Talbot played for Southern League side Moor Green and was due to sign for Doncaster Rovers when Rovers manager Ian Atkins was sacked, leaving Talbot without a club or employment as he had quit his job as sheet metal worker to turn professional with Doncaster.
[4] At the age of 21, he entered professional football at a late stage and was one of numerous players who owed their careers to John Rudge.
[3] However, the arrivals of Ian Bogie and Lee Mills restricted his first-team progress, whilst he also struggled with niggling injuries throughout the 1995–96 season.
On 27 April, in a 2–1 defeat by Watford at Vale Park, he was stretchered with a broken leg off after 33 minutes, following a challenge by Paul Robinson.
[7] The injury resulted in ten months out of action, needing a breakthrough motion fixation treatment to speed up the recovery process.
His association with the Burslem club was over, after six seasons at Vale Park he moved on to Second Division new boys Rotherham United in July 2000.
After another 40+ games season for Talbot, United finished above relegated Crewe Alexandra thanks to their superior goal difference and despite a 2–0 defeat at Gresty Road in late April.
After a couple of runs in the 2002 half of the season, broken up by a persistent knee injury,[9] Ronnie Moore dropped Talbot.
On his return to Millmoor he was expected to re-join the "Shrews" in their battle to avoid the Conference National,[11] but instead he found himself back in first-team contention with Rotherham, playing five games before the end of the season.
Talbot told manager Martin Allen that he wanted to return to the North, he joined League Two side Boston United on a free transfer in June 2005.
[6] It was a difficult decision because we had such a successful season last year and I really enjoyed it but, at the age of 32, I just felt I needed to look to the future and Boston offered me just the kind of long-term deal I was looking for, and I just couldn't turn it down....In 2006–07 Boston lost their Football League status, Talbot making twenty appearances in his final season in the Football League.