IF Cherries need a player to handle the heat of a League One battle, they could have found just the man in Charlie Sheringham.

A former broker, the new Seward Stadium recruit is no stranger to working under pressure.

While earning his living in the City, Sheringham also found goals a useful commodity as he embarked upon a prolific non-league career.

And juggling the two professions paid dividends for the 23-year-old when Cherries made their move and handed him a contract until June 2013.

Like the global economy, Sheringham’s new employers have endured a downturn of their own this season.

A huge turnover of players in the summer led to what has been a difficult and transitional period for Cherries.

But with his background in the Futures market coupled with a fine footballing pedigree, Sheringham is hoping his previous experiences will stand him in good stead to play a part in a recovery.

“When I left full-time football I had to get a real job and I had a few links into the City,” he explained in an interview with the Daily Echo.

“I was working as a broker for GFI. It was a really good job and I can’t knock them at all. They were great and knew my dream was football and they couldn’t really stand in my way once the offer came in from Bournemouth.

“It was a hectic and very pressurised industry that I had to deal with.”

While Sheringham’s footballing journey might not have been a traditional one, it mirrors that of many Cherries stars past and present.

Having been on the books of Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace and Charlton Athletic, the striker found himself dropping into non-league to cut his teeth.

And as with the likes of current favourite Mark Molesley and former players Marvin Bartley, Liam Feeney and Anton Robinson, the semi-pro school of hard knocks did the trick.

This season, 11 goals in 12 appearances for Conference South Dartford caught the eye of the scouts.

Cherries, who had given Sheringham a trial as a 16-year-old, subsequently won the race for his signature ahead of rumoured competition from Wycombe Wanderers.

“I had done all right for Dartford since the turn of the year and knew there were a few people watching, but I just had to keep going and wait for someone to take a chance,” said Sheringham, who is suspended for today’s trip to Preston. “Bournemouth did and it is great to be here.

“I was a young pro at Crystal Palace and probably didn’t play enough games when I was younger.

“I had to step down the leagues to learn my trade and gain experience and play some games, because I had not had enough in the reserves and youth teams I had been in.

“Non-league definitely gave me a lot of experience. Playing every week – 40 games a season for the past three years – is what I needed when I left full-time football.

“Hopefully, this proves it has served me well and that it was the right decision to do that.

“It was good to get in there, gain that experience, toughen myself up a little bit and, hopefully, get myself ready for league football again.

“I am confident in my own ability and, hopefully, I can crack on and perform well for Bournemouth.”

Son of former Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and England star Teddy, Sheringham could not ask for a better advisor. Sheringham senior often watches his son’s games and offers tips, but the Cherries frontman is keen to forge his own reputation on the south coast.

He added: “It is just about making a name for myself and I think I have done that by going down and proving myself in the lower leagues and getting snapped up by Bournemouth.

“I feel like it is all my own work and, hopefully, I can continue playing for Bournemouth and doing things off my own back.”