It was a long way from where his football journey had begun.
Twentyman had been on Liverpool’s books as an 18-year-old, studying A levels during the day and training with the reserves at night.
“I was actually 24 and thought I had missed the boat,” Twentyman told Football Presse.
“I was on Liverpool’s books when I was 18 and played in the reserves. I studied A levels during the day and sometimes played at Anfield in the evening.”
It was 1977 and Liverpool were champions of Europe, but Twentyman could see that his own route to the first team was unlikely to materialise.
“I knew I was not going to make the grade there and drifted into non-league football.”
One of the players coming through the Liverpool ranks at the time was Sammy Lee, who would go on to become an England international and win numerous honours with the club.
But Twentyman's career was moving in a very different direction.
He joined Formby and took a job at Girobank, settling into a life that offered security and the chance to play football with his mates.
Then came the decision that changed everything.
“There came a time when I had to decide whether to stay playing with my mates and having a good laugh, or try and do something in the game.”
He chose the gamble.
“I knuckled down and Chorley signed me, giving me the chance to play in the Northern Premier League.”
It meant travelling around 50 miles twice a week to train, but Twentyman knew what he was chasing.
“I was actually 24 and thought I had missed the boat,” he recalled. “But to be candid; I would have gone anywhere to get my chance.”
The move transformed him.
Les Rigby initially took him to Chorley before Peter Wragg replaced him and, according to Twentyman, changed the standards around the team.
“Peter Wragg replaced him as manager and he really whipped us all into shape.
“He got all the squad fit, we started winning and my game improved as a result. I’ve got to credit Peter for really pushing me forward.”
Then came the extraordinary season that made professional football possible.
“In my second season at Chorley, I scored 24 goals from centre-back, including a few penalties.”
A centre-half scoring 24 goals was enough to attract Preston North End.
Alan Kelly Sr., Preston's assistant manager, had apparently spotted him, but it was manager Gordon Lee who made the decisive call.
“And I’ll never forget PNE manager Gordon Lee ringing up and telling me in his distinctive Black Country accent that he wanted me to sign for them.”
Lee asked Twentyman whether he was prepared to give up his job in the bank and give professional football a proper go.
“It took a milli-second to answer.”
Twentyman did not hesitate.
“I would have gone anywhere to get my chance.”
Preston was close enough to home that he could continue living in the Liverpool area rather than uprooting his life. He travelled to training with another young footballer who would later make his name in management.
“I lived north of Liverpool and Preston was only 22 miles away so I travelled on a daily basis.
“I used to travel to training with Dave Jones, the former Sheffield Wednesday manager.”
Twentyman's professional debut came against Oxford United at Deepdale in October 1983, and his three years at Preston eventually produced more than 100 appearances in all competitions.
There was even an amusing twist to the expectations surrounding his move.
“Preston thought that they were getting a goal-scoring centre-half, but I think I only managed one goal in my first season!”
He had finally made it, but the professional game still did not offer guarantees.
After three seasons, Preston released Twentyman along with seven other players when their contracts expired.
“With cup games it was over 100 games!!! I was released by Preston along with seven other players as all of our contracts had expired.”
Yet once again, he refused to regard rejection as the end.
“I was the only one to get fixed up with a League club.”
That club was Bristol Rovers, where Twentyman would spend the next seven years and make 252 league appearances.
The journey from Liverpool trainee to professional footballer had taken six years longer than he had expected.
It had involved being released, dropping into non-league football, taking a banking job, leaving the comfort of playing with his mates and travelling twice a week to Chorley.
He had taken the risk because of a simple philosophy.
“You only live once.”
Twentyman had told his fiancée that if he could get 10 years as a professional footballer, the gamble would have been worth it.
He got his 10 years — three at Preston and seven at Bristol Rovers — before football took him into an equally long broadcasting career.
For a player who once wondered whether he had missed the boat at 24, it turned out the boat had simply been waiting for him.
Geoff Twentyman is author of "Top Man: The Geoff Twentyman Story" from Pitch Publishing - which is available here.
