BORN in East Belfast in July 1958, a young Roy Walker began his football career with local youth club Torrin Boys.

A central defender by trade, Roy earned a move to professional football with English side Luton Town in the early seventies, but unfortunately the move to Kenilworth Road didn't work out as hoped.

In 1975, Walker returned to Northern Ireland and signed for Ards as at the age of 17 he embarked on a ten-year stint at the heart of the Castlereagh Park defence.

He joined Glenavon in July 1985 but failed to hold down a first team place at Mourneview Park and therefore moved across Mid-Ulster to Portadown the following season.

He was signed by then Crusaders manager, Jackie Hutton to join the Seaview outfit.

Walker became player-manager at Crusaders in September 1989, however his first season in charge was one of consolidation as the Crues finished joint bottom and found themselves having to apply for re-election - the club was in a mess.

His first trophy as a manager came in 1992 in the form of the County Antrim Shield when goals from Gary Blackledge and Sid Burrows sealed a 2-1 win over Glenavon at the Oval.

This was the beginning of the success as the following season the North Belfast side finished second in the Irish League, only losing out on the Gibson Cup on goal difference to Linfield. Walker had expertly gelled a mix of workmanlike players from both sides of the border, and were dubbed the 'Hatchetmen' but also had undoubted talent with the likes of Glenn Dunlop, Glenn Hunter, Sid Burrows and Kevin McKeown to name but a few.

Roy guided the Crues into Europe for the first time in 13 years and were undone by top Swiss side, Servette away from home after drawing the home leg 0-0. The 1993/94 season saw Roy and his Crusaders side lift the Ulster Cup with a 1-0 victory over Bangor, with future Ballymena United player Glenn Hunter scoring the decisive goal.

Against all odds and defying all critics Walker delievered the Irish League Championship to Seaview the following year for the first time in nearly 20 years. The team in red and black steamrolled their way to the Gibson Cup and clinched the title at the Ballymena Showgrounds in April 1995.

Amazingly, despite the limited budget compared to other sides in the League, Roy and his Crusaders side repeated the feat by winning the Championship again two years later. Coming back from a 12 point deficit from Kenny Shiels' Coleraine to clinch the title in the run-in.

European exploits to Denmark, Lithunaia and Georgia proved unsuccessful during the mid-nineties but Roy continued to fill the Seaview trophy cabinet with both the Gold Cup and the Stena-Line Trophy in 1996, and also the Football Writers' Manager of the Year award in 1997, for his role in the second Gibson Cup.

Walker brought his 11-year association with the Shore Road side to an end in the summer of 1998, when he resigned as manager of the Crues ahead of their Centenary celebrations dinner, seemingly having taken the club as far as he could.

Roy re-emerged soon after at Mourneview Park ahead of the 1998/1999 season, after being chosen to replace Billy Hamilton in the notoriously fickle County Armagh hotseat.

Intent on changing the Lurgan Blues from perennial under-achievers to potential title-challengers, he recruited a number of experienced players in Jeff Spiers, Lee Doherty and Steven Baxter for a tilt at the title.

A poor start to the League campaign meant that the Gibson Cup attempt didn't materialise, as Walker had to settle for the Mid-Ulster Cup in his first season; defeating Ards 3-1 in the final was one of the few highlights in an average season which seen Glenavon finish fifth in the Irish League.

The following season proved a bit more successful as Walker guided Glenavon to third in the table, and only missed out on second place on goal difference - as Linfield proceeded to run away with the Gibson Cup.

However, on the eve of the 2000/2001 season, Walker sensationally resigned as manager of Glenavon after only two seasons in charge at Mourneview Park.

The following few years seen him take a step back from management as Roy took time to focus on his business and church commitments, whilst also working as a analyst for BBC Radio Ulster's coverage of the Irish League.

In February 2006, Walker was offered the chance to manage the club he supported as a boy when Glentoran came calling following the resignation of Roy Coyle. However, Walker's commitments with business and the church meant that whilst flattered, he turned the job down - and Paul Millar took over the reigns at the Oval instead.

Just over a year later, he was given a second chance with the East Belfast club following Millar's disappointing reign. This time he had a different answer and Walker was appointed as the new manager of Glentoran on 24th May 2007.

The bubble burst just two days later though, when it became clear that Roy didn't possess the relevant coaching badges to allow him to manage the Glens in their UEFA Cup campaign. Despite rumours that he would take control after the European ties or even that he would take a position 'upstairs', he stepped down, allowing former Northern Ireland captain Alan McDonald to take over on Mersey Street.

This spurred the two-time Irish League winner on and throughout the 2007-2008 season he started the gruelling process of obtaining his coaching certificates from the IFA, competing his UEFA 'B' Licence and enlisting in his UEFA 'A' Licence soon after that, whilst still acting as a analyst for BBC Radio Ulster - he remained heavily involved in Irish League football.

After eight years out of management, his next calling came at the Braid, after the resignation of Tommy Wright. In a similar situation to Walker's a year previously, Jim Grattan was unable to take the Ballymena job - leaving the door open for the United board to head-hunt Walker for the position.

Despite a few weeks of deliberation, the former Crusaders and Glenavon man took the hot-seat at the Warden Street Showgrounds - as he hopes to end 20 years of misery for the Sky Blue faithful.

But as Mr. Walker told Ballymena supporters in his first programme notes... 'Keep the faith.'

Profile by Neil Coleman - 22/08/2008; Pictures: www.presseye.com