Born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, Foster was an associate schoolboy with Southampton, but was not offered a professional contract.

After a season, manager Ian St John converted Foster to a centre back and he marked his debut in that position with an own goal against Bury in November 1976.

However, after only eight largely unsuccessful months at Villa Park, he was transferred to Luton Town in November 1984.

He left Luton in 1989, and later played for Oxford United, before returning to Brighton, where he spent the last four years of his career.

In January 2008 he was named as a member of an Anglo-American consortium, which includes BBC presenter Nick Owen, bidding to buy his former club Luton Town.