My Journey in Soccer Coaching: From Grassroots to Premier League Development

Soccer has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. Coaching it has been most of my working life since 2010. This is how I got here, roughly in order.

Starting as an assistant

My first coaching job, in 2010, was as an assistant at a skills-focused soccer school, working under coaches with years more experience than me. Most of what I learned early on came from watching them work: how they ran a session, when they stepped in, when they let it run.

Qualifying, and then carrying on

I qualified as a coach the same year. That didn’t mean I was done learning. I’ve kept going through coaching education pathways and having my sessions peer reviewed, because the way the game is played and taught doesn’t stand still.

Grassroots in England

Before New York, I coached in the youth set-up of a travel club in the seventh tier of the English league system. That’s grassroots football. There’s no budget to paper over anything, so you learn player development and how to hold a team together fast.

Some of the players I coached went on to train with, and sign for, development centres and academies at Premier League and Championship clubs. That’s the part of the job I’m proudest of. It’s what good coaching at grassroots level can do.

Running a league in New York

In New York I became division head and organizer for a recreational league, running teams and games for over 100 girls every weekend. Most of that job is logistics and communication — keeping a lot of moving parts on time. It also showed me how much it matters that girls have a regular, well-run place to play.

The view from the other side

I qualified as a Regional class referee to understand the game from the officials’ side. It changes what you notice: the flow of a match, and how one decision can shift it.

I’m now studying for the UEFA B License. I’ve written about what that course is actually like.

The paperwork

I’ve been background checked by the NYPD, the NYC DOE and the FA (Enhanced CRB). I also hold clean US and UK driving licences, so I can get to sessions wherever they are.

That’s the route so far. The UEFA B is the next stretch of it.