Elsewhere In Football #27
The Hard Truth of Being an Uncharted Football Coach
We're approaching the halfway point of the year, which has given me a chance to pause, take stock and reflect. Looking back helps me understand what has gone well, what still needs work, and what I want to achieve during the second half of the year, both personally and professionally.
Lots of Professional Reasons to Be Positive.....
Life on the pitch here in India has got off to a fantastic start.
The Sahayak programme, which is creating a pathway into professional football for underprivileged children across Uttarakhand, is now up and running and growing quickly.
To put that into perspective, we're currently coaching more than 1,200 children aged between four and ten across 10 schools in Haldwani. We've also launched in Almora, where we're already working with close to 1,000 children across six schools. With another 13 schools due to join the programme, we're well ahead of schedule in terms of growth.
We're also working closely with eight young local coaches, all of whom are developing brilliantly. It's still early days, but their enthusiasm, willingness to learn and genuine passion for coaching is inspiring. They've also shown me a huge amount of respect, something I'm incredibly grateful for.
Alongside my work in India, we've also launched my 1 Child 1 Ball initiative in Nauru, where I continue to serve as Technical Director. Progress hasn't always moved as quickly as I would like and that can be frustrating, but the team we've built is absolutely brilliant. I genuinely believe we're creating something special.
I've also started a new freelance role writing opinion pieces for Spurs Web.
As a lifelong Tottenham supporter, being given the opportunity to write about the club is something I've really enjoyed and I'm excited to see where it leads.
Spurs- Web Stories
Lots to Be Excited About....
The next few months promise to be incredibly busy.
We'll continue expanding into more schools, launch the second season of our grassroots league, begin our player development sessions and roll out our coach education programme. There is so much to look forward to.
In July I'll also be travelling to New York for the TOVO Academy Positional Play Course. As it happens, the course falls on the same weekend as the World Cup Final, so I'll be in the same state while the biggest game in football is being played. I'm genuinely excited for the trip.
So Why Am I Feeling Despondent?
The reality of working in uncharted places and different cultures is that every move comes with challenges. You constantly have to adapt, learn and adjust. When you're doing it with a family, those challenges become even greater.
At the moment my family are back in Cambodia while my wife renews her passport and we arrange new visas. Discovering that they currently don't qualify for either business or dependent visas has created another hurdle for us to overcome. It's more paperwork, more expense and more uncertainty. I know these things are all part of relocating internationally, but sometimes you just wish the process could be a little simpler.
Being away from my family is always difficult. I miss them more than I can put into words.
Living in a smaller town has also taken some adjusting to. It's a very different lifestyle to what I've experienced elsewhere. There isn't much of a social scene and there aren't many other foreigners around, so life can feel quite isolated. I've made some wonderful Indian friends who have been incredibly welcoming, but I still miss my friends back home.
Spending time in the UK recently reminded me just how much I value those friendships. I also miss my friends in Cambodia, where a quick message was all it took to end up sharing a cold beer and catching up after work.
Most of my summer break has been spent alone, staying up through the night watching World Cup matches before sleeping through much of the day. My body clock is completely out of sync and watching football on my own has only made me miss home that little bit more.
I've spent most of my adult life travelling and working around the world. I've lived on remote islands and accepted that missing birthdays, weddings and family occasions was part of the journey.
This is the first time in my career that I've genuinely struggled with my living situation.
I'm incredibly fortunate to have experienced so much and to work in places that many people never get to see. But those experiences also come with lonely days, moments of doubt and the constant question of whether you're making the right decisions. That's something people don't often talk about.
It'll Pass......
As July begins, I'm sure getting back onto the training field every day and having my family return will give me the lift I need.
I'm proud of the work we're doing and I'm happy with where my career is heading. I just don't enjoy feeling unsettled.
After spending 15 days alone here in Haldwani, I realised how much I value having my family around me. Fifteen days was hard enough. The thought of feeling like that for years certainly makes you think.
There's so much to be proud of from the first half of this year.
There's even more to look forward to in the months ahead.
But today, if I'm being honest, I feel uncertain and I feel alone.
If you're considering a career in a different country or an uncharted part of the world, just remember that it isn't always an adventure every single day. It can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be lonely.
Sometimes the hardest battles happen long after the training session has finished.
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