Alfie May opens up with a signature cheeky grin as he sits down in his kitchen. “I’ve only just woken up about 10 minutes ago!” he laughs. May’s currently enjoying a day off after helping Cheltenham Town come back to beat Walsall the night before. After playing Non-League football for years and working for his brother on a building site, he made headlines with a go-ahead goal for Cheltenham Town in the FA Cup 4th Round against Manchester City a few weeks ago.
“(Scoring) was an unbelievable feeling.” says May.
“I saw the ball drop and thought the keeper was going to collect it, but even if he did I would have volleyed him! I’ve got to go for the ball, so whatever’s in the way I’m kicking and throwing punches to get that ball in the net.”
“I didn’t know what to do in celebration, I was going to take my shirt off but then I thought ‘I’ve had too many yellow cards already this season!’”
If this wasn’t already enough, May caught the eye of Pep Guardiola, who singled him out as an ‘exceptional player with the quality to keep the ball’. The 27-year-old forward certainly won’t forget that quote in a hurry.
“I’ll take that all day long!” May grins, shaking his head in almost disbelief.
“That one will live with me forever. I’ll keep playing that to my kids and say: ‘dad did alright didn’t he?'”
May also details an great interaction he had with Man City wonderkid Phil Foden after the game, despite the youngster ultimately being the Robins’ downfall in the game with a man-of-the-match performance.
“He (Foden) has played in the Champions League, he’s played for England. He could’ve shown up and acted like Mr. Bigtime but for such a young lad he spoke so maturely. He clearly has a good head on him,” says May.
Coming up against football royalty like Man City didn’t look too likely for May a few years ago, when he was still playing non-League football at the age of 24. He looks prideful as he reminisces about playing in the lower leagues.
“I started non-League at 17 and it grows you up a lot,” says May. “I had the baggiest kit you’ll ever see!
“The lads there pushed me on, they know the talent that I had and they helped me along a lot. I’ll always treasure non-League.”
After so many failed trials and disappointments, May was close to calling it quits on his footballing career and going to work full-time with his brother in construction before he got that all important call from then Doncaster Rovers manager Darren Ferguson.
“Doncaster was my last option,” May recalls. “If I didn’t get that then that was me done for being a footballer.”
“I was standing on top of a scaffold waiting to put a roof on and an uknown number called me.” May recalls.
“I’m terrible at answering calls but my brother was there and he told me it could be them (Doncaster Rovers). When I answered I heard that big Scottish accent from Darren. He said he wanted to offer me a contract!”
Since then May has achieved promotion to League One before moving to Cheltenham Town in the summer in a bid for more game time. After arriving at the Jonny-Rocks he instantly knew that he had made the right decision.
“When I first signed the atmosphere and the lads in the corner made me feel right at home.” May smiles.
“I want to get another promotion on my CV, and I want that with Cheltenham 100%. The gaffer (Michael Duff) is amazing and this is where I’ve become a regular.”
May grins in content as he explains his plans to go back to working in construction with his brother post retirement from football. He’s had a marvelous career moving up the football leagues but seems almost excited to re-join the family business. That moment against Man City and that Guardiola quote will certainly make for a fantastic story on the building sites.
