If you had asked me 15 years ago, when my GCSE’s were about to begin, I would have only dreamt of being where I am today. I’m going to give you a little insight into my journey, and how I got here as Head of Soccer, U.K, for Athleticademix!
How it all started…
At the age of 15/16, when you finish school, not many people know exactly what career pathway they want to get into. All I knew then was that I was football obsessed and wanted to go as far as I could- like many of you reading this, I had the dream to play professionally one day.
At the age of 16, I was playing for Portsmouth and would watch “Bend It Like Beckham” the night before every game I played. That is what gave me the dream to go to America and play College Soccer! To see what was on offer to you as a student-athlete was something that excited me, and I knew for my development and overall life experience it would be an amazing opportunity. The saying “The Land of Opportunity” was more than accurate for what America had on offer then, and even more so now in the collegiate level!
As I got going with my A-Level’s it became more apparent to me that the only thing I wanted to do after college was go to America, so that is what I did! My family were always so supportive of my footballing career, taking me training and driving me all around the country for games, so when I told them about this idea there was no hesitation from their side…maybe one less in the house was all they wanted!!
Some of my family during my Master’s Degree Graduation celebrations.
I was never a top academic student, and in all honesty, University in England was never really something I had considered. However, the U.S College system is designed to allow you to play at an elite level whilst also obtaining a degree. I was undecided on what degree I wanted to do, but in the U.S you don’t have to decide until after the first year, or even into the second. By that time I had fully settled into life as a student-athlete and knew I wanted to pursue a degree within the sports industry. Unfortunately for me, I suffered a career ending injury towards the end of my second year. I spent months and months trying to get back to playing but ultimately got advised to stop playing, to prevent later life issues. It seemed like my world was crumbling in front of my own eyes, but with the support of my coaching staff I was able to continue my degree, and begin my own coaching journey- albeit a little earlier than planned!
Post Graduation…
I graduated from Delta State University, in Mississippi, in December 2016 with a Bachelors Degree in Health, Physical Education and Recreation- with a focus in coaching. After graduation I moved to Memphis, Tennessee. This was somewhere I spent a fair bit of time in whilst at Delta State, as it was only 2 hours away. Here, I got a full time coaching role for a club. I spent a season doing that before accepting my first College Coaching job, at North Iowa Area Community College. I was going in as the Assistant for the Women’s team and couldn’t wait to get started. After the first season I was made Head Coach of the Women’s team and Assistant for the Men’s, but unfortunately had some visa issues that prevented me from continuing in that role. This was just another bump in the road, and I was more than determined to continue my coaching career in College Soccer.
Coaching at West Liberty University
After a few days of taking everything in, I was offered a Graduate Assistant role at West Liberty University, in West Virginia. This meant I could do a Master’s Degree, whilst continuing to coach at the D2 level- again, something I never thought I would be doing if you had told me that when I was about to sit my GCSE’s! After two years there, graduating with a Master’s Degree in Organisational Leadership, I decided to take the leap and move back to England. I flew home on March 10th, and two weeks later we were plunged into the first lockdown, so my plans were on hold and I spent some well needed time re-setting and being with my family. Living on the South Coast during this time made it all a little easier!
Lockdown 2020, making the most of my daily outing!
As lockdown restrictions eased, I took my first coaching role in England. I was made Head Coach of Portsmouth FC Women Development Squad, whilst also overseeing the younger girls teams. I am a Portsmouth fan myself so had a great pride in wearing the badge on a daily basis. As the months passed I realised how much I missed America, and the U.S College set up. I knew then I had to do something about it to get back into what had become my life for the past 8 years, and that’s when I spoke to David Fletcher, Director of Athleticademix.
From the moment I met David I knew what Athleticademix were doing, and had plans of doing, was something I wanted to be a part of. To assist the younger generation in following their own dreams to go and play in America is something I am so passionate about, because the years I spent doing just that were by far the best of my life!
To now…
And so, here I am today, doing that and loving every single second of it! You don’t have to know what your future will look like, at the age of 15/16 when you’re about to sit your GCSE’s, but you should know that anything is possible if you put your mind to it and want it bad enough!
I am so happy to be in my role of Head of Soccer, U.K, for Athleticademix- being able to speak to ambitious people about what the opportunity of becoming a student-athlete looks like for them is something I will never tire of. If you would like a conversation about this opportunity for yourself, please reach out to me. I would love to share more with you about my journey and what it could look like for you!
E-mail- daisy@athleticademix.com
Instagram- athleticademix.daisy
Thanks for reading! ☺️