Dan Burn believes learning his trade in non-league football helped sculpt him into the player he is today. The Newcastle United centre-back - who has excelled since a £13million January move from Brighton - was released by the Magpies in 2004 as an 11-year-old.
The brutal setback saw the Blyth-born defender join the youth ranks at his local club, Blyth Spartans, before earning a move to Darlington at 16. Burn climbed the pyramid further when Fulham came calling in 2011 and, following impressive stints at Wigan and Brighton, he is back at his boyhood club and revelling in his new-found cult hero status.
However, on Non-League Day, the 6ft 7in defender insists it was the rigours of English football’s lower ranks where he learned most about himself. Speaking to the club website, Burn said: “Everything I've done throughout my career has led up to this point. From being a kid, going into the men's game, and realising people are playing for mortgages, bills and stuff - it's really important.
