A BLACKPOOL man who has not played soccer since his schooldays is preparing for a penalty shoot-out that could net him £100,000.

Roger Buckley, 32, of Albany Avenue, simply entered a competition on a cereal packet and was astonished when his tie-breaker got him through to the final to win 1million francs - equivalent to £107,000.

And on Wednesday (Feb 25) he will try to put all thoughts of Gareth Southgate's crucial missed penalty for England in Euro '96 behind him when he faces up to former England and West Ham goalkeeper Phil Parkes.

Roger is one of five finalists in Cheerios' Kick and Win a Million competition due to take part in the sudden-death shoot-out in front of thousands of fans at half-time during QPR's home game against Sheffield United on Wednesday night.

Each finalist will receive coaching from former Manchester City and QPR stars Rodney Marsh and Stan Bowles, and the shoot-out itself will be hosted by England coach Glenn Hoddle.

Roger, who works for Guardian Financial Services and is a Blackpool and Manchester United fan, said: "I'm really excited about the whole thing but when I start thinking about the money I get nervous. I'll be pleased if I manage to get the ball on target.

"As far as winning is concerned, my wife has already planned how she'd spend the money - having just had our third child we'd like to move to a bigger house in Blackpool so our other sons, Nathan, 7 and Joshua, 5, can each have their own bedroom."

Cheerios' manufacturers Nestle Cereals are worldwide official breakfast cereal suppliers to the 1998 World Cup in France.

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