades fan tells FFT.
‘When are you going to stop?’
“But LA Galaxy gave me an opportunity to experience something different with my family, then I came back to the EFL with Hull, and now I’m in League One again.
“I’ll be 40 in February – my wife keeps asking, ‘When are you going to stop?’, but I don’t know when I will.
"While I’m contributing with goals and promotions, and my body still allows me to play, it’s hard for me to stop.”
In injury time of the penultimate game last season, Sharp charged through on goal to put Doncaster 2-0 up at home to Bradford and confirm their rise from League Two.
It was a fairytale end to his first season back at the club.
“The fans know what the club means to me – in my first spell, they helped me through some tough moments in my life,” he says, referencing the tragic death of his newborn baby at two days old in 2011.
“MY WIFE KEEPS ASKING ME ‘WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO STOP?’ BUT I DON’T KNOW WHEN I WILL”
“Promotion last season was as sweet as ever – the sixth promotion was every bit as special as the first.
"I’ve been lucky enough to do League Two to League One now – I’d done League One to the Championship a couple of times, and the Championship up to the Premier League three times.”
Few have a better understanding of how to ascend the pyramid – and now Sharp is ready to pass on the secrets of a successful promotion campaign…
Togetherness
“The changing room is the biggest thing at the start – everyone has to be pulling in the same direction.
"You’re going to have players who don’t play much, but they’re probably the most important, so it’s all about keeping them onside and enjoying training.
"They’ll be needed at some point. You go through ups and downs in a season, so individuals need to pull everyone together.
“The manager rallies the lads when things aren’t going great and keeps them level-headed when it’s going well.
"At Scunthorpe early in my career, Nigel Adkins was the physio at first, then all of a sudden became the manager and we got promoted.
"Later, he took me to Southampton and we got promoted to the Premier League. I was promoted twice at Sheffield United under Chris Wilder, from League One and then out of the Championship, then with Paul Heckingbottom from the Championship again.
"At Doncaster, it’s been brilliant playing for Grant McCann, too.”
Momentum
“When the season starts, it’s important to bag early wins and get momentum going, which creates belief and hunger.
"We won promotion quite comfortably with Scunthorpe, and with Sheffield United when we got out of League One in 2017.
"We won the latter with three games to go, then there were other things like 100 points to achieve, which we did.
"We’d been in League One for six years, so it was sheer relief to get out of that league – to do it with my boyhood club was an unbelievable feeling.”
A Prolific Striker
“The teams that get promoted have a 20-goal-a-season man.
"If you don’t quite get that, it’s important to keep 20-plus clean sheets.
"To score 30 as captain and get Sheffield United out of League One was probably the pinnacle for me, and scoring 32 for Scunthorpe the season I won my first promotion is another great memory.
"I also got 23 in the Championship for Sheffield United when we got promoted in 2019 – only Teemu Pukki, Neal Maupay and Tammy Abraham were ahead of me.
"Even last season, scoring 12 for Doncaster was a big contribution – I didn’t play quite as much, but I felt I contributed to a squad that achieved promotion.
“When my team’s supporters chant my name, and opposition fans shout abuse at me, then I know I’m doing something right.
"I’ve always loved the banter with opposition fans – there’s no better feeling than scoring in front of your own fans, or in front of opposition fans.
"If they’ve given me a bit of stick, I like to give a bit back in that moment!”
Grind It Out
“The ones who are the most disciplined, most professional and deep down want it the most tend to succeed.
"When the weather’s not great, it’s about grinding out results.
"Then when the sun’s shining at the end of the season, you remember those times in the winter – cold nights, horrible pitches, the times when you’ve stuck together and found results.”
Don't Panic
“When I was promoted to the Premier League with Sheffield United in 2019, we were battling with Leeds and had to come through a few blips.
"Then we beat them and got promotion.
"At Doncaster last season, we were third, fourth, fifth, stuttering along, then suddenly went top over Easter, won our final home game to secure promotion, and in the end didn’t even need to win on the last day to win the league.
"If you look at the table – I think I only did once, right after the last game – you’d probably say we won the league comfortably.”
Seize The Moment
“I came on as a sub and scored against Walsall late last season, then got sent off against Wimbledon.
"It was a soft red card, but it was stupid from me, I’m experienced enough not to retaliate and react to things.
"I did my punishment over the Easter weekend – luckily the three games I missed were in quick succession and we got seven points.
"I came back to score against Bradford and seal promotion. Quite a month!
“Actually I’d been having a little niggle with my knee, and the rest helped me – I felt great when I came back.
"We were 1-0 ahead, then our goalkeeper Teddy Sharman-Lowe made a penalty save and the game stopped for five minutes with crowd issues.
"What happened after was completely surreal. The game was at a standstill, then the whistle went, goal-kick, a flick-on, I was through, scored, and the rest was history!”
Enjoy it
“We celebrated well last season – the staff came out with us, it was nice to let your hair down and celebrate together after all the hard work.
"When I got out of League One with Sheffield United, Northampton away when we clinched promotion was unreal.
"It was a party for two or three hours on the bus back – the window nearly blew through as the music and the lads were so loud!
"I can remember partying after that, too – two or three weeks of celebrating together.
"My wife was saying to me, ‘When are you going to come home?!’
"We still had games left to play as well – how we won those matches, I’ll never know!"
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