No it?s not a mirage. Sammy Swan has officially returned to Premier Division football.

Taking a leaf from the book of former Cameroon striker Roger Milla, 44-year-old Swan raised eyebrows at Bernard Park earlier this month when he jumped off the bench as a second-half substitute in his team?s hard-fought draw against North Village.

In 1990, then 38 year-old Milla was the star of the Cameroon team that became the first African nation to reach the World Cup quarter-finals.

Now it?s Swan?s turn to prove life really does begin at 40.

After a highly successful playing career and coaching stint at Stadium Lane in which the veteran striker made history by coaching Zebras to First and Premier Division championships in successive seasons, Swan resigned himself to playing among the Commercial ranks.

Eventually, though, the will to have another crack at top flight football got the better of Swan who actually contemplated returning to Zebras? Premier ranks two seasons ago.

Needless to say, colleagues at PHC thought Swan was losing his mind, along with Anthony (Rango) Stovell who briefly came out of retirement to help Mark Wade?s current bunch stay afloat last season.

?I never wanted to go in retirement. It?s almost as though when you reach a certain age people want to shove you aside because that?s the natural thing to do. I?ve always felt like playing and have kept myself active,? Swan told .

The suspension of Zebras striker Antwon Russell and Jahnai Raynor and Robert Richardson?s involvement in studies overseas opened the door for the veteran to make an unlikely return.

But as Swan notes, age is just a number.

?I feel pretty good about myself and I intend to do the best that I can to help the team,? he continued. ?The reception I received from the fans was excellent and in all it was a wonderful experience. I found the pace of the match a little fast and I had to make the adjustment to catch up with the speed of the game.?

After playing a 4-3-3 formation under former Zebras coach Leroy (Nibs) Lewis, Swan will now have to quickly adjust to coach Wade?s 4-4-2 set-up.

?It?s a little different but I?ve never had any problems making adjustments in my career,? added Swan, who once travelled to England for trials at Oxford United.

If there was a downside to his return match in the top tier, then it had to be getting booked for committing a cynical foul.

?That was just totally mistimed,? Swan conceded. ?But I still have the hunger to play, to help the team and have fun. I really and truly enjoy working out.?

Swan has also had to overcome hurdles beyond the pitch.

?My peers keep telling me to act my age, but I don?t feel old. I can still run and do all the things with my team-mates but people try to pull me down on the side,? he insisted.

?I love playing football and it has become a part of me. And when I?m not playing it feels as though something is missing. It was kind of hard with everybody telling me I?m finished. After a while you start to believe it even though inside you know you can keep going on.?

Though Swan has enjoyed success both as a player and later as a coach, the Zebras forward still possesses a burning desire to compete at the highest level locally. He also insists his many years of experience playing the game will only benefit Zebras in the greater scheme of things.

?There?s absolutely no substitute for experience and the only way to get experience is through time,? he reasoned. ?If we don?t teach the younger players what we have already learned then that means they have to take the same time or even more to learn what we already know.

?I just think far too many times we set the older people aside when they still have so much to offer. People seem to figure we are dead but we are still alive. And I thank the good Lord for giving me the opportunity to play at this stage in my life.

?I just want to try to do the best I can when I go onto the pitch and not let people down especially the older people because that?s who I?m representing today ? the older clan.?