SOME BOX CLEVER FOR SECOND CAREER
IT SEEMS like every new season sees a raft of recently retired players move into punditry to share their ‘wisdom’ with us.
Of course, while footballers at the top level are used to having cameras on them on the pitch, they might not be so comfortable sitting in a studio next to Gary Lineker.
We’ve had some success stories such as Gary Neville and Danny Murphy in recent times, with both proving to be surprisingly entertaining and informative.
But for players who don’t fancy wearing a suit to work and would rather avoid management and the inevitable grey hairs that come with it, what are the options?
Most sportsmen never lose that competitive edge, even after they have long retired. So why not just transfer over to a different sport?
It may sound much easier said than done and while Carlisle’s Kyle Dempsey turned down rugby league for football, plenty have left the beautiful game for pastures new.
Former German international goalkeeper and now bodybuilder Tim Wiese was in the news recently after being offered a contract by professional wrestling company WWE.
And he wouldn’t be the first to make the same move and prove that footballers are tougher than they look.
Former Crewe, Port Vale and Burton Albion goalkeeper Stuart Tomlinson is already on the books of the American-based federation and moved to Orlando, Florida to train after retiring from football last year due to a knee ligament injury.
Ex-Sheffield United and Birmingham City midfielder Curtis Woodhouse turned to boxing and became British light-welterweight champion while Jamie Cook, a former Crawley and Stevenage forward, went with the calmer surroundings of pro golf.
And while the NFL took centre stage last Sunday with another game at Wembley, Watford, Crewe, Aldershot and Fulham fans might remember a certain Bobby Howfield.
The forward moved from one football to another and starred as a kicker for the Denver Broncos and New York Jets between 1968 and 1974.