Gordon wasn’t feeling so flash but now he’s coaching at Neilston
HE was a cross between dour and sour when one saw him towards the end of last season so it was most refreshing to have a catch-up chat with reinvigorated Renfrew veteran David ‘Cisco’ Gordon this week.
Gone is the hangdog expression that appeared to be part of his baggage after the seasoned Frew defensive fixture dropped out of the side that eventually climbed to the dizzy heights of fourth place in the Super First Division and clinched automatic promotion to the Premiership.
It didn’t sit particularly well with Davie to be club captain yet looking on from the outside as his team-mates did the business however what his time on the fringes did was allow him to take stock of his family/work/ football balance and as soon as the season ended he went looking for a nail to hang up the boots.
Bringing the curtain down on a 12-year Junior playing career spent almost entirely between two clubs – he moved from Neilston to Renfrew when Danny Gault was manager then returned to Neilston before rejoining Renfrew – was not a call he made without plenty of consideration.
And last night the 37-yearold admitted: “My last starting jersey was Kilsyth Rangers away and our next game saw the introduction of young Cameron Clark who was excellent so I had no justifiable reason to complain yet I still found myself getting more and more frustrated at not playing regularly.
“Work priorities were also interfering with me getting along to training sessions so with Renfrew moving into the top tier of the game and needing even more commitment, I took the decision during the summer to take a step back.
“It was the right thing to do for the team and as it turned out, also the right thing for me because the gaffers Colin Clark and Martin Ferry then offered me the chance to get involved on the coaching side alongside Chris Cameron and Jimmy Quigley and I’m back to having a smile on my face and enjoying being around.
“It’s not been easy to cram all my commitments in and I’ll be pushed to make our game against Irvine Meadow tomorrow as I’m hoping to earn my coaching badges at an SFA course through in Hamilton.”