2022PROTEGE ED’S UP FOR HIS NEXT CHALLENGE TO REIGN AT STOW!
ED UPSON needs no reminding that a player of his calibre is rarely found at a club like Stowmarket Town.
“I know, I know,” he laughs. “I hadn’t even played in League Two until last season. Before that, it was League One and Championship all the way. But I think there just comes a time where you ask what you want from life.”
What Upson wanted – after 411 EFL appearances for Yeovil Town, Millwall, MK Dons, Bristol Rovers, Newport County and Stevenage – was home.
“People outside of football don’t always see the human factor,” says the 32-year-old, who was born in Bury St Edmunds and played for Stowmarket’s youth team before signing a pro contract with Ipswich Town in 2007.
“They just look at you dropping out of full-time football and go ‘Well, he’s finished’ or ‘Nobody wants him’. You see those sorts of comments on Twitter.
“But I’ve lived away from home for 15 years straight. When you’re young, that’s fine. You join a club. You pack up and go. No problem.
Compatible
“Now, I’ve got two young kids and I want them to be near their grandparents. My daughter starts school in September. I want her to be settled, to make friends, and the same with my little boy when the time comes.
“That’s not something I want to miss, or even be away from. I want to be as involved as possible, which just isn’t compatible with life as a professional footballer.”
Not that Upson found it easy to turn his back on the big time. Released by Stevenage in May, he received concrete offers from several full-time sides in the National League and was the subject of tentative interest from teams in League Two.
To reject those in favour of a part-time contract with a team that finished last season fifth in Isthmian North was, he admits, a gut-wrenching choice.
“Wow, it was really tough,” he says. “I mean, I’m 32. I still feel like I’ve got a good few years left. It was the most stressed I’ve been about making a decision in my career because it was such a big thing for me.
“All I’ve ever known is fulltime football. I’ve never had another life. To walk away from that was a big thing.
“It’s the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make because I was taking that step purposely, not being forced into it by injury or anything else. To consciously choose it was very, very hard. Even my wife said it was totally up to me. She said she’d be happy to pack up and go with me again if that’s what I wanted to do.
“It’s nice to have someone supportive like that, but she’s got her own business that needs some time and attention, and she can do that now. She’s been at home with the kids all day, every day for the last five years. That’s really tough.
“Again, it’s that human factor. She’s supported me throughout my career so it’ll be nice to support her now.”
Upson’s reputation as a cultured central defender was forged at Yeovil, whose shock promotion to the Championship in 2012-13 arguably represents the zenith of his career.
He scored the Glovers’ first-ever goal in the second tier, earning himself a mid-season move to Millwall that meant he avoided an instant – and probably inevitable – return to League One.
“You say that,” he counters, “but Yeovil actually had a great team that year. We had Dan Burn and Shane Duffy at centreback. Wayne Hennessey in goal. John Lundstram was in midfield. Luke Ayling, now at Leeds, was our right-back. On paper, it was a ridiculous team.”
Surety
Millwall went down the following year, at which point Upson joined MK Dons and settled into a semi-permanent residence in League One. As such, he does not boast the kind of nest egg that comes with a life spent at the lucrative end of the game.
“I wish that was the case,” he laughs when I ask if he can afford to retire. “At some point, I’ll need to find a job and going parttime can give you that platform to explore other areas.
“In full-time football, you can do other things. But it’s tough because so much of your mental energy goes into the job. This will give me a chance to plan for life after I retire with a bit more purpose and surety. I can try different things out, work out what I want to be. I won’t just be thrust out of football and into the real world, which can be a very scary situation.
“I’ve started my coaching badges. But, again, I’ve gone from school straight into fulltime football. I’ve never had another job. So I’m just going to try all different things and see what I like. Stow have been good enough to offer me a deal that will let me do that and it’s something I’m looking forward to.
“As I said, I was anxious for a long time. You can’t help those thoughts of ‘Have I done the right thing?’. But now it’s done, it’s exciting thinking of what the future could hold.”
In the short-term, that will involve seeing a lot more of his parents, who are naturally delighted by Upson’s decision.
“They’re happy because they get to see their grandchildren every day now, rather than every three weeks,” he says. “And I relish their help, which is a bonus for me!”
Long-term, it means helping Paul Musgrove’s ambitious side ride the wave of momentum that has seen them surge from Eastern Counties Division One to the cusp of Step 3 in five seasons, two of them Covid affected.
Sentimentality
“There was an element of sentimentality to coming back here, but the club is also ambitious and I wouldn’t have signed if they weren’t,” says Upson.
“The experience and leadership I can bring to the table, that’s what they’ve brought me in for to be honest. If that helps the club grow and get as far as it can, that’s my job done.”
Will it be a culture shock after so many years in elite football?
“It might take some adjusting to,” he admits. “In fact, I’m sure it will. But I think it’s a better level than people give it credit for.
“I trained last week and there are some good players at the club. Not that I’m surprised by that – like me, people play at that level for different reasons and ability isn’t always a factor. I would never talk people down, or underestimate the level.
“Also, it’s nice to strip football down sometimes, and get back to the basics of why you loved the game in the first place. I didn’t fall in love with football because the pitches were smooth and the dressing rooms were modern. I fell in love with the game because playing it made me happy.
“Playing professional football, I don’t know how to describe it, really. When it’s going well, you enjoy it. You thrive on the demands and you enjoy the pressure. When it isn’t, you question whether you enjoy it at all.
“That’s another part of joining Stow that I think could be a real positive – getting back to that pure enjoyment of the game where the only pressure comes from within.”