PROPERTY MAGNET
Former Falkirk gaffer David McCracken reveals how he was sold on move from football management to estate agency
David McCracken discovered the hard way that life as a football manager doesn’t exactly fall into the ‘safe as houses’ category.
This time last year he thought he was building solid foundations at Falkirk alongside management partner Lee Miller.
Their Bairns side sat six points clear at the top of League One and on course for promotion.
But the roof soon caved in as a dramatic collapse cost the pair not only their title hopes but their jobs.
In the space of four weeks McCracken had gone from making plans for the Championship to worrying about how he was going to pay the bills.
And that is when he came to the realisation that if he wants a job built to last, he’d be better off investing his time in bricks and mortar rather than full-backs and midfielders.
The 40- year- old former Dundee United and St Johnstone defender has embarked on a new career with estate agency firm Keller Williams and hopes the property ladder will give him the step up to future security.
“After leaving Falkirk I took the opportunity to look at something else,” McCracken told MailSport. “I went for a couple of interviews, looking to get straight back into football.
“But when nothing came from them I made the decision to give something else a go – and hopefully something that would be mine for the next 20 or 30 years.
“It was during Covid at this point and there wasn’t that much work going about obviously.
“But it was through Gary Wales, who used to play for Hearts, that I got the idea of giving property a go.
“When he retired, Gary went into surveying. He was working for Keller Williams and they put together an information video for PFA Scotland.
“Property had always been an interest of mine so when I saw that it convinced me to take the decision to join the same company.
“There’s a charity called Back on Side, who help footballers transition out of the game, and they were a massive help too. It’s been brilliant for me because it’s been a completely different experience from football.
“It’s not a case that I’m never going back into football but it’s giving me something that’s a bit more secure.”
McCracken’s focus is now on punting properties across Scotland. His portfolio ranges from repossessed f ixer- uppers to commercial plots worth millions.
But he knows some footbal lers struggle to switch back into the reality of real life after the final whistle blows on their career.
McCracken, who retired from playing aged 35, said: “It has probably taken me four or five years to reinvent myself.
“I left school at 16 but never really considered what I’d do after football finished until I reached my early 30s.
“I remember when it happened. I was at St Johnstone and was just about to agree a new contract when I got a knee injury that ruled me out for a couple of months.
“When that happened the contract was whipped off the table.
“That left me in a really vulnerable place. I had bills to pay, kids to feed – but all of a sudden I could no longer provide for them.
“I always had conf idence in my ability but at that point I couldn’t train or earn a contract because of the injury.
“It’s then that you real ise how vulnerable you are as a footballer and start to think, ‘ What else can I do?’
“I started a few things, like a nutrition business through Herbalife and also qualified as a personal trainer.
“You have to realise that footbal l won’ t last forever, even as much as it’s your dream.
“I loved my career but when it comes to an end you need to have something else to fall back on.
“And that becomes even harder when you move into management, because there are so many people out there but so few jobs.”
The side businesses took a back seat when he paired up with Miller to take over at former side Falkirk. But their dreams of leading the Bairns back to the Championship fel l apart in shockingly rapid fashion as a run of four losses in five games saw them bulleted just four games before the end of the season. “The whole situation with Falkirk left a bit of a bad taste,” said McCracken.
“Lee and I felt we did fairly well in terms of what we did under the circumstances. “We were in our first job but were hit with Covid and lockdown. “We knew the aim was to get the club promoted but we didn’t get the opportunity to finish the job off.
“If we did, I think we might still have
managed it, even if it was through the play- offs.
“We’d gone through a rough spell of four weeks where we lost four or five of our best players to injury.
“But that’s football – and if you don’t come to terms with that it will rip you apart.
“Falkirk decided to go another way and we’ve got to respect their position given the pressure they were under from the fans.
“But it is hard to take when a bad couple of months can effectively cost you your job, so that’s when I decided to pull away from the game a bit.”
While McCracken has now opted to move into the property game, Miller is cutting hair to make ends meet.
But for all the anguish he was put through when they got the chop, McCracken reckons he can still cut it in management. He said: “I’ve got total confidence in myself that when the time is right and the right job comes up, I’ll get back in.
“Some guys, when they lose their job, can’t stay away from the game.
“They’re always at games, making sure they keep their finger on the pulse.
“That’s where I felt I was af ter leaving Falkirk. I felt I was chasing every job that came along, no matter if it was the right fit or not.
“But with the new business I’ve been able to pul l back and put my focus into that.
“You can’t do that when you’re a boss. Even if you work part-time, football still consumes you all day long. I don’t want that to happen because I want to give this new venture a right good go.
“But when the time is right I know I’ll definitely be back involved.
“Lee went through the same thing. Fortunately for him, he blended quite quickly into the barbering. “He’s doing great but he and I are st i l l a partnership. We speak all the time and if an opportunity was to come up that suited us both we’d give it a go.”