Born and raised in Gateshead under the shadow of St James' Park, he emerged from the ranks with dreams of treading the same turf as Jackie Milburn, Malcolm Macdonald and Alan Shearer.

Unlike so many Tyneside youngsters who shared those same dreams, Carroll got the chance to live his out - but did so for just six months.

His 19-goal contribution to last season's return from the depths of despair to the top flight at the first attempt confirmed his rise from raw youngster to the genuine article, but even then, few expected him to make the impact he has to date back in the top flight.

He doubled his Barclays Premier League goals tally with a hat-trick as the Magpies thumped Aston Villa for six on August 22 to fully justify then manager Chris Hughton's faith in him.

It was Hughton, of course, who had handed Carroll the number nine shirt which had been left vacant following the departure of Obafemi Martins in the wake of relegation, and it was he who repeatedly insisted that the youngster still had much to learn.

Hughton's eagerness to keep Carroll's feet on the ground was perhaps understandable.

In October last year, Carroll was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £2,500 compensation and £1,494 in costs after admitting assault, and later had a separate charge dropped after an alleged incident involving a former girlfriend.

Carroll had earlier been bailed on condition that he lived with Newcastle skipper Kevin Nolan, although that temporary arrangement did not pass without incident as the striker's car was burnt out on Nolan's drive and the pair found themselves the subject of colourful tabloid headlines.

But on the pitch, the home-grown talent, who gained valuable first-team experience earlier in his career during a loan spell at Preston, went from strength to strength to alert potential purchasers to his blossoming potency and put himself in line for a first senior England cap.

A towering presence in the air and better than he is often given credit for on the ground, Carroll terrorised defenders in a fashion which had the Gallowgate faithful roaring its approval.

His fearless approach to the toughest of jobs and a hammer of a left foot marked him out as a Geordie hero in the making as he rapidly learnt his trade at the sharp end.

Winning goals at West Ham and then Arsenal cemented Newcastle's solid start to life back in the big time, and he was also on target against Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City before injury struck.

A torn thigh muscle has sidelined him for the last five games, an absence which sparked a series of conspiracy theories as Tottenham circled.

However, it was Liverpool who pounced today with a bid which dwarfed the £15million the Magpies paid for Shearer during the summer of 1996 and the £24million deal struck by Aston Villa earlier this month to prise Darren Bent from the grasp of derby rivals Sunderland.

There was anger on Wearside at Bent's defection - he handed in a transfer request just hours after the 1-1 derby draw with the Magpies on January 16.

Equally, there will be extreme disappointment on Tyneside tonight after weeks of the club, and in particular Hughton's successor Alan Pardew, insisting Carroll was simply not for sale.

Indeed, just hours before the news of Liverpool's second bid emerged, the city's evening paper, the Evening Chronicle, was quoting sources close to the player insisting he was tired of re-affirming his desire to stay with the club he supported as a boy.

What changed his mind may become clear during the new few days, but it may take longer for the fans he has left behind to come to terms with losing one of their own and a man they believed could one day be the new Shearer.

The former England captain, of course, scored a club record 206 goals over a decade of dedicated service to his home-town club.

Hopes that Carroll would be the new talisman ended today and left the number nine shirt hanging on its peg once again.