 Bowen joined Tottenham Hotspur as an apprentice in 1980, signing his first professional contract in December 1981.First-team opportunities were limited for him at White Hart Lane and he made only a handful of appearances for the club though he was an unused substitute in the second leg of the 1984 UEFA Cup Final.In the summer of 1987, Norwich City manager Ken Brown paid Spurs £90,000 for Bowen, who was one of a number of players that Norwich signed from Tottenham during that period.