Mark Hateley has spoken of how his father, Notts County legend Tony Hateley, was instrumental in immersing him in the world of football, and how the 56-year-old made sure to do the same with son Tom, now also a professional footballer.
The Hateley dynasty of pro players stretches three generations, with Tony impressing at a number of clubs besides Notts, including Aston Villa and Liverpool, where he remains just as loved as he is at Meadow Lane.
Son Mark, meanwhile, won 32 caps for England and scored plenty of goals for the likes of AC Milan, Monaco, Rangers, Queens Park Rangers, Portsmouth and Coventry City.
Now, Tom is currently enjoying a career as a pro footballer, having enjoyed stints at Motherwell and Dundee, plus a spell in Poland with Slask Wroclaw.
“My dad would take me into the dressing rooms and all that sort of stuff before and after games, and took me to watch games,” Mark told Herald Scotland.
“He had me in and around the training ground too, watching the attitudes of players, and I tried to do the same with Tom, and made sure he was aware of what was happening.
“I thought it would be good for him to see the reaction of players after winning and losing, and basically making him comfortable in that environment, just as I had become comfortable in it through my father.
“The standards I saw through my dad stuck with me throughout my whole career. It stands you in such good stead. I saw grown men fighting in training, the half-time punch-ups and all that stuff. You see situations after games and how much it means to people.
“It’s beyond a game of football, it introduces the grown-up world. That’s where I had an advantage, because I had experienced all of that before I got to the stage of being an apprentice or a professional football. Tom had the same experience.”
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