BUT for a quirk of fate, new ambulance chief John Darley might have been a professional footballer.

He has just taken over as the patient services director for the Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service.

But as a young man, he nursed an ambition to play for his local club, York City, and was selected for a professional trial, playing centre-back.

Mr Darley said: "It was a great experience and if they'd offered me a contract, I'd have signed-up then and there. I really wanted to be a professional. Sadly, it wasn't to be, but I still enjoy playing five-a-side soccer."

The 36-year-old was previously assistant director of strategy and commissioning with Hambleton and Richmondshire Primary Care Trust.

After gaining an accountancy degree at Huddersfield University, he took a variety of jobs, including selling insurance and packing chocolates for Terrys, of York, before joining the NHS in 1991 as an information analyst with the former North Yorkshire Health Authority.

He said: "I want to work with the staff out in the stations, and the management team, because they're the building blocks."

Mr Darley, who lives in York, has a five-year-old son, Matthew.