A native of Canada, defender Mark Rogers first made his Stevenage Borough debut in 2004 after joining the club on loan from Wycombe Wanderers. A series of impressive showings in our back line made him a favourite with fans too. He may have returned to the Chairboys once his loan ended, but it wasn’t the end of our time together. With more than 150 Football League outings to his name, he came back; securing a permanent deal in summer 2004.

His time with us after that point was marred by injuries, however. One year after signing, Rogers hung up his boots for good; knee and back problems making it no longer possible to go on. And that was a real shame. Not least because the defender had great command of the space around him. He’d made the right impression first time round. Not being able to build on that further leaves us with asking the question of ‘what if’.

And no one likes it when that happens.

Mark Rogers: Before Boro’

Before arriving in England and joining Wycombe Wanderers, Rogers played for Burnaby Canadiens while at university in Vancouver. It almost didn’t happen for the defender on these shores either; initially failing to get a work permit when the Chairboys swooped in.

Image: Kevin Coleman (if incorrect, please contact us and we’ll happily credit you)