In the fourth of our five-part series looking at Craig Short's career, the Rovers defender reveals how despair turned to elation at the Millennium Stadium

IT'S no shock that the highest and lowest points of Craig Short's career have both been during his spell at Blackburn Rovers.

However, it's surprising to hear that they both occurred on the same day!

The date, February 24, 2002. The event, the Worthington Cup final at the Millennium Stadium.

Short, whose contribution in getting Rovers to the final included an extra time winner in the third round against Middlesbrough, found himself frozen out through suspension.

But the despair turned to delight within just two hours as he joined in the wild celebrations that followed the final whistle.

Aside from those two consecutive play-off wins with Notts County in the early 1990s, it was the first time that the 33-year-old had been involved at a club when it won a major final.

The 2-1 victory over Spurs helped blur those painful images from earlier in the day when he sat in the stands alongside Garry Flitcroft, who was also serving a similar sentence.

And Short also vividly recalls the sinking feeling he got at Fulham when he knew he would have to play the role of spectator at the Cardiff spectacle.

"That was my lowest point in football," he said. "I raised my arm trying to hold off Steve Marlet and I caught him - he went down like he'd been shot.

"He knew perfectly well because he admitted afterwards that I'd hardly touched him.

"That was my second red card in the space of five weeks and suddenly people are saying I'm a thug.

"I knew then I was getting a ban because I'd done the same thing at Sunderland on Boxing Day with Kevin Kyle, trying to hold him off.

"I appealed but I missed the final and me and Flitty were both sat on the bench. The lowest point of the day was when the team went out -- but the highest part of my career was when they won.

"It was a great day apart from the build-up, when the teams are lining up at the beginning, that's when it hits you.

"Nissa Johansson played instead of me and played really really well, it was just a really good day all round.

"Spurs thought they were going to turn up and beat us but next thing we've turned them over and we're in Europe.

"I'd scored at Wembley for Notts County and got promotion with Rovers, but that was a big relief more than anything. Winning the Worthington Cup topped all that."

It was one of the occasions when Short has paid the price for being from a physical background.

An arm in the face in an East Yorkshire non-league tussle is followed by a quick handshake and a laugh about it over a pint of John Smith's in the bar afterwards.

So it's no wonder Short's main gripe about the modern game is the way the top players don't show as much grace and dignity in physical challenges as they do on the ball.

He added: "I've played against a lot of lads when arms are being raised and it used to be part of football for me.

"That's one thing I hate about the game now, you can't touch anyone, and even if you don't you can still be penalised.

"It's like Robert Pires last year against Portsmouth - the referee can't see it on the day but on video you can see he dived. Give him a three-game ban, you'd never see him do it again.

"The FA keep saying they are going to stamp it out, but if you are guilty of cheating in cricket or athletics you're banned and you should be in football.

"If Keown and Van Nistelrooy can be done for violent conduct on a video replay, then why can't the cheats be?

"They don't need to do it. I don't understand why they do it when they are that skilful."

It's small wonder that Short was so pleased to catch Mark Hughes at the tail-end of his career, especially when Rovers were languishing in the First Division.

But hardened warriors like these were two of the few Rovers players who revelled in that environment.

"Mark Hughes played at Huddersfield and had a really good battle with Chris Lucketti," said Short. "He came off the pitch saying 'I loved that because I don't get in the Premier League any more, I'm not allowed to touch anybody.'"