THERE’S MOOR LEFT IN STORER!
A career that just keeps giving
KYLE STORER may only be 31 years old but he’s been there and done it when it comes to football in the lower leagues. A Conference champion with Cheltenham, a legend at Kidderminster, now he’s looking to create more memories at Solihull Moors. Here I caught up with him...
KYLE, WHAT A JOB YOU DID HELPING SOLIHULL MOORS TO SURVIVAL LAST SEASON. TELL US MORE…
It’s no secret that we were struggling before Christmas so fair play to the club for backing us in January and bringing in the likes of Jamey Osbourne and Adi Yussuf. They were a big help for us, but the priority was also being hard to beat and the endless defensive sessions working on keeping clean sheets.
MY OLD GAFFER MARK YATES DID A GREAT JOB IN SUCH A SHORT SPACE OF TIME THERE. IT MUST BE HARD TO SEE HIM LEAVE?
Yeah, obviously I only had a few months with Mark but I really enjoyed my time with him. He’s very hardworking and gets the best out of his teams, and also gets players wanting to play for him as you will know.
The gaffer now (Tim Flowers) is so organised – as players you know your job inside out with him. I think it was wise of the club to give Tim the job as he’s got the respect and all the experience that you need from playing at the highest level possible, and that will only benefit us as a club.
WHAT CAN SOLIHULL ACHIEVE THIS SEASON?
Well, I see we are one of the favourites to go down and I would seriously be shocked if that was the case. Signing the big man, Danny Wright, is a massive statement as he will always score goals which was missing last season. With that in place and with the top seven having a chance of promotion, I would put us in the mix.
YOU WON THE LEAGUE WITH CHELTENHAM IN 2016. TELL US MORE ABOUT THIS CAMPAIGN…?
What a season that was, but it was the most intense of my career. We had 15 new players that had never met before and to win the league by 12 points was just incredible. Team spirit was the key. If teams mixed it with us then we could match them and if teams played football we would beat them both ways. We had a great attitude with an unbelievable desire to win – all made achievable by the manager Gary Johnson. His commitment, experience and leadership got us over the line.
WITH SOLIHULL BEING PART TIME, WHAT DO YOU FILL YOUR TIME WITH?
I’m ‘Daddy Daycare’ at the moment with our little boy Harry – he keeps me on my toes, trust me! I also try and swing the golf clubs whenever I can.
BIGGEST HIGHLIGHT IN FOOTBALL?
I’ve had a couple. Scoring against Norwich in the third round of the FA Cup with Tamworth in 2007 live on TV was nice, and also leading Kidderminster Harriers out in the fourth round away at then-Premier League Sunderland in 2014. They were both unbelievable days, but I have to say winning promotion to the Football League with Cheltenham surpasses them both.
BIGGEST REGRET IN FOOTBALL?
Leaving Leicester City as a youth team player. I lost the love for the game a little and decided to play locally with my mates at semipro level when I should have stuck it out. If I had I would have had a chance, I believe.
LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL?
I’ve recently passed my UEFA B licence and I will start my UEFA A licence next summer. I’ve studied sports nutrition also, but my aim is to do my time and experience in coaching then in management. I’m looking forward to the dugout role in the future.
BEST FOOTBALL TALE?
More of a scenario really. Prior to me signing for Cheltenham, I met with manager Gary Johnson. We were both away in Dubai at the same time with our partners and he and his wife invited us over to their hotel for dinner (he told me he would pay for the bill but it was all-inclusive I recently found out!). It was an Arabian night theme night so we are sitting on these low cushioned seats talking through the season ahead and next thing you know, two of the best female belly dancers you’ve ever seen start dancing around our table for a good five minutes. We both looked at each other, shook hands on the deal and enjoyed the rest of the show. We couldn’t tell you what the actual deal was in the end as we were both a bit side-tracked!