My
School Sport
Michael Owen!!
Q:
Where did you go to school?
A: Idsall school in Shenfell,
Shropshire.
Q: Did you enjoy your schooldays?
A: Yes. I managed in the
classroom, but always wanted games to come along
during the day. I preferred them to Maths and English.
Q: Have you been impressed with the children and their skills?
[After
looking round a football training school for young players]
A: Yes, they have shown me skills
that I don’t think people will have seen
much in the Premier League, some that they have developed
themselves and
some that they have taken off professional players. They are all
good, have
a good touch and a real enthusiasm for the game.
Q: How did you first get into football?
A: Ever since I can remember I was
playing football. My dad [who played for
Everton and Crewe] wanted all the lads in our family to be good
footballers.
Whether we made it or not was irrelevant. Dad always wanted us to
have a
kick-around. I’ve been inbred with it.
Q:
Did you play other sports at school?
A: I was always a sporty-type
person and played everything that was going.
If there was a cricket team or a rugby team, I’d be in that.
I still like
other sports now.
Q: Were you talented at other sports?
A: I think you will find that if
someone is good at football, then their
hand/eye/foot co-ordination is good and they tend to be
half-decent at other
things. It is not the be-all and end-all if you are good or not
at
something as long as you enjoy it. I think you enjoy it more if
you are
half-decent at it and certainly these lads are half-decent in
what they are
trying to do.
Q: What advice would you give to schoolchildren who feel they
have talent
and want to pursue a career in professional football?
A: If you are an accomplished
player, you have all the chance of making it
if you want it enough. That’s what I was like as a kid
– very enthusiastic,
wanting to take people on. Take advice on board and try it out in
matches
and training and see if it makes you a better player. Also,
nowadays, you
have to stay clear of certain things which come your way, like
going out
drinking, smoking and drugs. You have to have a full focus on
making it as
a footballer. Have confidence in your own ability and try things
that other
people can’t do. That’s what will make you different to
everyone else.