New Scunthorpe United signing David Prutton to provide voice of experience and a spot of humour

If the passes and tackles flow as fluently as his words, David Prutton is sure to be a big success at Glanford Park.

Brought in to add some bite and backbone to the Iron's midfield, even the briefest of chats with the experienced campaigner proves it is not just with his feet he plans to do his talking.

Be it on the subject of his home city, Hull, or Scunthorpe United's future fortunes, Prutton's humour is as bright as the Carrow Road floodlights under which he speaks about his ambitions for his three months on loan.

"That'll go down like a fart in a lift with the Scunny fans," jokes the 30-year-old, of his upbringing on the wrong side of the Humber Bridge, before going on to explain about his elderly grandma, who still lives in Ulceby.

Will she be coming to watch her grandson, now he's much closer to home?

"If it doesn't clash with bingo or a trip to Cleethorpes, she might."

Even on the back of a much-improved Scunthorpe showing at Norwich City in the second round of the Capital One Cup, humour possesses a refreshing post-match presence.

Three defeats, two of them heavy, in the opening three matches of the League One season has meant Glanford Park has been light on light-heartedness.

Signed on a three-month loan from Sheffield Wednesday less than five hours before kick-off, Prutton was restricted to a role from the bench in the first of what he hopes will prove to be many Iron appearances.

But even in a 20-minute cameo against the Canaries the former Southampton and Nottingham Forest middle man showed what he can bring to United's cause.

He sprayed passes from one side of the pitch to the other and showed strength to hold off his marker and hold up the ball.

The Yorkshireman also came agonisingly close to a spectacular debut goal, with a volleyed effort from 25 yards stinging the fingertips of Norwich goalkeeper Declan Rudd.

Also apparent was Prutton's encouragement and advice to those on the pitch around him.

Despite having been in their company for less than 24 hours, good or bad, his team-mates knew what he thought of their every contribution.

Talking, like his range of passing, appears to be quite an asset.

"There's some very, technically good footballers, so if you can ally that with more information, it can only be a good thing," explains Prutton, of his vocal contribution.

"It was funny, but I only have to look at Colin Calderwood, who was on the Norwich bench the other night.

"I roomed with him and played with him at Forest and then he managed me later on.

"I always thought he was someone you could talk to and was informative.

"He was just a nice fella and was always very forthcoming with his opinions.

"If he had something to say, people listened and if he thought people needed organising, he did it.

"It comes with playing a few games and being older I suppose.

"Some lads are natural at it, others grow into it. Some lads need people like that in the team to get them going.

"There's lads here that do that already, Paul Reid, Mirf, Tom Newey.

"I'm sure what a manager wants is to put a team on the pitch which can in effect, look after itself and monitor itself while the game is going on.

"Whether people listen to you is a different thing.

"But if everyone commands their own station and does their job, more often than not you're going to do all right I think."

Prutton has led a chequered career in football – but his longevity reflects his ability.

At Southampton, where he was a £2.5million signing from Nottingham Forest nine years ago, he was banned for 10 games and fined £6,000 for pushing referee Alan Wiley and using threatening words or behaviour to a match official after being sent off for a foul on Arsenal's Robert Pires.

A punishment at which football's famous social media philosopher, Joey Barton, may wince.

Prutton has since played for Leeds United, Colchester United, Swindon Town and the Owls, where in the space of a year he has gone from starting XI to not even being a substitute.

Not that the midfielder, a veteran of more than 400 first-team matches, is bitter.

"It's par for the course over the course of a career," he says of his 'frustration' at a lack of pitch time (he last started a match at the beginning of March).

"My career and the amount of games I play are my responsibility and if you're in a certain place where you're not getting those you've got to look to try to get them somewhere else.

"That's the way things are at this moment in time.

"Wednesday is quite an easy environment in which to sit and not really do anything. The size of the place and the number of players that go through the door, people get swallowed up.

"It's got to get to the point where you want to take control of what's going on and that was the case with me coming here on loan."

When asked about his long-term future at Hillsborough, Prutton is equally as honest if slightly more subtle.

Championship survival is not where the ambition ends at Wednesday and that almost certainly signals such a scenario for the midfielder's Owls career.

When questioned about where his career at Wednesday stands, Prutton quips: "Either sweeping the stand or cooking the dinners I think."

He adds, in a serious tone: "The manager there is not one to boot players out the door or marginalise you. He's been good as gold.

"But when a team like that, that has been in the Premier League, gets promoted and there's money to spend, it's the manager's prerogative to play who he wants.

"He's got the full backing of a good chairman, so he can pick and choose.

"The odds of you getting yourself into the starting line-up, or changing someone's mind can be quite small.

"The older you get, the more you realise your career is your responsibility. I've never needed someone's opinion or approval in relation to my own self esteem.

"If someone doesn't like you, find someone who does. Get them to play you."

In Alan Knill, the Scunthorpe United manager who admitted his side were missing 'experience' and a 'a voice', Prutton hopes he has done just that.