Neil happy to strike a pose

DAY JOB . . . Neil Etheridge in his role as a goalkeeper.

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IF one player encapsulates the changing face of the game it is goalkeeper Neil Etheridge, a part-time underwear model who is mates with boxing legend Manny Pacquiao.

Athletic’s first Philippines international (24) has made only 16 appearances in the lower reaches of the football league, but is a star name in his mother’s homeland.

Boasting 226,000 followers on Twitter — no doubt partly down to the way he looks without many clothes on — the ex-Fulham man doesn’t shy away from the limelight.

“It was a great experience,” said Etheridge, of his brief modelling experience. “It didn’t faze me at all.

“You get a lot of banter from the lads, but that is expected. It’s part and parcel of it.”

On the pitch, ’keeper Etheridge has the sort of one-off experience most players never achieve, having played in front of an extraordinary crowd of 88,000 in Indonesia.

“It’s probably more than most could dream of,” he suggests of that Suzuki Cup semi-final second leg in Jakarta four years ago. “That’s not boasting, it’s a fact. It was fantastic. It’s a time in my life I will never forget.”

The Azkals (‘Street Dogs’) lost 2-0 on aggregate to Indonesia, but it was considered quite a triumph to get to that stage at all. Etheridge was part of the team that stunned defending champions Vietnam along the way to the last four.

In the world that was, you would never see Athletic men like Andy Ritchie or Ian Wood being flown out to Las Vegas as a special guest of a boxing legend, let along showing off their muscles in a pair of boxer shorts.

But 43-caps Etheridge — who has appeared as a magazine cover star in Asia while promoting products as diverse as paracetamol and energy drinks — watched from the ringside with fellow international team-mates as Pacquiao defeated Juan Manuel Marquez in their third fight three years ago.

“There are perks of the job,” said Etheridge, who has met Pacquiao a handful of times. “He’s the star of the Philippines, a fantastic fighter and a household name.”

The glitz of stardom half a world away can’t seem so bright on a Monday morning in murky Manchester.

But on the training field, Etheridge is clearly determined to prove his worth.

Having signed an initial deal to December 30, he covets the jersey of current keeper Paul Rachubka.

“I want to push ‘Chubs’ as much as I can and, as with a player in any position, you look to try to get into the starting line-up.”