His Story

John is 25 and from the Bridgeton area of Glasgow. The oldest of a family of 3 - John’s family life was very unsettled from a young age. When he was 12 his father spent a lot of time in and out of prison and had a drug addiction. When John was 16, his father decided he wanted to get drug free for the sake of his family. Tragically, while he was on his way to the rehab centre he was knocked down and left permanently brain damaged. This had a massive impact on John, as he took on the role of ‘the man of the house’ and the responsibilities that went with it. He spent a lot of time supporting his family through this difficult time.

The additional strain took its toll. John became addicted to cannabis and left school at 17. John found himself moving from job to job, never settling. Even after a spell of steady employment and stability in his personal life, the pressure of the responsibility was too much and he found it difficult to cope. But with a young child to support he decided to spend time evaluating his life and the desire to provide for his family helped him focus. 

During this spell of unemployment, John was attending Street League Street football sessions in his area and was inspired to pursue a career in coaching.  He was selected to join the Street League Academy programme and was an excellent participant. John did a placement in which he learnt to plan, deliver and adapt sports coaching sessions for young people, and demonstrated a real understanding and empathy of working with disadvantaged young people.

John has now been accepted into the City of Glasgow College to study Higher Sport and Leisure and plans to continue his education by doing his coaching badges and working as a volunteer with the active schools programme in order to get even more practical experience. John feels Street League have given him a platform to make his ambition of a career in football a reality. 

"John feels Street League have given him a platform to make his ambition of a career in football a reality."