ALAN Stubbs' former Wanderers' team-mates are of the same mind - playing for Celtic may have cost him his chance of playing for England but he should have no regrets.

Instead, having twice beaten cancer, he has every reason to treasure every minute of every game he plays.

John McGinlay says: "I know what it's like to deal with cancer having seen my mum die from the disease two weeks ago!

"I understand more now about the worry Alan and his family must have gone through before he got the all-clear ... then to have to go through the same bad times again.

"But it shows the character of the man that he's come through it and is playing again at the top level."

Stubbs, who left Wanderers for Celtic in May 1996 in a £3.5 million transfer, is lined-up to play his first competitive game against Wanderers for Everton. Toffees' boss Walter Smith, who dropped him after the home defeat by Liverpool in September, will be forced into a change at centre-back after seeing the flamboyant Portuguese star Abel Xavier stretchered off in last weekend's home defeat by Newcastle.

He has played twice at the Reebok before - for Celtic against Wanderers in Jimmy Phillips' Testimonial in August 98 and in a Wanderers' select against Preston in the match that honoured McGinlay's service in May last year.

Each time, his invitation was among the first to be sent out ... for no other reason than the fact that he was held in such high esteem by his old playing pals, who understood - more than critical fans - the ambition that led him to move on.

Phillips, who will be forever grateful to Stubbs for the part he played behind the scenes in the planning of his benefit match, reckons: "He was perhaps ill advised as to how to seek his future elsewhere. He made one or two comments which were unfortunate at the time but no-one could blame him for being ambitious.

"But I'm sure he doesn't regret it. He had tremendous success at Celtic and I was delighted to see him get his move to Everton because I know what it's like to play for the club you supported as a kid.

"The key thing is that he's won his battle with cancer and he's back playing again. He's shown great character and strength and I hope he gets a great reception on his return to Bolton."

Now coaching the Wanderers Under 19s, Phillips knew little about Stubbs and his pal, Jason McAteer, when he was thinking of re-joining Wanderers from Middlesbrough in 1993. But he soon learned.

"I met Bruce Rioch for a chat and he told me Tommy Docherty had gone on record as saying that if he was a manager, he would be prepared to pay £1 million each for the two Bolton youngsters. That was a bold statement but I saw for myself how good the pair were when I came to Bolton.

"Stubbsy is very talented. The most two-footed player I've known, having the ability to hit 60-70 yard diagonal passes with his 'wrong' foot.

"He is exceptional, a very strong tackler and an all-round player. Perhaps moving to Scotland didn't help him fulfil his potential. Who knows what he might have achieved if he had stayed in England?

McGinlay has no doubts. "I know Stubbsy to be a great player, a terrific man and a loyal man," says the Wanderers' legend who, as a Celtic fanatic himself, remained close to the big Scouser throughout the success he enjoyed and the medical traumas he overcame at Parkhead before joining Everton on a free transfer in the summer, fulfilling a lifelong ambition.

"People might question that and say 'why did he leave Bolton?' but he simply wanted to further his career.

"I always said he would go on and play for England and I know Glenn Hoddle was a big fan of his because he's a defender who has the skill to play in the middle of the park. He likes to play from the back and, if you want a good footballing side, that's what you need.

"Maybe because he was up in Scotland he wasn't getting tested enough. But I know Alan went a long way to helping Celtic with the successes they have had in recent years. He's a leader off the park as well as on it and he's popular. I hope the Bolton fans give him a tremendous ovation tomorrow because he deserves it.

"He's a great man, a great fighter, a great player and he's got the medals to prove it.

"But I'm sure nowadays, after everything he has been through, that he just treasures every game."