Striker Dave McEwen is preparing himself for the possibility that he might be playing his football away from White Hart Lane next season.
The 23-year-old arrived from non-League outfit Dulwich Hamlet on a part-time basis in January 2000, before becoming a full professional in the March following the completion of his business degree.
His contract expires at the end of the current campaign and he is facing a nervous wait to discover where his future lies.
"My contract is up in the summer and that’s the way it is at the moment," said Dave. "I’ll have to keep playing as well as I can and if that’s good enough then that’s good enough, if it isn’t then I’ll have to move on. We will just have to wait and see what happens.
"All I can do is try and get games, do as well as I can, then it’s up to the manager if he thinks I’m good enough."
While it is obvious that Dave would relish an extended stay at the Lane, he also hankers after regular first team football and would be prepared to drop a division to realise that aim.
"Of course you’re not happy, it’s a great club and you want to prove yourself but, at the end of the day, you want first team football and if that means taking a step down then that’s what you’ve got to do.
"I’ve come into the game very late and still very inexperienced, still raw, and as I was late, I’m 23, I’ve got to start thinking of trying to establish myself and get first team football. If I can’t get that at Tottenham I’ll have to look elsewhere and see what my options are."
Having entered the full-time game late, Dave is not quite sure in terms of what level he would excel.
"I don’t know, as I’ve never really played at many levels before. Tottenham is the first club I have played professionally with so you cannot really say. I would be nice to go on loan so I could get a taste of it.
"I’ve played against second division sides for Crawley and Dulwich and didn’t feel out of my depth, but you can’t say unless you play there.
"I nearly got a loan move this season but broke my toe and couldn’t go there. I was then out for six weeks, got a little run in the first team and that was put on the back-burner."
Despite having the option of falling back on his degree, Dave is determined to make a living for himself in football.
"You get a taste for it and it’s brilliant, the best career in the world. I will do everything I can to keep a professional career going. The whole point in going to university was in case things do not work out, to give me more options.
"But I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it, until then I’m happy playing football."
The uncertainty over his future has not affected Dave by playing on his mind, as his recent goal record confirms.
"You can’t really think like that. I have confidence in my ability so that is all that matters.
"I’d like to get something sorted out before the summer because you don’t want to go on holiday with that hanging over you. I am confident that if I do have to take a step down I can prove myself there. The rest, we’ll see."
By Richard Hubbard
