THERE'S a world of difference between Cliftonhill and Beverly Hills but Albion Rovers' captain Scott Chaplain doesn't grudge LA-bound David Beckham his fortune.

Becks has become insanely rich thanks to his football career and his uncanny ability to exploit Brand Beckham to the hilt.

Scott turns out for a Scottish third division club whose average attendances are less than 400.

Beck's stellar lifestyle includes an array of A-list names in his contact book, a wife who's a millionaire in her own right, and an ability to make headlines simply by wearing a sarong.

His cars have included an Aston Martin DB7, a Bentley Continental GT, the Chrysler Grand Voyager, the Ferrari 550 Maranello, a Hummer H2, a Lincoln Navigator and the Porsche 911 Turbo.

And he's not averse to getting designer boutiques to close their doors so that he can browse and shop unmolested by fans.

Scott, on the other hand, drives a Renault, and is perfectly happy to shop for his clothes locally while mixing with the crowds.

And while Scott is concentrating on developing his career, Becks is celebrating his astonishing latest coup a five-year deal with LA Galaxy, said to be worth a quarter of a billion dollars.

If you think his spending habits have been heroic up until now, wait to see what he does with that sort of money.

The differences in Beckham's and Scott's respective lifestyles hardly need stating but, when it comes to playing, Scott is one up. Not only does he get a game every Saturday (Beckham has been sidelined for weeks at Real Madrid), but he also gets his name onto the scoresheet with impressive frequency.

His 16 goals this season, including a recent hat-trick at Stenhousemuir, are a good reason why Albion Rovers have surged to fifth place in the table.

What is more, while Real Madrid coach Fabio Cappello has said that Beckham has played his last game for the club, Scott has a great relationship with his manager, the ambitious Jim Chapman.

"I respect Beckham, even though he's getting a lot of criticism for the money side of things," says Scott.

"Think back to when he was just another kid of 10 or 15.

No-one knew who he was. He worked incredibly hard to get to Manchester United.

"He's brilliant at free-kicks, but even that must have taken a lot of dedication and training. What he's achieved, he's done for himself."

Scott, who is single, started his football career as part of Rangers' youth development team.

His next stop, at 16, was a full-time position with Ayr, where he broke into the first team after one year.

In 2001 he came on as a substitute during Ayr's CIS Cup final at Hampden in front of 52,000 fans, when they were defeated by Rangers.

But when Ayr let him go, Scott was left high and dry for a time.

"I didn't have the passion or motivation to do anything other than football," he says. "I didn't fancy getting an apprenticeship or working in a factory."

He persisted with football and eventually he landed up at Cliftonhill. "I'm happy with the way things have been going so far.

"There's a great atmosphere here, and the place is full of young guys eager to prove themselves. It's always lively in the dressing-room and at training.

"I've never hidden the fact that I wanted Rovers to be a platform for me to move back into full-time football and beyond. I love it here. The management has been absolutely first-class with me, but I want to progress as a player and achieve as much as I can."

The money that Scott and the other Rovers players receive is modest - "it's not a lot, but money wasn't important for me when I first came here.

"The money gets you by. I could probably have got more playing junior football, but playing here lets me play at a senior level, which is what I wanted."

He works for a company called Funcise, which encourages young people to exercise, and also does football classes with East Renfrewshire Council.

"Ideally, though," he adds, "I want to get back to training and playing football every morning. That's how you improve."

Two teams in the First Division, Clyde and Hamilton, are both interested in signing Scott.

He may not match Becks in spending power just yet - but who's to say what will happen over the next few years?