SITTING in front of a class of primary school children at Wallsend Jubilee Primary School earlier this week, as part of an educational project run by the Newcastle United Foundation, Ryan Taylor was asked what he would do if he wasn’t a footballer. There have been times over the last two years when the 30-year-old was forced to ask himself exactly the same question.

Two separate cruciate ligament injuries sidelined the amiable Magpies midfielder for the best part of two full seasons, and raised doubts over whether he would return to play again.

Those doubts were allayed when he came back to make a match-winning appearance in October’s Capital One Cup win at Manchester City, and while a handful of minor niggles have restricted him to just three more appearances in the four months since, he is back in the Newcastle squad for this afternoon’s home game with Aston Villa, hoping to put his injury nightmare behind him.

His contract might be due to expire at the end of the season, but his long-term prospects are bright. Not, however, that it always looked that way during a spell that would have tested the resolve of even the steeliest professional.

“There were times where I had to think, ‘This might not work out for me’,” said Taylor, who finds himself as one of the longest-serving players on Newcastle’s books, having joined the club from Wigan Athletic in 2009. “Even though I wanted to, I couldn't keep my mind on being a footballer because it wasn't what I was going to do for the next however long I was out for.

“I had to get myself involved in different things - family came first. Things that I’ve seen my kids do, I wouldn’t have seen them do if I hadn’t been injured. So I suppose there are positives to being out of the game.

“But at the same time, I had to keep my mind switched on, which is why I did the scouting. I was going to all the home games, but when Newcastle were away I was thinking, 'What do I do here?' That was my time to go and watch something else.

“Every other weekend I would go and watch a match somewhere else. It kept me busy and it got me thinking about management. I did one of my coaching badges at the back end of last season and I go and do my UEFA B licence in the summer.

“It got me thinking because you just never know if you're going to recover properly. But with having people around me in the club and at home, I've managed to get back up to a good level, where I am now. I'm looking to get better week by week, but I think I’m back to the level where I was.”

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Unsurprisingly, Taylor’s absence has given him a new perspective on both his career, and the various highs and lows that engulf his employers at Newcastle on a regular basis.

This week has witnessed a renewed bout of recriminations and soul-searching in the wake of last weekend’s 5-0 capitulation at Manchester City, with John Carver’s position as interim head coach, Fabricio Coloccini’s suitability as captain and the Magpies’ long-term prospects under Mike Ashley all called into question.

It would be wrong to claim that Taylor is unconcerned about the gloomier prognoses relating to Newcastle, but with his contractual basis uncertain, and a burning desire simply to get onto the field to prove himself anew, the Liverpudlian can see beyond the day-to-day crises that consume so many column inches whenever results slump.

“Every game is a massive bonus for me now,” he said. “I don't take anything for granted anymore. I go into games thinking, 'I might not have been here'. Now, I think in every game, 'I don't want this to be my last'.

“That’s how I go into games. In the past, I might have been a little bit up tight or nervous but now I go into games and enjoy it. Obviously I want to win at the same time, but it’s changed a bit in terms of how I look at things.”

During his lengthy spells out of the team, Taylor worked closely with Newcastle’s backroom and medical staff, discussing both his own rehabilitation and the scouting work he was entrusted with by Alan Pardew.

That work brought him into close contact with John Carver, and having watched the former assistant ascend to the role of interim head coach, Taylor is happy to see a shared determination within the playing squad to earn the 50-year-old a permanent contract.

“There’s still a lot to play for this season,” he said. “There’s a lot of points to play for, and the teams around us won’t win every game.

“We can’t let the season just whittle away and think, 'We’ll let this season go and kick on next season'. We've got to look at it as a gang of professionals and think, 'Hold on, it's a 12-game season – let’s get as many points as we can’.

“We need to do it for ourselves, the fans and probably most importantly of all, for John because he’s in a strong position for himself. We’d all love him to stay.”