The three-times capped England Under-21 midfielder became Alan Pardew's first acquisition when he signed him from Crystal Palace in October 2003.

And, having joining the Eagles as a schoolboy, that ended Mullins' six-year spell at Selhurst Park, where he had played 256 league and cup matches, scoring 18 goals.

The Reading-born midfielder made his Palace debut in a 2-2 draw against Bolton Wanderers on the opening day of the 1998/99 season and he never looked back as he went on to make 40 appearances, scoring five times.

Indeed, by March 1999 he had won his first U21 cap in the Young Lions' 5-0 win against Poland at Southampton and then Mullins continued his fine form into the next campaign, scoring ten goals in 45 matches for the Selhurst Park outfit.

After that he found himself moved back into the Palace rearguard, where he showed his defensive qualities and that versatility persuaded Pardew to sign him for West Ham United's promotion push.

Mullins made his West Ham United debut in a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest in October 2003 but his dream of making it to the promised land of the Premiership was shattered 33 matches later in the Championship play-off final at the Millennium Stadium by his former club Crystal Palace.

A year later, Mullins was back in Cardiff helping the club into the top-flight with a play-off final victory over Preston North End.

And weighing in with 35 appearances, Mullins made an immense contribution to West Ham United's superb ninth-place finish upon their return to the Premiership. But the 2005/06 campaign ended in heartbreak when, with three games remaining, the normally reserved midfielder was uncharacteristically red-carded following a dust-up with Liverpool's Luis Garcia.

That meant that the remorseful pair were suspended for the FA Cup final and having seen Mullins contribute so much during the previous two-and-a-half seasons, the punishment heavily outweighed the crime.

Certainly it was the cruellest of cruel blows for Mullins, whose attitude and application had typified the very fabric of a re-invented West Ham United.

Although he started the 2006/07 campaign, the arrival of Javier Mascherano looked set to sideline him but he eventually saw off the challenge of the Argentinian World Cup star, before regaining his form and fitness to play an influential role in the barnstorming late run to Premiership survival.