He enjoyed loan spells out at Macclesfield Town, Walsall, Rochdale, and Hartlepool United, before signing a contract with Barnsley in March 2004.

He retired in May 2014 due to a chronic knee injury but, having rejoined Tranmere Rovers as a coach in October 2014, returned to playing two months later.

[6] He returned to Maine Road at the end of the 2000–01 season having made eight appearances for Macclesfield; during his absence Manchester City had lost their top-flight status.

[8] After scoring past Rochdale and Tranmere Rovers in pre-season friendlies,[9][10] he was given his Premier League debut on the opening day of the 2002–03 season, as City were beaten 3–0 by Leeds United at Elland Road.

[12][13] He made his final appearance for the club thirteen days later, as Michael Owen scored a hat-trick in 3–0 home defeat to Liverpool.

[16] He joined Alan Buckley's struggling Third Division Rochdale on a one-month loan at the start of the 2003–04 campaign, having scored against the club in a pre-season friendly.

The loan was extended to three months,[19] and on 30 September, he scored at former club Macclesfield, in a 2–1 defeat, as he "danced into the box before gleefully steering the ball into the far corner".

[20] He returned to Manchester in November after turning down the opportunity to add to his fifteen appearances for the "Dale",[21] and was sent out on loan to Neale Cooper's Second Division Hartlepool United the following month.

[26] Playing despite suffering from mumps,[27] he ended the 2004–05 League One campaign with eight goals in 48 games, including a 30 yards (27 m) strike against Peterborough and a "beautiful volley" against Stockport County.

He scored ten goals, including braces against Oldham Athletic and Swindon Town; Barnsley won every game in which Shuker found the net.

"[36] Shuker switched clubs to Tranmere Rovers in July 2006, then managed by Ronnie Moore, signing a two-year deal.

[44] However, the club struggled in 2009–10 under John Barnes and then Les Parry, avoiding relegation by a single point; despite making 32 appearances, Shuker was released at the end of the season.

[50] He scored his first goal for the "Valiants" in his fourth game for the club, hitting a long-range effort in a 2–2 draw with Accrington Stanley at the Crown Ground.

[51] He stayed at Vale Park, despite a financial crisis leaving manager Micky Adams unable to promise Shuker the payment of his wages as listed in the player's contract.

[58] In October 2014, Shuker joined the coaching staff at former club Tranmere Rovers, linking up with Micky Adams, his former manager at Port Vale.

In February 2012, Barnsley and Port Vale teammate Marc Richards described 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) Shuker as "small, nippy, tricky and he's got a quality right foot.