The return of Dom Ball to Pittodrie was a welcome move, particularly in the light of his starring role in Aberdeen’s miserly end to last season when the Dons all but refused to give up a goal in the post-split fixtures.

Not only popular for his football, Dom is a great character around the club, the kind who keeps spirits high whatever the results, an essential component at any club through a long grinding campaign, as he recognises.

“I get on with everyone, not just the players in the dressing room and on the training ground, but all the coaches, the medical staff, media staff. Everyone offers something and I enjoy speaking to people. I enjoy coming into work and having a laugh with everyone. There are times when we need to get our heads down and get the work done, but it is important to be positive around the stadium the rest of the time.

“It is such an enjoyable place to work. We are always up to something in the dressing room! The team spirit has always been good here but even then, it has picked up massively the past few weeks”.

All of that said, life here hasn’t always been easy for Dom of the Dons.

“It was tough at Aberdeen at first, mainly because I had not played for four or five months. I came up here and was not match fit. You can only get match fit by playing games, which I was not getting enough of. I was then ill for a while, so I did not feel settled. But since I came back after the winter break, everything has been great, my football, my happiness, my life.

“I was very intense during that period. I have come off it a bit now and tried to relax and enjoy it a bit more. I was maybe putting too much pressure on myself. I sat back one day and realised that if you are playing for this club, you must be a decent footballer. Just go out and enjoy it, go out and win games and enjoy that feeling. That mentality has helped me a lot”.

Dom’s has been a life lived in the service of football this far, right back to when he was a kid growing up in England’s home counties.

“I grew up in Welwyn Garden City which is just north of London. I grew up in the old town, Old Welwyn, a little village which is only 20 minutes by train to London.

“I was always playing football as a youngster. From the team I played for, four of us landed up in academies. I was at Watford, one was at Spurs, one was at Chelsea and the other at Norwich. I went on trial at Watford when I was ten and I was offered something then, so since then I have been attached to a club.

“At that age, you don’t really think much about it or that you are going to be professional footballer. I just played and enjoyed it and kept going and going. Even when you get to the point when you are a professional player, you’re still not where you want to be. You set yourself new targets to get as high as you can in the game.

“I was with Watford for five years then got released when I was 15. It was a bit of a surprise, but from there, I went on trial at Norwich, Ipswich, Leicester City, QPR and Spurs. I got offered the chance to join all of them! As Spurs was the best option, I joined them. I was at White Hart Lane for six years, during which time I went on loan to Cambridge and Rangers and then I signed for Rotherham. I’m now in my third year at Rotherham and in my second loan spell at Aberdeen. I feel old now, talking through all that! I’m only 22!

“Spurs are a really well run club. When I was released by Watford, I was disappointed, but to be picked up by such a big club was a blessing, so good for my development. Being released was a wake up call and I knew I had to work harder from then onwards. When you are in an academy, you have to keep improving year on year.

“The sort of players who have come through the Spurs system, they are obviously doing something right. I did well but when it got to first team level, it didn’t quite happen for me. You need a bit of luck. There was one game when I was sure I was going to get on, a Europa League game and we had already qualified, but we needed to win the game to be top of group. We were 1-0 up but our strikers could not score a second. Had they done, I would have got on but they just could not hit the target that night! It is about taking your chance, but you need things to fall for you to get that chance in the first place.

“John McDermott was Head of Coaching and player development, he was a great guy and a great coach. We did not always get on, but he just wanted the best for me and all his players. I can see that now. He was a big influence on my career. Alex Inglethorpe, who is now at Liverpool, was also my coach there.

“One of my really good mates is Harry Winks. Harry has been injured this year, but I had expected him to go to the World Cup. At the start of the year, he was starring in the win against Real Madrid, was in the Spurs team every week and was in the England squad. I still think he will play for England and I believe he is the missing link in the national team at the moment because of the way he plays. In my reserve team, Harry Kane was just moving up as I was coming into it. Tom Carroll was in the same boat. I am still very close with him.

“Andros Townsend was there, Alex Pritchard who is at Huddersfield now was there. Tottenham have produced a lot of players for England, they have done that for years now. The problem is that not enough other clubs down south are doing the same.

“As we have seen in recent years, the England youth teams are very strong and have been winning almost everything. The English players at U21 level and below are amongst the best in the world. But the difference between us and the other top European countries is the lack of opportunities. When players get to 21 or 22, they are having to go on loan or go and play in the Championship or League One or come up to Scotland to play football.

“That’s different to the type of football they would be playing in the EPL. The football that teams play in the Championship is very different to the Premier League. If you look at the Spanish or German leagues, young players get a chance in the top league. The development for English players has slowed down because not enough players are getting a chance. The issue will get tucked away for now because England had a relatively successful World Cup, but not enough is being done to tackle the problem.

“It is hard for young players when they come up against those problems at bigger clubs and you can’t get game time. Even if you move on, it can be tricky. The last two years have been tough. I was always at Spurs and it was all about development, they were putting me into clubs who cared about me and looked after me. You’re still a big kid really.

“Then I moved to Rotherham United and it was more like real life! It was a bit of a shock to the system. Within the space of four months, we had three new managers. Two of them liked me as a footballer, one of them didn’t, so I went out on loan. I could have stayed and tried to fight for my place, but I was impatient as I wanted to go out and play. I went to Peterborough and played there a few months and then I went back to Rotherham and tried again before the option to come here was first discussed. When you feel there is a better option, you go.

“Last year was also tough, coming into a new place and not knowing anyone, not really having confidence in yourself and your football. But since Christmas, I have absolutely loved it. I have enjoyed my football and it has been so much better. I really do love it here now.

“I came back into the side towards the end of the season and things have been very good since then. Defensively, we look good. We only conceded one goal in the post-split games last season which was a great achievement. Over our last nine domestic games, we have conceded three goals. If we can keep that consistency in the league and in the cup games, we have a good chance of doing something this season.

“Wherever I am playing, that is an important part of my game, whether I am playing in the middle, or at the back. If I help the team keep a clean sheet I have done a job. As defenders, we can help up the other end as well, but our primary job is to defend”.

Mark Reynolds was quoted in this publication last season as saying, “Of any footballer I have ever met, Dom has the most things happening in his life outside football!” Has that changed any?

“I was doing so many different things. Now I just go home and try and relax. I still do a lot of reading, some writing and I play the guitar. I still have a business I am trying to develop and I am also doing my business degree. I still have a few things on the go! Put it another way, I don’t worry so much about what is going to happen in the future. I enjoy the moment more. But I enjoy doing all these things. I enjoy learning.

“It’s the same with football. I want to get everything I can out of it. I don’t want any regrets. I don’t want to look back and think, “Why didn’t I do that, why did I hold back with that?” But the biggest thing is I don’t want to think, “Why did I not enjoy it more?” It is the best job in the world and every day is fun.

“I appreciate the support the fans have given me. I had not shown what I could do or what I was about when I first arrived at the club. Sometimes it is hard to change people’s impression and perception of you, but I think I have done that. I always give my all for the team and hopefully I can impress them even more this season”.