Colin Parry aims to score in a new role as a soccer hard man - on and off the pitch. The Salford actor was ruled offside earlier this year, when he played Robbie Winch, the possessive and violent ex-partner of Weatherfield male nurse Karl Foster. After filming four episodes as part of the Todd Grimshaw gay storyline, the ex-Buile Hill High School student transferred to a very different role. Still remembered as Mark Gibbs in Hollyoaks, Colin joined up with the Dream Team (Sky One, 8pm Sunday) for a new season, which kicks off on screen this weekend.
It finds Harchester United facing up to life after relegation from the Premiership - their punishment for match-fixing. It's not all bad news, as they've been allowed to keep their place in the Champions' League.
Former Boyzone star Shane Lynch appears in his first acting role, as incoming millionaire owner Eli Knox, who hires new manager Don Barker (Jon Morrison) and his sidekick Frank Stone, played by Colin, from Wigan.
"Centre-half Frank is a really hard-nut veteran of the lower leagues. He's been brought in as the bully boy to toughen up all these fancy Premiership stars who've been relegated," explains Colin, 27.
The joys ahead for the previously pampered players include a boot camp, with scenes shot on a real-life Royal Marines assault course. "That was really hard work," adds the new boy.
Just to complicate matters, Frank is married to the manager's flirtatious daughter, Jodie (Lucinda Rhodes Flaherty) and is a failed superstar.
"He was originally one of the golden boys of English football and captained England's Under-21s. But he never made it at the top level. Now he's joined a Premiership club, just after they've been relegated."
Action sequences in Dream Team are filmed at Millwall's ground in London, with ex-professional players involved as extras. "I've always considered myself a reasonably good player.
"Then, I turned up at the first training day and soon found out I wasn't all right at all. I just thank my lucky stars that Frank isn't supposed to be all that good. They cast the part brilliantly!"
Colin's first TV appearance - aged 15 - was a previous role in Coronation Street, as a teenage tearaway called Cookie. "I did a couple of episodes.
"He got into a building site when Jim McDonald was a security guard and, when Alf was the mayor, stole the flag off a car. After that, I just kept on going and doing other acting jobs."
He won plaudits for the ground-breaking Hollyoaks male rape storyline, which co-starred ex-Footballers' Wives actor Gary Lucy as victim Luke Morgan.
"That was four years ago, but people still remember it. Another cast member refused to do it, so they then asked us if we were OK with it - and we said yes. I thought I'd get death threats, but all the mail from viewers was good."
Other TV roles include a sniper in Heartbeat, garage owner in At Home With The Braithwaites, plus parts in Clocking Off, Stretford Wives, Crossroads and Casualty. Colin also appeared in Port at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre.
He spends Mondays to Fridays filming in London, returning home to see girlfriend, Christine, mum, Elaine, dad, John, and the rest of his family and friends at weekends.
Manchester United fan Colin has to make allowances after playing a footballer all week. "I've got three Man Utd shirts, and I wear all three every week when I'm down in London, just to annoy people!"
"But I've had to make a few sacrifices this season. I can't go home to see my girlfriend on a Friday night and expect her to let me go off to the football on Saturday afternoon, having spent the week away. I don't mind.
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