Liam Ormsby’s Non League Journey

Liam Ormsby during his Tadcaster days

Liam Ormsby was one of the best midfielders in the lower reaches of Non League Football until his career was untimely cut short because of injury in August 2016.

Ormsby, the son of Leeds United legend Brendan, won title medals with Tadcaster Albion and Albion Sports. He was a hugely important member of the Tadcaster side which reached the FA Vase quarter-finals in 2015 and then won the NCEL Premier Division in 2016. 

His Non League career was flourishing until an horrendous ankle break sustained whilst playing for Scarborough Athletic in an FA Cup at Tadcaster Albion was effectively his final game as a footballer. 

But he’s made many friends and memories from his Non League Journey which saw him also play for Garforth Town and Pontefract Collieries. His spell with Pontefract is particularly memorable as his dad was his manager for the second time in his life (but without the family dog this time).

He had many happy moments on the field for his clubs and he even successfully proposed marriage to his girlfriend on the centre circle of one pitch.

This is Liam Ormsby’s Non League Journey:

“My first managers were Dave Coates and Floyd Harris at Garforth Villa. There were lads like Rob Fish, Curtis Swain, Olly Wyatt, David Bell, Tristan Harris, James Deane. My dad used to come along and he’d stand there with my mum and the dog and he would be a vocal part of the game. He eventually did get involved with the management side of it.”

Dog Rage at Under 8s Match 

Liam Ormsby’s dad Brendan was a very passionate figure on touchlines, with or without the family dog

“We played Wortley Boys and the league back then was very strong. Seacroft, Wortley, Pudsey Juniors and Farsley Celtic were strong sides. Wortley was always a hard game and the Wortley manager, was also very vocal. My dad ended up walking onto the pitch with the dog to confront the Wortley manager with the dog at this side and the game just stopped. We’re talking under sevens or eights as well! Because my mum was running the coffee stand, my dad had to hold the dog while managing the team. But it all kicked off and it was because of a tackle on me. It was always because of a tackle on me. It was hilarious, but not ideal when you’re at under 8s level. But that was my dad with his passion and wanting to win attitude which he passed onto me.”

Academy Football 

“I was then at Leeds United for five or six years. The list is ridiculous in terms of the standard of players you were playing with. Danny Rose, Fabian Delph are two and then you have Jonny Bairstow who is now a cricketer and has done great things. I dropped out of Leeds and ended up getting picked up by Middlesbrough. I had two or three good years there, but it came to a point when I was 16 where I was training five times a week straight after school and the enjoyment went out of the window. That’s why I took a step back and went to play for Kirk Deighton Rangers because a lot of my friends played for them. I played centre-midfield and I think scored 53 goals in one season. From that I got a trial for Barnsley.

“It became a decision of whether do I stay at sixth form or sign a two-year scholarship for Barnsley and I remember my dad telling me. I don’t think he finished the sentence before I said ‘where do I sign’? I had two good, but tough years. I went there when Simon Davey was the academy manager and Andy Ritchie was the first team manager. Andy got sacked three weeks after I signed. Simon got the first team job and it is the year when they had the great run in the FA Cup when they beat Liverpool and Chelsea and then played Cardiff in the semi-final at Wembley. In terms of my development when Simon went to the first team, it was a bit tougher for me and I didn’t play much. Eventually that led to me not getting a professional contract. But the travelling to Barnsley by having to get a bus into Leeds and a train to Barnsley to be there by 7 o’clock to do the boots and then train twice a day and not get home until 8 o’clock, it really built me as a person more than anything.”

America’s Brush with Ormsby 

“I was meant to go to America after Barnsley. I was invited to exit trials and there were a couple of American Universities who wanted to sign me. I met with a University in Carolina who came over to meet me. It was my fault why it went wrong as I went to do the SAT tests. There was quite a lot of the Leeds football lads and education people at where we were taking the tests and there was 50 of us in the room. They started calling names out and all the football lads all got taken in a room and I was left with the education people. It turned out I had registered for the wrong test. I ended up sat with all these highly-educated people who were looking at doing high level degrees. I passed the test, but if I had gone over, because of how many reserve games I had played for Barnsley I would have been banned from playing for three years as they class semi-pro as professional over there.”

Harrogate Town (2008/09)

“Harrogate Town was my first look into Non League Football. It was another learning curve as an 18-year-old kid as the squad that they had was unbelievable. They had Justin Whittle, the centre-half who played in the league, Danny Holland upfront, Nathan Peat, Denny Ingram. Neil Aspin was a great manager too and he’s gone onto do great things at Halifax and Gateshead. The team was fighting for promotion and you were playing teams like Gateshead who had Lee Novak. I didn’t play much, but my opportunities were limited because of the competition for places. It did toughen me up as it showed me how Non League is played as it is a lot different to academy football.”

Garforth Town (2009-2011)

Liam Ormsby won the West Riding County Cup with Garforth

“When I left Harrogate Town my next move was about finding somewhere where I would play. Because of the relationship I had with Garforth because of my dad playing there, I went and spoke to Simon Clifford. I did a few of his sessions at Roundhay Park and Simon is a great person and people who have played under him will know what I mean. He tries to bring the best out of people and I enjoyed it. The first year was a great year for me. I played a lot of games in a very good team. You had the likes of Tom Greaves upfront and we ended up winning the County Cup that year. We struggled in the league in the first season, but we had a close-knit team.”

Garforth Town 5-4 Barnoldwick (2010 West Riding County Cup Final)

“I was ill on the day and we weren’t sure whether it was going to be played or not as the weather was poor. But I scored the first one as Tom Greaves hit a shot and it hit the bar and I nodded it in. It was a very back and forth game as I think we went 2-0 up and they came back into it. I scored a penalty as well and I also set Tom Greaves up. Dom Blair scored in the 118th minute to win it for us. It was a great game and it will stick in my memory for years to come. It was also a nice personal thing as my dad had won it with Garforth and now I had won it.”

Second Year at Garforth 

“I had a two-year contract, but the second year was the first season where I had problems with injury. We played away at Chester in November time and I went into this tackle with a centre-midfielder and it felt like my ankle had exploded. I had to have surgery and I didn’t play again for the rest of the season. 

“Steve Nichol is someone I’d like to mention. In the first year Steve was the assistant, but he was very part of the inner workings. He was very big on diet and how the team works in terms of the formation. When Simon took a back step, Steve took over as manager and he drove the team forward. Steve was more prominent in the second year and I didn’t really get to experience the way that Steve works because I was injured. It is unfortunate that I didn’t play under him longer.”

Brendan Ormsby’s Pontefract Collieries (2011-late 2012)

Ormsby played for his dad at Pontefract Collieries
Liam Ormsby in action for Pontefract

“I was excited for him because I know he had been biting at the bit to get back into it. Did I ever think I’d play for him? Probably not at that time. He took over during the second half of the season when I was injured at Garforth and he was looking to move the club forwards in his first full season. When I left Garforth, my sights were really set on getting back to that level (NPL Division One North) or the league above. I went down to do some coaching (at Pontefract) and the chairman Guy (Nottingham) said he’d love me to play down there. It was not something I’d thought of, but when he told me the plans of wanting to win the league and the players they were bringing in, I was interested. Because I had been injured as well, you kind of want an environment where you’re comfortable and signing for Pontefract ticked those boxes.

“It was a tough league and you had the likes of Glasshoughton who were obviously managed by Craig Elliott. They had a very strong team. You had Handsworth as well. We had a good start and we were up there for the majority of the season. I know you have spoken with Craig about his view at how that season panned out and I just think they had too much. That season really ignited my love for Non League Football. With the players we had we felt we could win the league.”

Ponte Roll Call

“Duncan Bray is the first who springs to mind. He was more involved in the coaching team when I was there. Stevie Lyons, Gary Lumley were there. James Hicks was a massive player for us because he’d play upfront and put his head through a brick wall for you. He’d also rub people up the wrong way. There was a lot of good lads. Nick Handley was another. Ryan Poskitt was a stand-out player as a magic man. His feet were amazing. Connor Rollinson was an up-and-coming player when we were together. He got a chance at right-back and he’s probably one of the quickest players I have played with. He got pushed to the right wing and he was so quick. He was wanting to learn and he did well for us. Don’t get me wrong, he’d get some stick for his intriguing activities away from football, but was a great lad and he’s had a great career. Will Ramsay is similar to Connor as he was a young lad with us and he’s gone on to have a great career. It shows how strong the squad was. Will was trying to find out his best position and he was playing in multiple positions like left-wing and upfront. Greig McGrory was another lad we had and he’s my best mate. He was my best man and I was his best man at his wedding. I played in midfield with his brother Scott. Greig was a great player, but he struggled with injuries. He’s had more ops than me as he’s had four or five ankle ops. He has the biggest glass ankle in football.”

Brendan No Longer Needs The Dog

Brendan Ormsby managing Pontefract Collieries

“At Pontefract, he didn’t need the dog. Because we had such a great squad and the ambition was high, tensions were so high. There was a game at Eccleshill and we had to win. We weren’t playing well and Marcus Edwards scored for them early doors and we couldn’t break them down. We missed a chance and there was a smash of glass and my dad had put his hand through the back of the dugout. Bottles had gone everywhere and he was screaming and shouting. He wore his heart on his sleeve.

“There was another incident at Worksop Parramore which is similar to the Garforth Villa dog incident, just without the dog. It was a top of the table clash and we were playing really well. There was a tackle on me and there’s a picture of it. I didn’t realise at the time, but apparently he came charging onto the pitch again kicking off and he got sent off. He spent the rest of the game peering from the back of the stand trying to watch the game.”

Ponte Versus the Rec

“It was a fierce rivalry between Athersley and Pontefract. You had the likes of Ryan White in midfield and you knew you were in for a game. It was also one of those games you’d look forward to on a Friday night. Ryan White would always stick one on me in the first two or three minutes. The game at our place got a bit heated because of some of the tackles and there were a couple of sending-offs. In the reverse fixture, Robbo (Craig Robinson) got sent off and fans were trying to hit  us as we were coming off. We ended up getting locked in the away dressing room as the Athersley fans wouldn’t let us leave. It is not something you experience every day, but you look back on it with fond memories. Really it was harmless banter.”

Albion Sports (2013/14)

“My dad left Pontefract (n February 2012) by a mutual decision so it put me in a tricky predicament. I had coached at Albion Sports for years so I had known Kully (Sandhu) for five years as I co-ran the academy on a Saturday morning. They were in the same league as Pontefract and they were going for promotion. I spoke to them (in January 2013) and it made sense going there. 

“You had the core elements in the Albion team. You had Danny Brown and James Stansfield at centre-halves. Asif Hussain at left-back, Elliott Holmes at right-back. You had Alex Cusack, myself and Adam Jones in midfield. When we’re talking about characters, Jonesy is definitely one. He loves a red card. He must have got seven red cards in the last 20 games of the season. But he’s someone who would put his neck on the line for you. We had the likes of Delroy Facey and Danny Facey and Karl Hall up-top. It was a great team.”

Scoring on Albion Debut against…Pontefract

“My first game for Albion was actually against Pontefract at Albion and I scored the winner after 20 minutes. Nick and Dunc had tried to delay it by declining to waive the seven days, but the game got postponed because of the weather. So when I did sign, the game had been rearranged so they couldn’t do anything. When I scored, it was one of those moments when I didn’t do anything. It was probably one of my best goals. Brownie (David Brown) turned up just as the ball came into me from the right-hand-side and I controlled it and volleyed it first time. It went in off the bar and even Brownie turned to me and said ‘I think that’s the best goal you’ve ever scored’. That was a bittersweet moment and we ended up winning the league (Division One).”

David Brown

David Brown, pictured, and Liam Ormsby embrace. Picture: Ian Parker

“I’ve known Browny for 20-odd years. When I was at Leeds in the under 7/8s, he was always in the year above, but because of his size, I remember him as a blonde fur ball as he had this massive blonde wig. He used to come down a level and play with us. I actually started knowing properly was when we worked together at Leeds United’s academy when we were 18. I coached the under 7 and 8s with Arthur Graham and Browny got drafted in.

“Brownie is a quality player. When I’m at club I’ve always tried to get Brownie. If you get him on a surface where it is like a carpet and you get him running between the lines and he’s turning and running at players, he’s quality. He’s also probably one of the biggest wind-up merchants in football. He knows how to wind people up. He will talk as much rubbish to opposition players and he’s very good at it. He knows the game inside out. Sometimes it went against him as he was used as an impact sub because if it gets to 70 minutes would you want Brownie coming at you? I wouldn’t. 

“The funny story with Brownie is the one where Morgs’ (Tom Morgan) car broke down and Brownie was leading a warm-up on the side of the M62. Paddy left a bit out as he didn’t mention that we got there ten minutes before kick off and I pulled my hamstring in the first ten minutes so Brownie’s warm-up was crap!” 

Premier Life with Albion 

“I stayed at Albion when we got into the Premier and why not? I enjoyed it and it was the same squad and we won the first five games so we were top with Thackley.Thackley came to us in a midweek and we were 5-0 down after 53 minutes. Brownie was playing for us at the time and we looked at each other and we were thinking ‘how can you go from winning five straight games to being 5-0 down’? We finished sixth and I would have loved to have stayed at Albion, but I had been keeping tabs on what Tadcaster were doing. I’d seen what Matt and Jimmy Gore were doing and seeing what they were trying to implement and the players they were trying to attract.”

Ormsby Forces Marshall to Shave

“During the season in the Prem with Albion, Tad had gone something like 19 games unbeaten. Marshy (Paul Marshall) had said he wasn’t going to shave his beard until they got beat. We went to their place (December 2013) and his beard was huge. They were shoo-ins for the title and I remember it as clear as day. It was on the hour mark and the corner has come and I peeled off to the back stick and it got headed out to me off Denny Ingram. I took one touch and then banged it into the top corner. We beat them 1-0 and I played well as we deservedly won 1-0. I think it stuck in Marshy’s mind. He had to shave his beard off and we had a quick chat afterwards and in the summer Tadcaster reached out to me.”

Tad All Over 

Liam Ormsby making a strong tackle during Tadcaster’s 1-1 draw at Pickering Town. Picture: Ian Parker
Liam Ormsby scores from the penalty spot for Tad. Picture: Ian Parker

“It was no-brainer. They had the likes of Denny Ingram who was a big influence from when he was at Harrogate Town because he turned me from a boy into a man. When we did start playing it was brilliant, the pitch was like a carpet, the fans were superb. The song Tad All Over was different and I first met Paddy (Miller) at the recording studio. The Gore’s were good at getting people in and we were on an incredible run. We were the best team by a mile for six or seven months of that season and it was the best squad I played with in terms of players. We should have won that league. You had Paddy, (Tom Claisse) Claisse in midfield, Josh Greening. You then throw in the likes of Jono Greening, a player of his calibre.

“There’s one memory when we went to Armthorpe and won 10-0. Jimmy and Matt had built it up to try and get 1000 fans there. It was a Tuesday night and it was an horrendous night as it was wet and windy. Six coaches went and we had a massive following there.

“It was the best football I played and we ripped teams to pieces, but when we got to the business end when we were fighting it out with Shaw Lane and Worksop, we capitulated at the wrong time.”

Tadcaster Albion 2-1 Albion Sports (15th November 2014)

“I said goodbye to a close family friend Chris Watson, Rob Fisher’s dad, on the morning of a game against Albion. Dealing with stuff like that is tough. If you’re going to ask me for a game that stands out, it is probably that game. To speak to someone you’re never going to see again and then play a game of football for Tadcaster against Albion is tough. This was a crucial game that we needed to win and I wasn’t playing well in the first half. I was late to the game and Marshy asked me at half-time what was wrong. Jono Greening pushed us through in the second half and we got two penalties in the last eight minutes and I scored them both. We won 2-1 and I remember walking off in tears. When you deal with things like that it builds you as a person, but when you have the people around you like we had at Tad, they help during situations like this because they are like family.”

FA Vase Run (2014/15)

“That’s the biggest disappointment as I feel as much as we should have won the league, we should have at least got to the semi-finals of the Vase. But what it did do is get people buzzing about the club in the Town. Everyone was together and behind us. We felt we would achieve something that would make the Town proud.

“I remember the Brocton game where we came from behind to win 3-2. I hit a shot and Calum Ward put it in. Then there was the Morpeth game in the second round when I scored with the last kick of the game, a penalty, to put us through. It was a wet day and the ground was heavy so everyone was tired. It was a tired tackle from their defender and there was huge pressure on me to score as there were a few hundred people rooting for Tadcaster. There was a bit of a delay taking it as well. Don’t get me wrong I was nervous, but you have to try and block it out. Marshy would never watch penalties so he was quite famous for turning his back. I’m sure there is a picture of Brownie jumping on my back after I scored and you can see Marshy with his back to goal. 

“We got to the quarter-finals and you shouldn’t, but you start thinking ‘who do we want’? Highworth weren’t flying or competing for the title in their league. It was the first time we travelled down for a game on the night before. I don’t know if we underestimated them, but they were well-organised and we went 1-0 down. We got a penalty and we equalised. The first penalty I missed was a few weeks earlier against Glasshoughton so I got took off penalties. Calum Ward came to up to me and said ‘do you want to take it’? He’s a great lad and he was playing well so I said ‘have confidence and you’ll score’. Thankfully he drove it down the middle and we drew 1-1. We had some key chances and we should have won it there.

“At our place we broke the attendance record as over 1200 were there, but we didn’t play well. We were going through that sticky patch and the run of the play didn’t go for us and we weren’t good enough on the day. Gary Stevens was the Highworth goalkeeper and in the replay we got a penalty early on. Wakka said the same and I said ‘you have got us through to this point, take the penalty’. He did the same thing and Gary remembered it from a week earlier and Gary got a foot to it and saved it. The momentum swung and their striker scored with 15 minutes to go. You’re just deflated and upset, not just for the team. Even though we were like brothers. I made friendships for life from Tadcaster with people like Anna (Sonny’s mum) and that game is the biggest disappointment.”

Charity Game for Brendan (April 2015)

Former Leeds United captain Brendan Ormsby leads the teams out with his son Liam. Picture: whiterosephotos.co.uk
Liam Ormsby proposing to his girlfriend Marianne in front of 2000 people at Farsley. Picture: White Rose Photos
She said yes

“We had the charity game at Farsley to raise money for my dad. It was nice because we had a great turnout for him. A lot of players who used to play for Leeds and Aston Villa turned up because of their relationships with him. I had a chat with him if he was ok with me proposing to Marianne? He was and it felt right. Marianne was a bit shocked. It was a big nerve-wracking moment, but that’s hardly surprising when you ask your future potential wife to marry you on one knee in front of 2000 people and she pauses before she replies! Luckily she said yes and we’re now married.”

Gary Stevens versus Carl Stewart – Round Two?

“When the Highworth Town game ended there was the massive scuffle when it kicked off with Gary and Carl at the end. Gary was obviously the Highworth goalkeeper. I didn’t see what happened, but it came from Carl and Gary giving each other stick. 40 people were on the pitch and punches were been thrown and Gary was on the floor. It shouldn’t have happened and everyone apologised.

“Gary then signed for us which was a surprise. It took us eight hours to get to Highworth for the FA Vase game because of the roadworks. So when we signed Gary we were like ‘how does that work’? It turned out that he was moving back up and he was great goalkeeper. He won that game for Highworth.

“We were all very nervous when we had the first training session because we didn’t know if it would be round two of him and Carl. It was put to bed extremely quickly as Carl had to apologise to him.”

Winning the NCEL Premier Division Title (2015/16)

The Ormsby family with the NCEL Premier Division trophy in 2016

“We recruited well with the likes of Jimmy Beadle who is probably one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. We had a great team and with Billy (Miller) and Matt Heath in charge, we rightly rectified what we couldn’t achieve the year before. It was a tough season for me because it was second season syndrome again as I had pneumonia. We were playing Cleethorpes in the second half of the season  I just didn’t feel right and I felt like I couldn’t breathe and at half-time I collapsed in the changing room. I didn’t play again for the rest of the season. But winning the league is a moment I’ll cherish and I’m proud to say I won both NCEL leagues – the Premier with Tad and Division One with Albion. I feel I made a big contribution to Tad winning it. I was top of the goal-scoring charts after seven games as I scored five penalties. As a central-midfielder, to be top of the goal-scoring charts it was probably one of my finest moments.”

Sonny Lang

“My wife Marianne was extremely close with Sonny and the Town was brought together by her with the charity games and the fundraising. When it was my first game she was running the bar and she came over having a chat as if we had known each other for years. That was Sonny, she’d speak to anyone and she’d give out banter. It was devastating what happened to Sonny, but she brought the Town together.”

Leaving Tad

“That two-year period will never be matched again. I’ve had offers to play again and if I were to come back, I would want it to be like my time at Tad The relationships I had with Anna, Sonny, Paddy, I could name many more, but those friendships with last forever. It was a great time and a special time. It was validated my decision to join Tadcaster. Marshy is probably one of the most loyal managers you’ll play for and I think that has been shown not only in the number of games he’s managed, but the success he’s had. There was a great backroom team in Mike Morton, Si Collins, (physio) Lucy (Lendhill), the board, the volunteers, the fans. What more can you ask? You have all the ingredients for a great club.

“My dad had a stroke in December 2013 and Tadcaster massively looked after and the club was around the corner for him. They treated him like family. He loved going to Tadcaster. He has been made extremely welcome by every club I have played at, Garforth especially. It was touching for him there as he had the history there as a player. When I made the decision to leave Tadcaster the following year after we won the league, it was hard.”

Career Ending Moment at Tadcaster 

Ormsby during his ‘final game’

“I joined Scarborough during that summer and we got drawn away at Tadcaster in the FA Cup in early August and I look upon that game as my final match. I did come back after that, but the game at Tad was my last. If you were going to ask me where else would I want to play my final game, if it was at Tadcaster, I’d be happy with that. It was kind of meant to be. It was a great game and we were actually winning. In terms of the circumstances of what happened, that’s football. Injuries happen all the time. I don’t hold any grudges over it. It was an unfortunate incident which led to me not been able to come back as the player I was. It was a tough experience to try and come back from that. I tried, but the ankle didn’t allow me to that.

“All the ligaments in my ankle were torn and the bone above my ankle was broke. I was on the pitch for an hour and half after it happened and I was taken to hospital. I was told afterwards that it would take ten to 12 months to come back and Scarborough were extremely helpful in terms of the recovery.”

Liam Ormsby, Harrogate Railway assistant manager (2016/17)

Ormsby had a brief stint as the assistant manager at Harrogate Railway during the 2016/17 season. Picture: Caught Light Photography

“I loved it doing it. (Paul Beesley) Bees was at Scarborough when I was there and I’d always said that when I was injured that I want to keep myself involved. Travelling from Leeds to Scarborough was a long trip when I was injured and Bees called me because of my background in coaching and because he needed someone who knew the league because Railway were struggling at the time. It was local to me and I worked in Harrogate at the time so I thought it was a no brainer to get stuck into something like that. I was in charge of the recruitment, budgets and making sure it was run professionally.

“We did well and I enjoyed it. The first couple of games was tough because we were trying to change the losing mentality that the team had. It doesn’t happen overnight, but we brought in quality and we had a very good team. When we did make the decision to leave which was taken out of our hands, we had got to 15th or 16th. We beat Mansfield away 1-0. We brought some young lads in and put them alongside the experienced lads. We had Sam Denton at centre-half. He won the league with Shaw Lane. We had Fraser Hansen who came from Tadcaster.

“Unfortunately circumstances didn’t allow us to stay, but I was gutted because I was confident that I would have been able to come back and play and done something special there.”

Brief Comeback at Garforth Town (2017/18)

Both Liam and Brendan Ormsby played for Garforth Town during their football careers

“There was only three clubs who I was going to play for if I came back. One was Tadcaster, one was Albion Sports and the other was Garforth. I spoke to Mikey (Morton) at Tadcaster and I needed to prove my fitness to him by playing regularly. I spoke with Albion and I spoke with Rob Hunter and he wanted me to be part of the club. Garforth is in my blood and I wanted to go back. I’d not really done pre-season. I had done a couple of training sessions, but the ankle was still not right. I came on a sub against Penistone, Hemsworth and Liversedge and felt fine. We went to Staveley and I said to Rob ‘I still don’t think I’m in a position where I can start’. But he’d had an injury and I had to play from the beginning and it just didn’t feel right. I went up for a header before half-time and I came down on my ankle and it just didn’t feel good. I knew at that point I couldn’t carry on and I had to come back. The game finished and I said to my mum and dad at the end ‘I think that’s it’. I think players know when the moment comes to retire. That was the last game I played, but really the last game I played at full fitness was at Tad while playing for Scarborough.”

Future 

“I don’t know whether you’ll see me back. I’ll never say never though. It was a blessing in disguise when I got injured because I was getting married. I’ve moved back to Leeds and I’ve changed careers. I have had a temptation to get back into it this year for the first time since I stopped playing. But it has to be the right time. The management side is what I’d be more interested in because of the people I know and my experience. Browny is involved at Scarborough now. It is the time element because of family and work and trying to fit football in. If I can’t give my all to it then I don’t want to do it.”

If you have enjoyed this interview, please consider making a donation to the not-for-profit organisation NLY Community Sport which provides sport for children and adults with disabilities and learning difficulties. CLICK HERE to visit the JustGiving page.

There is a video at the bottom of the page showing our work.

NLY Community Sport, run by James Grayson and Connor Rollinson, has always had combatting social isolation at the top of our objectives when running our Disability Football teams so when the green light to return is given, our work will play an important role in reintroducing our players, who have disabilities and learning difficulties, back into society.

We have six teams, a mixture of Junior and Adult teams – Nostell MW DFC, Pontefract Pirates, Selby Disability Football Club and the South Yorkshire Superheroes (Barnsley) – across Yorkshire.

Like most organisations, we have been affected financially by the Coronavirus and we have incurred losses which we cannot recover. We have not been hit as badly as other organisations, but we do need raise £2000 to put us back at the level we were at in mid-March and enable us to make a difference once again to our players’ lives in the future, without having financial worries. As each day goes on, a substantial number of our players become further isolated so we need to be ‘ready for action’ when restrictions are lifted.

Any amount raised above £2000 will be put towards new projects (when the world returns to normal) designed to further benefit people with disabilities and learning difficulties. You can learn more about the organisation HERE and on our Facebook page.

Watch the video below to see highlights from our three years as an organisation. The video was produced for our players at the end of March to remind them of good memories from the last three years.

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