If any young player ever feels disillusioned with the game and ready to hang up their boots, they may wish to get in touch with Clyde’s industrious striker Liam Cusack as he has been at the edge of walking away only to find out that the old adage of taking one step back to take two steps forward rings true.
Cusack seemed certain for stardom before a club’s financial woes got in his way, injuries and illness then ruined his first and second attempt to get playing again however, rather than complaining about the cards life had dealt him, the 22-year-old dusted himself down, played for enjoyment and development, before being recalled to the SFL by the Broadwood club.
It is not Cusack's first time in Bully Wee colours as he explained: “I was actually with Clyde Boys Club when I was aged 10. I used to travel out to Cumbernauld from my Barrowfield home and played for them before moving on to Hamilton Accies aged 14.”
Cusack was at New Douglas Park for three years before leaving to join the Gretna SPL rollercoaster in 2007 and at first, all was well.
Cusack explained: “I was in the youth team at Gretna and I was voted as the SPL Young Player of the Month in November 2007. When things started to go badly wrong and people were getting made redundant, I had to get special dispensation from UEFA to sign for a new club.”
Third Division football beckoned with Cusack saying: “Jim Chapman took me to Dumbarton and I went straight into their first team and played the last five games of the season. They were battling to avoid finishing bottom of the table and it was great to play first team football at last.
“I was only 18 at the time and despite being very different to playing youth football, I enjoyed it.”
Chapman then went on a programme of change at the club that laid the foundations for their title success the following season with Cusack saying: “There was a big turnaround in players that summer and I was one of only three or four players that were offered new deals to stay.”
Everything was going well until pre-season with Cusack explaining: “I suffered a medial ligament injury in a friendly match against Hamilton and that put me out for three months. I was only 19 and wanting to play but when I was ready to come back in, I was only getting the odd five to ten minutes of games. I did score my first senior goal in a 5-2 win over Berwick but I wanted more game time so I left just after Christmas.”
Cusack headed southwards again as he signed for Annan Athletic who were enjoying their first season as a SFL club.
Again things started well before taking a turn for the worse as he explained: “Harry Cairney took me down there and I played in four games before needing surgery to get my appendix removed. I got that done and by the time I was ready to come back, I had hardly played football for a year and could not force myself in the first team.
“I called it a day at senior level as I wanted to enjoy my football again. After the Gretna situation and two periods out, I was not enjoying being a football player.”
Rather than turn his back on the game altogether, Cusack decided to take a step back to the amateur ranks and he joined the Under-21 side, South Camlachie. The east end of Glasgow outfit are coached by former Clydebank and Motherwell midfielder Paul Harvey and in the summer of 2010, produced defender Darryl Meggatt for Queen’s Park.
Cusack is pleased with the decision he made explaining: “There were a lot of boys there that I knew and they were good players but most importantly, I was enjoying playing again. I went through a season without picking up an injury and that was really important to me and I scored 46 goals.”
Just over 12 months ago, Cusack had the chance to move to the Junior game however, he turned down all advances for his last season at Under-21 level with South Camlachie and it would be another goal fest as Cusack said: “I was determined to have another successful injury fee year. I got that and scored 35 times.”
Cusack’s form finally tempted scouts along to watch him as he explained: “Sports Pro Management worked hard on my behalf to get people along to watch me. Not many scouts go along to that grassroots level of football but they worked on getting someone to look at players who wanted a second chance in the game.
“That all led to a trial at Clyde in the summer which lasted about four weeks. The Manager, Jim Duffy, oversaw things and I am pretty sure he had not heard of me before but I did well enough to be offered a deal in pre-season.”
Fans of the Bully Wee will have been impressed by Cusack’s work rate and the way he ensures opposition defences do not get a minute's rest although he is keen to stress that there is more to his game than simply being industrious.
He said: “I have been really enjoying my time at Clyde but things were not really going my way in front of goal in the early stages. I was eight games in before I scored twice in a 3-0 success up at Elgin. The Manager and his assistant, Chic Charnley, just told me to keep working hard and something would happen.
“When you have been away from the senior game for a couple of years and you are a striker and not scored, all you want is to score a goal. Thankfully, I am up to three goals now after scoring again in our win against East Stirling.”
After taking time out to enjoy football, Cusack is able to appreciate playing at the Cumbernauld club as he explained: “Our training is really good and you cannot fail to learn under a great management team. We are quite a young side but there are senior players there to help you as well. Paul Hay, John Neill, Pat Scullion and Lee Sharp all help talk you through games.
“It has been well worth taking the step back to take the step forward. Some players step right out of football if they are not enjoying it after a couple of disappointments. I stepped back as opposed to stepping out and that was the best thing for me.”
Former club Annan visit Clyde this weekend and Cusack will be out to show the Galabank club how much the steps he has made have re-launched his career.
The frontman said: “We played there at the start of the season and were beaten 1-0 in a game we played well in.
"It is always good to go against one of your former sides and your former Manager and I am looking forward to reminding Harry what I can do.”
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