Andy Neil meets Chris Holland, a once-promising star whose entire career was blighted by a single act of mindless violence

CHRIS Holland doesn't need reminding about the manic attack which threatened his whole career - it's the first thing to hit him when he opens his eyes in the morning.

To the untrained observer, the man once dubbed the next Gazza, looks like any normal 24-year-old.

But behind those bright eyes lies a painful secret.

Five years ago, Holland had the world at his feet - he was an England under-21 international, the great white hope of the Gallowgate End and, seemingly, the heir apparent to Gascoigne's footballing throne.

But one night, his whole life was brought sharply into focus when an ammonia attack threatened to leave him blind in one eye.

Holland was out with friends in Newcastle's Ritzy nightclub when the cowardly attacker squirted the evil spray into his face.

Initially, the pain wasn't so bad.

Hours later, he was told by a specialist he may never see again and his whole world collapsed.

As his parents kept a bedside vigil, Holland spent the next six weeks in intensive care, receiving eyedrops on the hour, every hour, night and day.

Finally, the decision came to operate and a cornea skin graft saved his sight.

Five years on, Holland has managed to rebuild his life and his career.

But he's left with a permanent reminder of that horrific ordeal.

"I still have funny days," said Holland. "In the mornings, it's pretty bad.

"My sight is quite blurred, it feels like I'm looking through fog, and I can only see so much in front of me.

"But, as the day goes on, it starts to clear.

"I struggle to see small writing and I couldn't drive if you covered up my left eye.

"But I can still do most things as well as I did before."

A graduate of the FA's now-defunct academy at Lilleshall, Holland was regarded as one of the hottest properties in schoolboy football when he signed professional forms with Preston North End.

And, under the guidance of youth team coaches Walter Joyce and Sam Allardyce, he made quick progress at Deepdale, forcing his way into the fringes of the first team.

But the arrival of long-ball merchant John Beck as first team manager hindered his development.

Holland's sublime talents looked increasingly out of place amid the rough-house tactics employed by Beck.

So, when Newcastle and Kevin Keegan came in with a £150,000 offer, he was soon heading north in a dream move.

A few weeks later, however, it suddenly transpired he could have signed for Blackburn - the club he has supported since childhood.

"Going to Newcastle was a great move for me - one day I was training with Preston, the next I was training with world class players.

"But I would have signed for Blackburn if I'd been told about their interest," said Holland, who used to live in Higher Croft, overlooking Ewood Park.

"I went on trial at Rovers for a week under Kenny Dalglish and played against Liverpool in an A team game.

"They later made a bid of £100,000 but I never got to hear about it because John Beck wanted to sell me to Newcastle as they'd offered £50,000 more." Holland's arrival on Tyneside sparked great excitement among Newcastle fans.

He looked and played like a young Paul Gascoigne, attracting rave reviews in the reserves, which later earned him a call up to the England under-21s.

But, with the trappings of success, came seduction.

And Holland admits it was difficult staying on the straight and narrow.

"At the time, there was temptation all over the place," said Holland, a former pupil at Darwen Vale.

"I was going out and blowing money because I had the cash to do it.

"You could splash out on cars and clothes and all that sort of thing.

"I wouldn't say I was a madhead, but I used to like going out and enjoying myself and I did get into a bit of mischief now and again.

"But since my son has been born, it has calmed me down quite a lot because it made me realise I had responsibilities.

"And now I am fully focussed on being a good dad to Casey."

Those initial comparisons with Gascoigne seem ironic now.

Both men were undoubtedly blessed with exceptional natural ability - an exciting mix of magic and mischief.

But a catalogue of injuries and accidents have prevented either from fulfilling their potential.

After a handful of first team appearances with Newcastle, Holland was sold to Birmingham for £650,000 in 1993 after Blues boss Trevor Francis saw him star for the Under 21s against Austria at Sunderland.

The move to St Andrews was a chance of a new start. Initially, things went well. He played in his favoured central midfield role, and once again he became a favourite with the fans. But things suddenly went wrong once Francis attempted to convert him into a winger and a rift developed between the pair.

"I'd always been brought up to enjoy myself but the way Trevor wanted me to play was too restrictive.

"I'm not a winger yet he insisted on playing me there and I began to feel depressed and stopped enjoying myself.

"Eventually, it got to the stage where he was always looking for excuses not to play me if everyone else was fit."

First team opportunities became ever more fleeting after that.

However, an injury crisis at the end of last season meant a recall for the play-offs against Watford. And, after two legs failed to separate the sides, it fell to Holland to keep the Blues dreams alive when the penalty shoot-out reached sudden death.

He missed and it was Watford who eventually went on to the Premiership's promised land.

"That was probably the worst feeling I've ever had - I just wanted the ground to swallow me up," said Holland.

Left to fester in the reserves again for the majority of this season, he's now hoping to relaunch his career with Huddersfield, after joining them in a £200,000 move last week. And, at 24, he still believes he can go on to fulfil the potential which made him one of the most talked-about teenagers in British football.

"I don't think I've lost my ability - I just haven't been in the limelight as much for people to see it since I left Newcastle.

"But I feel a lot better in myself now and this is a new start for me after a couple of years of being in and out of a team.

"Sometimes I just wish I could turn back time, not go to that nightclub, and see how my career might have progressed with full sight.

"But I can't complain at how things have turned out.

"At one point I thought I was never going to see again, never mind play football."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.