Footballer resumes career after cancer treatment

Former Cheltenham Town and Bristol Rovers footballer Eliot Richards is preparing to resume his career in America having overcome testicular cancer.

Just over a year ago, the 23 year old received the diagnosis and his career was put on hold as he battled the disease.

A product of Bristol Rovers academy, Richards spent 5 years with the club before being released following their relegation to the National League.

After spells at Exeter and Tranmere he joined Cheltenham but just a month later he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.

A park in Longwell Green, Bristol is an unlikely training spot for a professional footballer.

It's a far cry from the gyms and pitches Eliot is used to but he hopes sessions will provide him with the platform to resurrect a career interrupted by cancer.

Now, six months after being given the all clear, he's signed a three month deal with the Tampa Bay Rowdies, a club that also had Rodney Marsh on it's books in the 1980s.

Eliot has signed a three month deal, but hopes this is just the start of a career that just a few months ago looked to have ended.