Source: Northern_Echo
New boy Purkiss is aiming to climb ladder for second time
Having taken a step backwards in order to move forwards once before in his career, Ben Purkiss hopes to be able to repeat the trick after dropping down a level with Darlington.[LNB] As a teenager he was released by Sheffield United and then spent four seasons with Gainsborough Trinity before climbing up the football ladder - now he wants to do it again.[LNB] The right-back moved to The Northern Echo Arena last week, bringing to an end Mark Cooper's long-held desire to sign the 27-year-old.[LNB] He will make his debut in today's season curtain-raiser at home to Braintree Town having joined on loan for a month from Oxford United, though it could be extended, and it is a move which he hopes will prove beneficial long-term.[LNB] Purkiss was told at the end of last season by Oxford boss Chris Wilder that he could leave, so, naturally, he hoped to secure a move to another Football League club.[LNB] Having played all his football in non-League before joining Oxford last summer, he was reluctant to drop back into the Blue Square Bet Premier, where he previously spent three years with York City.[LNB] After a summer of disappointment, seeing a number of potential moves fall through, Purkiss dropped down a division.[LNB] "Ideally, I'd be in the league still," he admitted. "At the start of the summer I had a lot of phone calls from managers in the Conference, but I also had some from teams in League Two. Unfortunately, the longer it goes on, the more clubs fill their squads and it means that something that you're waiting on doesn't materialise.[LNB] "That happened three or four times this summer when it looked as though I was about to sign, but then it would fall through. Some people don't seem to view right-backs as an important part of the team and ended up putting a centre-back there, or a central midfielder, to see how it goes. Others would rather spend their money on strikers.[LNB] "So it's been a difficult summer but, hopefully, I will hit the ground running."[LNB] The scenario is not new to him. After being released by Sheffield United in 2003 he stepped out of full-time football to study law and French at Hallam University.[LNB] He intends to become a lawyer when he hangs up his boots, though he is not the only member of the Quakers squad to have gone into further education. Captain Ian Miller has a degree in sports science and exercise, though Purkiss admits a law qualification is unusual among his peers.[LNB] "I seem to talk about the degree every time I go to a new club!" he admitted.[LNB] "It is unusual though, I suppose. I was at Sheffield United when I was younger, I'd always been quite bright and I came to a bit of a crossroads - I wasn't enjoying my football and thought it might be time to take a step back and do a degree.[LNB] "I went to university and played part-time for Gainsborough Trinity. When I did my degree I found out how much I missed football and fortunately, towards the end, I got the chance to go to York.[LNB] "In three years there I played in the Trophy final and the play-off final. It was a decent team and at the end of that time I got the chance to go to Oxford.[LNB] "That's why I say I'm not so fussed about money because I've done four years in football and I've got something to fall back on when some other footballers haven't.[LNB] "I'm not trying to get as many pennies as I can, I just want to play at a decent club for a decent manager - hopefully that's what I've got here at Darlington."[LNB] Purkiss, who played 23 games for Oxford, expects Quakers to have a successful season.[LNB] "It's a trial period where we both find out about each other. We'll see whether I'm suited to how Mark wants to play and whether he suits me,'' he said.[LNB] "Initial impressions are that I like how he goes about things, which is in stark contrast to Oxford, where you've got someone screaming at you for 90 minutes, and that's because Mark trusts his players.[LNB] "There's a lot of players just happy to pick up money, but I've always tried to say that that's not the priority. I want to play at the highest level I possibly can with the best players.[LNB] "Coming here, first impressions are that it's a good group who should do well this year."[LNB]
