THE cups have not been kind to Matt Crooks.

He had been with Accrington Stanley, on loan from Huddersfield, for less than a month when he was presented with the chance to secure arguably the biggest game in the club’s history.

The prospect of a money-spinning FA Cup third round meeting with Manchester United last season was at his feet in the second round replay at Yeovil.

He missed, and the Reds missed out.

On the weekend the Reds should have been facing the Red Devils they instead went to Exeter City, and won.

Consolation came later in the season when those three points helped guarantee their place in the Football League with three games to spare.

Crooks has since come to terms with ‘what might have been’ to resurrect his career with Stanley, penning a permanent deal following his Terriers release in February. And having mistakenly been signed originally as a striker after playing well up front against the Reds while on loan at Hartlepool, he has gone on to establish himself in a more natural holding midfield role.

He has found finesse in front of goal too in pre-season, scoring once in Stanley's friendly with Nelson and twice in their 4-2 win over Burnley in management duo John Coleman and Jimmy Bell’s testimonial, including a delightful dink over goalkeeper Matt Gilks.

So it was a cruel blow when, with the Capital One Cup scalp of Hull City on the cards, he missed a decisive spot kick.

After holding last season’s Premier League side 0-0 after 90 minutes and 2-2 after extra time, with Crooks scoring the first equaliser to help take the first round tie to penalties, he fired over from 12 yards as the sixth taker and Stanley bowed out in sudden death, 4-3.

It was another psychological setback. But Crooks is not the type of character to let it define him or ruin him, because he has already overcome so much in his fledgling career.

The 6ft 5ins Yorkshireman was diagnosed with epilepsy late last year after having a seizure out of the blue.

He remembers nothing of the attack, from five minutes before it happened to waking up in hospital around 45 minutes later, after drifting in and out of consciousness.

A series of tests followed and Crooks initially feared the end of his career at the age of 20, having played just one game for hometown club Huddersfield – at centre half in a 4-0 defeat to eventual champions Bournemouth.

But he found a new beginning with Accrington Stanley, and common ground with a team-mate.

“I didn’t really know anything about it (epilepsy) until I came here and ended up living with Kal Naismith,” Crooks explained.

“We became good friends anyway but we had good chats about it and he made me understand it more because of his situation.”

Former Reds star Naismith’s long-term girlfriend, Ashley Dickson, tragically died in October as a result of an epileptic fit.

“I’ve only known Kal for six months or so but he’s become one of my closest friends,” added Crooks, fighting back tears.

“I think it’s helped both of us in a way to talk about it. The only thing I thought could have caused my fit was flashing lights at the cinema and things like that.

“But apparently there are loads of different types.

“It’s something that has been there all my life but nothing had ever happened until then. But the doctor said 18-21 was normally when it starts, and that was the case with me.

“They said tiredness and stress caused me to fit.

“Everyone laughed because I never seem to be stressed out.”

Crooks, who knows only of Cambridge United's Leon Legge as a fellow sufferer in football, will need medication for the rest of his life – taking 1,000mg capsules twice a day. But after starting out on 250mg and still fitting, finding the appropriate level has helped to get his condition under control, and he is determined that it will not stop him in or away from football.

“They said as long as you take your tablets and you look after yourself you’ll be all right, because mine’s not that serious really compared to other people,” he added.

“I won’t grow out of it. I can stop my tablets but if I do there’s a 50 per cent chance I’ll start with fits again so there’s no point. I’ll just take them forever.

“Apart from the initial shock of it, it hasn’t really changed my lifestyle too much. I just need to get plenty of rest so it’s a good excuse to have a lie-in!

“Obviously it’s different for different people but I dealt with it in my own way. I’m quite casual about things.”

He considers the idea that he takes inspiration from his dad, David - a three-time deaflympian in the 80s and 90s for the Great Britain football team.

“Possibly it’s the way I’ve been brought up,” he said. “I’ve never really thought about it before but maybe the way he’s brought me up has been to not fuss or worry about stuff and just get on with it.

“Although my dad could be classed as having a disability I don’t see it like that.

“The way he’s gone about his life, he’s played in three Deaflympics, travelled the world and won gold.

“Maybe in a way that’s been an influence on me.”

Crooks senior - a striker - collected a silver medal from Los Angeles in 1985, got gold in Christchurch in 1989 and was placed fifth in Sofia in 1993, the year before the birth of son Matt.

“He’s 55 now but he still reckons he’s better than me!” continued Crooks junior, who did not inherit the gene that could have been passed on from his parents. His mum, Sharon Cooper, is also deaf.

Crooks is fluent in sign language, and occasionally communicates with his dad during games if there is a break in play.

“I can speak to him and see what he’s thinking and what I should do,” he said. “I get a thumbs up if I’m having a good game, but if we’ve got more time he’ll give me a bit more information. He likes to pick up on the bad stuff!

“He was a striker. He’d have scored at Yeovil!”

As laid back as Crooks is he was kicking himself for missing out on a reunion with his old club, where he played from the age of eight to 15 before joining hometown team Huddersfield.

“All my family are United fans, I’m a United fan and being there when I was younger it would have been a decent game,” he said.

“I don’t know whether it was losing out on that tie, but also added in that it was pretty much all my fault just made it 10 times worse.

“You would expect pretty much anyone to score.

“But in a weird way it’s made me stronger. You’ve got to deal with the bad times as well as the good so I guess it’s put me in good stead for whatever comes next.

“My dad just told me to keep going.

"All I did when I was younger was play football with him. I owe him a lot. I’ll try to do him proud if I can.”