David Lee’s season-and-a-half with Southampton, spent mostly in the Reserves, was a disappointing interlude in an otherwise flourishing career in Greater Manchester.

A fast, direct winger, David had had six seasons at Third Division Bury, virtually his home-town club, chalking up more than 200 appearances.

With Rod Wallace departing just before he arrived, new manager, Ian Branfoot, made David his first signing, gambling that he could make the step up to Division I. The gamble produced moments of excitement – he could motor – but never really paid off. A spell in 1991-92, in which David started six games on the trot was as good as it got.

He had but one appearance as sub to show for the following season, the first of the Premiership. Loaned to third-tier Bolton, he soon signed permanently and stayed with them through successive promotions to the Premiership. After which, he still had more than 100 League games left in him, before he ended his playing days at non-league Morecambe. Since when, he has held various coaching positions at two of his former clubs: Wigan and Bolton. When his former Bury team-mate became Bolton’s manager in 2016 David was promoted to be the manager of the U23s but in June 2019, with the club in serious financial difficulties he was back in charge of the development squad but still admitted to harbouring ambition to one day be the Trotter’s new manager.