Alan McCallum

**Alan James McCallum** was a former professional footballer and biological father of Jamie Cooper in the fictional TV series, Wonderkid. He tragically passed away just two days before the 2030 World Cup Final in a car accident.

Over his 17-year professional career, he amassed a grand total of 468 goals, 327 assists, and 795 points all in 456 appearances in league competitions. He is the all-time leading scorer for the Blackpool Knights with 234 goals, and is tied for the all-time England Men's National Team scoring record with his son, Jamie. He is also second all-time in goals for North London FC with an identical 234. Alan became the youngest player in Premier Division history to score a hat-trick, which he did in his professional debut at just 17 years old. He broke the record for most goals by a rookie in a Premier Division season with 30 in 1997-98. He earned the Golden Boot as the league's top scorer that same year, also becoming the youngest player to do so. At just 18, Alan was already shattering records, something that would become a recurring theme in his career.

Alan retired after the 2013-14 season concluded, which he spent with his old club, Blackpool. He went out on top, scoring 50 goals and 30 assists for a career best 80 points. Some fans felt betrayed by his decision, and thought that he could still keep playing at an unreal level. However, Alan felt that his body couldn't take much more of the stress of professional football.

Alan won the Premier Division league title a total of 4 times, twice with Blackpool and twice with North London. He won the King's Cup 5 times, twice with Blackpool and three times with North London. He also won the European Club Cup on two separate occasions, once with each of his respective clubs. Shockingly enough, both of these wins were to complete a treble, a feat Alan only did twice in his career.

Alan's International reputation speaks for itself. He is tied in all-time goals for England with his son. They both have 166 for the Three Lions. In 139 caps, Alan added 97 assists to his 166 goals for a total of 263 points, a record that would ultimately be broken by his son.

## Early Life

Alan McCallum was born on November 24, 1979, in Manchester, UK. He grew up as the only child of a single father, because his birth mother left after a divorce. She didn't want to take Alan with her, and so he ended up in the custody of his father. His childhood was rough, as his dad drank his sorrows away and neglected him. However, Alan found his passion for football. He enjoyed playing with the other kids at the schoolyard, as it provided him with an escape from his miserable life at home.

## Domestic Career

### Junior Club

On his 16th birthday, Alan rode his bike over 10km to a tryout for a junior club. Alan was far and away the best player at the tryout, attracting attention from some scouts attending the tryout. Alan made the team, and traveled that same 10km nearly every day to attend training and matches. After a big fight with his father, Alan left the house to go stay with one of his teammates and their family. He played for the junior club for another year before being offered a tryout by the Blackpool Knights.

### Blackpool Knights

##### 1997-1999: Breakout Talent

Alan drove himself all the way to Blackpool for the tryout, where he impressed the clubs manager so much, he was given a contract offer the next morning. Alan signed a two-year deal with the Blackpool Knights. His housing, equipment, and training was now all paid-for by the club so that Alan could fully focus on his development now. However, as a young, up-and-coming superstar, Alan was using his free time for many other things. He took advantage of his newfound fame and larger paycheck and used it to spend his time partying and hooking up with girls.

While this lifestyle certainly angered management, it didn't seem to affect Alan's play on the pitch. His professional debut saw him score a hat-trick, making him the first player to ever do such a thing. In his next 20 matches, Alan scored 22 goals, capped off by 8 more assists for a total of 30 points. In January 1998, he won the Premier Division's Player of the Month, becoming the youngest player to ever do so at just 18 years and 2 months old. He finished his rookie season with a staggering 30 goals in 35 games, the most of any rookie ever in history. He won the Golden Boot as the Premier Division's leading scorer in the 1997-98 season, becoming the first rookie ever to do so.

Alan continued his fine run of form into the 1998-99 season, lifting an underdog Blackpool Knights side to a shocking 5th place finish. He also led them to a semi-final appearance in the King's Cup tournament. However, he didn't top his rookie season in goals. He finished the year with 28 goals in 38 games. He didn't let that get him down, as he continued to thrive in the spotlight. Younger fans were growing increasingly fond of Alan because of his good looks, and charming, charismatic personality. His arrogance and confidence did tend to hurt him though, as he often clashed with veteran teammates and members of management over minor issues.

##### 1999-2003: The Star of the Show

Alan McCallum became Blackpool's star after declining multiple offers from big clubs to sign a six-year extension with the Knights. He earned the respect and admiration of Blackpool fans for his outstanding play and underlying loyalty to the club. In the 1999-00 season, he topped his previous personal record with 32 goals in 38 games. He led Blackpool to a fourth place finish, and a spot in European competition. He also helped them reach the semi-finals of the King's Cup tournament once again, but they lost to a much stronger Merseyside Mariners team.

Unfortunately, Alan's 2000-01 season was plagued with injuries. Up to this point, Alan had not missed a single game of his career because of injury, which is a big reason why he was able to score so consistently. In the third game of the season, Alan suffered a stress fracture in his tibia. He played through the rest of the match on it, which only made it worse. He was sidelined for two months. When he returned, he only got to play another three games before suffering another injury. Alan dislocated his knee, taking him out for about seven weeks. Other minor injuries continued to nag on Alan during this season, rendering him essentially useless. It did showcase the true value of Alan to his club, however, as they finished the season in 15th place.

The now 23 year old was entering his fifth year with the club, and his fifth in professional football. He was already a household name because of his immense talent and charming personality. Whether the fans loved him or hated him, he was there to stay.

In the summer of 2001, Alan met Taylor Turner at a local pub. She had moved to Blackpool from Wolverhampton, along with her best friend. As they grew closer, Alan began playing better and better. After they officially got together, he was scoring at a historic rate. In the 2002-03 season, he scored an all-time record 51 goals in 36 games, a feat that would never even come close to being beaten until a prime Jamie Cooper did it 27 years later. On top of that, Blackpool won the treble, winning the domestic league, King's Cup, and European league. Alan was on top of the world, but that wouldn't last.

##### 2003-2006: The Fall

Taylor passed away after complications with childbirth. Initially, Alan took half of the 2003-04 season off to grieve and care for his son. Alan eventually decided to give up on being a father and committed himself to football. However, he struggled to reach the level of play he previously was playing at. In the 2004-05 season with Blackpool, Alan scored just 5 goals. After the season ended, Alan decided not to re-sign with Blackpool. He took the 2005-06 season off, taking time to properly grieve the loss of the love of his life. He checked in on his young son, albeit from a distance. He had his good friend, Oliver Cooper, give him weekly updates on how Jamie was doing.

### North London FC

##### 2006-2007: Signing With Hewitt

After taking a season off for his mental health, a thing that was very rare for an athlete to do at the time, Alan returned to football. Rumors were floating around that John Hewitt, manager of North London FC, had spoken to Alan one-on-one. Alan signed a one-year contract with Hewitt's North London club for the 2006-07 season. People were worried that Alan would never reach the heights he found at Blackpool. The 29 year old was only estimated to have a few more good years before he would start naturally declining as he aged. However, this is the Ace we were talking about, and he was now playing under one of the best tactical masterminds of all time.

John Hewitt understood what Alan was going through. He gave him some time before bringing him into training camp. Alan flourished with Hewitt as manager. He scored 42 goals in his first season back, and then signed a massive six-year extension in 2007-08 worth a record amount of £150 000 per week. With newfound momentum and a fat paycheck, Alan was locked in.

##### 2007-2010: Prime

In the 2007-08 season, Alan entered what many consider to be his prime years. At 27 years old, Alan still had a lot left to give. He finished the first season of his contract with 48 goals in 38 games, the most he would ever score in one season during his time at North London. Hewitt's creative 4-3-2-1 formation took over the league, as it was a natural fit for Alan and the North London attack. One very impressive highlight that Alan had during this season was a 5-goal performance against AC Rochdale, a feat that had not been accomplished since English legend Jeffrey Swanson did it back in 1932. Alan tied the Premier Division record for most goals in a single game with this performance. On top of this, North London finished top of the league, won the King's Cup, and came one game away from completing the treble. They fell just short in the European Club Cup Final, 1-2.

Alan's 2008-09 season was just slightly less productive. He still managed to score 37 goals and 29 assists for 66 points, just 7 shy of the previous season's 73.

## International Career

Alan McCallum is widely regarded as one of the greatest international performers of all time. Along with his son, he holds the world record for most goals scored in international matches. Throughout his 17-year career, Alan played a total of 139 International matches, second-most in England's history. He scored a whopping 166 goals, as well as 97 more assists for a grand total of 263 points. That's a number that nobody should have even come close to touching, if it weren't for his own son.

### U21 Appearances

Alan was a highly touted prospect coming out of junior football. He was recruited by the England Under-21 National Team at 18 years old in the year 1997. He appeared in seven friendlies and scored 9 goals. He also helped lead England to a U21 World Cup win. He played all seven matches, scoring 12 goals to earn himself the Golden Boot for the tournament. The next year, Alan appeared in only two U21 friendlies before getting called up to the senior team.

### Men's National Team

##### 1998-2001

Alan appeared in the 1998 World Cup, scoring 3 goals in 3 appearances before England was eliminated in the Quarter-Finals by Brazil. In the same year, he also participated in his first Euro Qualifiers, getting subbed on in two different matches and scoring one goal.