Midland Heroes - Joe Hart, from Shrewsbury Town to the World Cup

A player who came up through the youth system at Shrewsbury Town and went on to compete at the absolute highest levels of the professional game.

Hart is the epitome of a local boy done good.

He was still a pupil at Meole Brace School the first time he was named as a 15-year-old substitute in a senior match-day squad for Shrewsbury Town back in 2003.

He went on to make 58 league and cup appearances between 2003 and 2006, including his debut against Gravesend & Northfleet the day after his 17th birthday, and is still revered by Shrewsbury Town fans despite playing a relatively small number of games for the first team.

Born on 19 April 1987, he grew up in Gains Park and attended Oxon Primary School and Meole Brace, helping the Shropshire Schools team reach a national final along the way.

He was also an accomplished cricketer and turned out for Shrewsbury and Worcestershire's second team aged just 14.

Just a normal kid

Speaking to the Shropshire Star last year, his former teammate and housemate Jamie Tolley remembers a "normal kid" yet someone who had "presence and confidence".

"He was just the most normal kid in the world to be honest," Tolley said.

"We knew he had a cricket route that he could have gone down but he favoured football and everyone is glad that he did. He was a level-headed young boy that came in with us lads and I think pretty early on we all said he is going to have some sort of career.

"He just had this presence and confidence in everything he was doing. At such a young age, it stands out massively.

"I have said many times to different people at maybe 17 or 18 he will play for England and I always wish, still to this day, that I put a bet on it as I would have earned a few quid."

Tolley said one of the best things for Hart's career was him starting off in a lower division which helped to send him on a path to become, in his opinion, the greatest footballer ever to emerge from Shropshire.

He added: "It was pretty ruthless in our dressing room, almost like an apprenticeship, and that helped him become strong mentally and thick skinned.

"He is the player that stands out an absolute mile to me. There have been other players like Billy Jones and Dave Edwards who have had magnificent careers and probably players older than that.

"But for him to win the stuff that he did, play for England…he has got to be the number one in my opinion."

A stellar career

Hart's career saw him have spells in the Premier League with Birmingham City, Manchester City and West Ham and amass 75 appearances for the England team, including being named in the squad for two World Cups and two European Championships.

He also enjoyed a loan spell in Italy with Torino and played in European club cup competitions including the Champions League for both Manchester City and Celtic.

His palmarès - to use a cycling term - includes two Premier League titles, a FA Cup and two League Cups and seven honours in just three seasons north of the border with Celtic.

In 2023, this made him the first man since Scottish footballing royalty Kenny Dalglish to win all three trophies on both sides of the border.

Pretty impressive stuff.

One of those titles was the now infamous match at Manchester City in 2012 when the team won the Premier League title, beating bitter rivals Manchester United via a Sergio Agüero goal with almost the very last kick of the entire season.

Among the iconic images of the day was Hart running around his penalty area, mouth agape as he punched the air in sheer delight at the spectacle that had just unfolded at the other end of the pitch (above).

Former teammate Tolley recalls: "That Agüero moment is shown religiously every single season and it is always him running off with his arms wide apart like a nutter."I was lucky enough to be there at the game and it is a memory that will stay with you for life - even though I am a United fan."

First team was his Everest

Despite reaching the very top of the game, Hart has always stayed connected to his hometown roots and described making it into the Shrewsbury Town first team as his Everest.

Speaking to Scottish title The National in 2023, he was reminded of how he was plucked out of school for that first spot on the Shrewsbury Town bench against Exeter in 2003 aged just 15.

"Exeter is a long way from Shrewsbury. League Two at the time, with the majority of the games, if it was under three hours you would travel on the day but with Exeter a really long way we went the day before," he recalled."It was an amazing experience. I had to get special permission from the school."I wasn't training regularly with the first team but it was needs must down at League Two at the time.""It really imprinted on me, especially with it my home town. It was my Everest to be a part of my club Shrewsbury Town."

The City transfer

Hart spoke about that 2006 transfer from Shrewsbury Town to Manchester City three years ago on the 'In The Stiffs' podcast which is hosted by former Shrewsbury Town players Sam Aiston and Gavin Cowan and Hart's long-time friend and former housemate Dave Edwards.

Hart, who joined City for an initial £600,000 rising to a total of £1.5million, told manager Gary Peters of his desire to explore interest in him from top flight clubs.

"My agent at the time said if you want that to happen, if you want the wheels to turn, it's something you're going to have to do," he told the podcast.

"I walked in 'alright Gary, is it alright if I speak to you after training?' and he said 'no problem Joe'.

"I said 'I'm pretty sure you're aware there's quite a lot going on above us, I really appreciate playing in the team and it's something I'm really focused on but I think it's important we talk and I let you know if stuff is to happen it's something I'm really interested in exploring'.

"I thought that was how things were done and bosh - a big change in the guy.

"(He said) 'you cheeky...who the f**k do you think you are? Walking in here with your Umbro (gear)'. All these things he helped me get were being thrown at me.

"All of a sudden his attitude's changed from telling me how good I am to saying 'you've been miles off it in recent weeks! You're replaceable like that, I've seen a million young people like you!'

"I thought 'OK' - as far as I was concerned that was it, he was going to completely throw me out the team, it was over."

Hart finally hung up his gloves aged 37 in 2024, after clocking up 550 senior league games and another 155 in cup competitions in a professional career spanning 21 years.

Not one to rest on his laurels, he has now joined the ranks of ex-pros behind the microphone on TV, appearing on BBC Match of the Day and TNT Sports' Champions League coverage.He also married wife Kimberley Crew in 2015 with whom he has two children.