LIKE all football-mad youngsters, Derek Chappell wanted to live the dream. If he could not play for his beloved Charlton, he would settle for the job as chairman.

This week, the 53-year-old former pupil of Strood's Temple School and now multi-millionaire fulfilled that dream when he became the club's financial big-hitter with his appointment as chairman of Charlton Athletic plc.

His journey from Temple School, which he left without a single qualification, to Entrepreneur of the Year as co-owner of one of the biggest hospital groups in Britain, is a remarkable rise driven by a steely determination to succeed.

Born in Dartford, he grew up in the Medway Towns before leaving school at 16 and working for Kent County Council as a clerk in Maidstone, Margate, Ramsgate and Canterbury, where he lived in nearby Sturry.

He later worked as a clerk in the NHS where he spent 18 years.

He said: "I left Temple School with nothing in terms of qualifications but armed with a will to succeed."

Today, he co-owns Healthcare of Scotland, one of the fastest growing private hospital groups in Britain which appeared in the Sunday Times Profit Track Top 100 companies for two successive years.

But football and Charlton Athletic remain his first love. He was appointed to the plc board in June 2005 and has maintained a low profile ever since, until succeeding Richard Murray as plc chairman.

He has been quick to make himself known to staff but insists that his profile will remain low.

He added: "I'm afraid you won't see me on the pitch or making the headlines. That just isn't my style. Richard Murray, who has became Charlton Athletic FC chairman, will remain the link between the board and the manager."