Walsall defender Liam Gordon on how catastrophic non-league debut made his stronger

Walsall defender Liam Gordon will never forget his first ever competitive appearance.

Walsall defender Liam Gordon.

Rewind to 2016 and Gordon was plying his trade in the eighth-tier with Ryman Division One South outfit Carshalton Athletic.

In a real baptism of fire, Gordon was handed his debut aged just 16 and learned a valuable lesson that day.

Gordon conceded a penalty and was shown a second yellow card as Carshalton were condemned to a harrowing 7-1 drubbing at the hands of Ramsgate.

For Gordon himself, the experience of being thrown in at the deep end eventually taught him to swim against the tide.

“Obviously I got the red card in that game but it was a big shift in mentality playing in men’s football,” he recalls.

“Growing up, I was used to play against men in my area but it wasn’t a proper competitive game.