many of you don’t know who I am many of
you may see me right
however I will like to say I do like to
tell some stories but currently in my
year 7 advisory think that I was an ex
world record holder in the shop but I
was German Russian I’m currently and was
the WWE wrestling champion of the world
if you say it with the straight enough
face they believe it so go away ask some
year 7s what mr. Fraser did in his past
time and they will tell you and they’ll
confirm with you that I was a lovely Uwe
wrestler and it is not about that
today’s about finding out a bit about my
background I have a number of people
that asked me a number of questions they
all know I used to be an excel ball
player and the assumption it comes with
a football players all year must have
been great it’s been wonderful
everything must have been easy as a
child and that was wrong this court here
as you can see and as I go through my
talk will become more irrelevant with
some of the experiences and some of the
setback that has occurred
now those setbacks have a likely to get
where I am today and I just discussed
that as I’m going through it’s basically
more of a biography about what I’ve had
and how I grew up
first of all my family my childhood
story about pictures and they’re very
old school however that’s what it was
back then I grew up in a normal family
mother father and a sister however with
a little bit of a difference every one
of my family members represented their
country in sport
my mother played netball for Scotland my
sister played netball for Scotland and
represented Britain in athletics my
father played football for Scotland and
my grandfather boxed in the Commonwealth
Games for Scotland so there was
absolutely no pressure on me as a child
from a very early age I excelled at
sports wasn’t just scruple I was
actually in fact a better runner as a
child I represented Scotland and Britain
until I was 14
however I had to make that big decision
of what I’d rather do I played golf to a
good level I probably could have won
professional if I really wanted to but
football was my passion and everything I
did I lived I breathe football and from
a young age I excelled it I eight years
old
Albertine Football Club asked me to go
down and train and from 8:00 until 11:00
I trained every Tuesday evening and
played on a Saturday then the first
setback in my life which was a 11 years
old which is quite young not many people
encounter many setbacks in life but I
remember a letter coming through the
door now when you’re younger you don’t
normally get to letter so when it’s
addressed to your in your name you think
Oh what’s this my mother handed me the
letter it was one Friday morning I
remember it clear she handed me letter
says this letters for you so I opened up
and it was from Aberdeen Football Club
and they were just thanking me for my
time I’d spent there and effort I could
however they were telling me that they
weren’t gonna ask me back to train with
them now the reason they gave Arsenal
that as an 11-year old was I was too
small and not strong enough now if you
think how can you tell how tall an
eleven year olds going to be
or how strong they’re going to be now at
this point I made it my aim in life to
get stronger now let’s face it I
couldn’t get taller genetics just
doesn’t allow them my parents aren’t at
all his people in the world so I wasn’t
gonna be a six to five monster however I
did make a name in my life to get
stronger so from that point onwards I
did various body exercises now this
occurred and happened all through my
life until about my mid-twenties at my
prime when I was a professional football
player I was doing 1,000 sit-ups and
1,000 cups push-ups every single night
and I didn’t miss a day because that one
letter had that saara impact in my life
and I wanted to prove them wrong that I
could be stronger so that’s why I did
not go on to be a professional football
player at the age of 13 I went to attend
the trial now I didn’t go to play in
this trial and this is what happens in
life sometimes you get some luck
sometimes you don’t I went along with my
friend who was 15 years at the time he
was a little older than me it was an
under 15 trial so I just went along to
watch there was a little trick that I
always did just in case I could get a
game I always took my boots with me just
on the odd chance that I could actually
get on and play and by chance this day
there was one short and they said Alan
do you want it come on do you want to
play you won’t get in the team because
you’re too young
however you can play in this trial just
to make the numbers up so I played
mistrial
I played reasonably well to what I
thought and I went home and didn’t think
anything of it during that night there
was a phone call and I heard my dad
speak for a little bit longer than you
normally would on the phone he came off
the phone and he said Alan can you come
downstairs I want to have a word with
you at all what if I done wrong
I was always doing something mom when I
was younger so I said dad what would do
I don’t think I did anything wrong in
school I don’t think I did anything
wrong in my way home I haven’t smashed
any windows like an art no I didn’t do
anything wrong he says yeah I’m done
anything wrong this time
he said you played really well in your
team today this is all I did okay
anything else he said well that was
Celtic Football Club on the phone and
they want you to come down for a trial
he said how do you feel about that
subpoenas 13 year olds obviously I was
enthusiastic about it I haven’t had any
interest from any other clubs after I
left a birdie which is a year and a bit
before and they invited me down so I
travelled time and I played in this
product now I went down there as a
centre-forward hadn’t played in any
other positions and immediately they
said can you play left back nice and I
can play anywhere you want me to play I
was just enthusiastic wanted to play
there
I had a left food they had one look at
me and he says you’ll never be a centre
forward you’re gonna be a left back or a
last midfield so from that point onwards
I played in that position they wanted me
to come down continuously so in 14 years
old I used to travel down every Sunday
now bear in mind
Aberdeen’s three hours away from Glasgow
herself to car base so every Sunday
morning my parents we didn’t get to go
out in the south of the evening because
they had to drive me down in the Sunday
morning I had to travel down I played in
my game then travelled home then I had
to go to school in the next day at 15
years old I was a little bit different
from every other child I was a like to
have an extra day of school which I
thought at the time was fantastic but
when my grades came in it wasn’t every
Friday I got and this is the sacrifices
I had to make in order to become a
professional footballer I didn’t get the
same time with my friends but you get
with your friends I wasn’t allowed to go
to parties and exhibitions and games
that other people was allowed to go to I
wasn’t allowed to go in school trips
because you’re not school
as I was dying at Easter holidays the
Christmas holidays that took her whole
his training with Celtic I didn’t drink
until I was 22 years old I always made
it my private life that if I wasn’t
gonna make it as a footballer I would do
everything I could in order to be there
and I couldn’t turn right now and say I
could have done anything differently I
did everything that I could now the next
thing was at 16 years old I got signed
professionally now professionally means
you have to leave home so at 16 you
would have to leave home and I remember
discussion with them and my father again
had been through that professional
situation he knew exactly what would
occur
he always said what happens if you get
injured what happens if you’re not good
enough you must concentrate when you’re
schooling so I said what do you want me
to do he said I want you to stay on
another year at school to do your hires
which is equivalent to I be so I said
like I want to leave and my dad my
mother was very good they’d like me to
make my own decisions he said I’ll allow
you to leave and I would like to go play
professional football however you must
go to night school to do your further
studies so I agreed now this is very
very difficult to do that because you go
down there as a 16 year old and you have
to do your night school and I’ll tell
you a little funny story about another
setback that I did have in life very
early on at football I find out I had a
heart problem no I hadn’t what is called
an irregular heart beat so it’s nothing
major to me was nothing major to my
family it was quite major and I had to
go and get a heart operation that I
involved basically going up in zapping I
would what would call the rotation of
the beats the way the circular system
was running your heart my one which will
be deep
beep beep so they just zapped out and
then I had a normal normal heart rate so
that was a setback but more a mental
setback now I thought this was quite a
good thing at the time because I hadn’t
been home for six months you don’t get
every weekend off you train virtually
every day and you’re in the club every
day so I thought I’m going to get along
Christmas with this I knew it wasn’t
anything serious and operation is
serious it wasn’t too serious I thought
I’m gonna get home I’m gonna get home
Kim hey we got raided and this day I
remember the Celtic physio saying I’ll
see you on Monday for training I didn’t
get home however I was back playing and
doing everything else with that and the
first setback that occurred with me
proper setback that occurred with me was
when I went died in there as a 16 year
old I left home I was a young 16 year
old I was mature in certain ways but not
in other ways my family VAP virtually
looked after me my whole life
they took me everywhere they watched
every game they watched y8 they made
sure that I was comfortable they bought
me the best pair of football boots but
at that point I was on my own my father
was still on the end of the phone but it
wasn’t like there was mobile phones and
smart phones that there is now it was
still a phone call away now we went to
Ireland in a pre-season tour and very
quickly I got to up the ladder as they
would call so I should have been good to
the youth team but because I was a very
good player at the time I got quit
straight into the reserve team which is
one away from first with 16 and I
remember the first preseason games the
preseason before the season starts we
were in Ireland and we played a game now
I passed more balls to my coach he was
standing on the sidelines and I did
any of the players every time I got a
ball I kicked at the park
and I just didn’t have one of those
games and at the end of that game the
coach turned right to me and says Alan
you are the worst player that I’ve ever
seen you on the Celtic Jersey now I’m
struggling to deal with being away from
home I was struggling to deal with the
the fun element of sport went with
football football was always fun before
now it was my job that’s how I earned a
life livelihood normally I could go back
to my room and be on my own but when
you’re on a tour you have to either room
someone and you’re always around someone
and it’s very difficult to find that
time I’m not there’s no crime in
sickness I was nearly in tears so I
decided to go out a walk now remember I
didn’t have a mobile phone I had to find
a payphone and I had to have some change
to pull my father and I phoned him up
and I said look dad I’m the worst player
ever to play for sale today he started
laughing like he did he’s like no you’re
not I’ve seen worse I’ve seen far worse
than your team you’re not the worst
player i says the Senate the said I’m
the worst player to ever play in silver
Celtic people them so the next game came
this is against the Irish League
champions and I thought no point
listening to this team talk I’m not
gonna get again so half and half I was
this thing you always did listen or my
name came out so I had a game during
that game we played against them it was
sent objects at the time and I got mad
at the match and after the game in the
manager turned right and says I was just
texting your character now even it’s 16
even though I left school that year even
though it left my family who is three
hours away they were still constantly
testing your characteristics and how you
could become now bear in mind you have
to realize that if I played for Celtic
first limits in front of 65,000 people
okay not just the amount of people
that’s here today 65 fives of people
looking at everything that you do right
but also everything that you’re doing
wrong and still taking coaches and no
matter what age they were a constant
testing your character the next issues I
have and as you will see here is the
amount of injuries that’s occurred in my
life unfortunately I’ve had five
seriously operations I’ve had countless
boat broken bones and another story from
my childhood which I have told some of
the food players before and I don’t
recommend happening to everyone I broke
my arm when I was 13 but we had a really
important Cup final coming up so maybe
meeting the type of person I was I
decided I was gonna stole my cast off so
I went to my mom and says mom I’m gonna
saw my cast off I want to play in the
finals to which she said no you’re not
you’re not doing that you broke your arm
I’m not taking you back to the hospital
my dad was in the background in Houston
so I saw my cast off I played in the
final I went back to the hospital they
said what happened I was like I saw my
cast off in me basically said you’re
gonna be one of those are you and I am
I’m injury thrown however
Bena sportsman and a professional sports
person you will always encounter serious
injuries you will not find one person
it’s been a professional sports star
that will not went through one of these
injuries now the worst one that I
received was when I was 17 I just broken
into the Celtic thirsty
I was traveling to America with them on
pre-season tour and I played him in the
jury of their games in the papers
everything was saying I was going to be
this next time I was going to start the
season off I was going to make millions
and in your head you start to believe
that it was the last game before the
season started and we were plating his
Charlton at the valley which was their
old grind I went in for a tackle I went
across and when I looked behind my knees
touching the ground and I just knocked
in half
again me being me I go up and I stood
aside that I would try and run under
which I collapsed
now I was like a football for a year and
a half another thing you have to realize
about being a football is you go from
being this person where everyone wants
to speak to you everyone wants to know
what you are and that’s coaches as well
my coaches for a year and a half didn’t
speak to me they may be a high it
certainly was how you doing
why are you back how’s your equation you
may forget about because you’re the
least important person in their team
because you’re a year and a half away
your best friend becomes a physio I was
in the gym three times a day for hours
upon hours trying to get back and a year
and a half later I was back however I
went from a ten point nine 100-meter
Roddick to 13.5 100-meter on which is a
massive difference and in sport nowadays
if you’re not fast
you’re not gonna get anywhere especially
in football they didn’t seem to wanted
at the start they thought oh it’s gonna
come back it’s gonna come back so they
did keep me for a further two years and
I played in a number of games I managed
to change the way I played
however the pace just never came back so
I remember seeing diamond with Martin a
new who’s currently the national team
manager of Ireland and I said look I
need to do something different I need to
either try different club because I’m
not gonna make it Celtic or anything
maybe good and further enhance my
education because I always had this
thing I wanted to be a PE teacher very
early in life when I went to the careers
advisor that said what you want to be
and I said a football player and she
said what if you’re not football player
then I said I want to be a PE teacher
and that’s the two things I had become
so far the so then I remember that that
was the the case I I did that so I
became those two things so unfortunately
after speaking tomorrow nanoo he agreed
he said I like the fact that you look
into
educate yourself he was quite bright and
intelligent man I believe he did a law
degree which is very uncommon with
footballers and he led me to leave I
went to my home club team again Aberdeen
and for six months I played the best
football that I could ever have played I
changed my game I changed my position I
went and played a sit in centre
midfielder but I didn’t need as much
pace and again everything in the papers
was future star when I represent
Scotland gonna do this gonna do that
he’s gonna get a two-year contract and
again I went in Friday it’s someone
about the Fridays with me I went in on
the Friday and I went and spoke to the
manager expecting to sign a contract and
he just turns says Alan I can’t offer
you a contract we don’t have enough
money to offer you a contract at that
point I was I was ready to see the club
play for nothing but when you get into
your 20s you can’t say that sort of
thing you’ve got to start looking after
yourself so at that point I went home
and again I said to my dad I said you
know what football’s not for me I still
love playing football but professional
football’s not going to be what I want
to do I want to go to university so my
sister was at university she was also a
PE teacher and she had managed to
arrange an interview for me to go to
Manchester Metropolitan University or I
didn’t get enough grades at school in
order to go straight into doing the
teaching degree so I took on us but our
sport science degree first so I went to
Manchester Metropolitan University 2001
to 2004 and I did a sports science
degree another story another setback
like us to a setbacks I did one year of
do night school and I managed to get a
number of hires after that I did not
pick up a pen to write and I didn’t read
much for about three and a half years
all I did was went in I trained and I
went home so I was a bit apprehensive
about going to university by the first
two weeks at university as you know it’s
called freshers fortnight gorilla it’s
about getting to know people going out
socialization drinks and at that point I
didn’t drink so was interested and I
remember saying look I’ve got an
important physiology exam coming up and
I was really nervous about it while
everyone else partied I was the only one
left in the halls and I thought well
that’s good I’m gonna do the best here
because I’m studying so I set the exam I
said to my family I said I said okey in
the exam as I thought
and the exam results came in now back
then you went to a wall and you had your
student ID number and you looked at your
your grades for me it was just about
passing so I would have been happy with
a 40% of that stage in my life because I
just came out with playing football and
didn’t have that much education so look
to the 40% nowhere near so when up to 15
said maybe I got 50% then he went up to
60 instance I definitely wouldn’t have
gone above 60% so I said you know what
why don’t I look at the bottom and there
it was
7% in my first exam at university I
phoned home and I said to my dad I don’t
think I’m gonna manage this he’s very
supportive very supportive not very
knowledgeable not very bright man he
said look now you haven’t lifted a pen
for three years you haven’t read much of
a book in three years why didn’t you
give it a little bit of time so I went
to the lecturer my physiology lecturer
and he said like take two weeks studying
and I I’ll let you three sit another
test so I took two weeks and I studied
and on my reset I got 95% because I was
that adamant I was going to achieve
because I knew what was out there if I
didn’t achieve I would have been stuck
in a job that I wouldn’t have enjoyed my
score is my passion from that point
onwards at university I never missed one
lecture I never missed one class because
I knew if I missed that class that would
fact Howard get on another little story
and this is a good one
Liverpool John Moores I went to I went
for the interview and when you do your
PGCE
the only offer 13 PG C’s and there was
300 applicants I went to the interview
wasn’t sure about confident and going in
and I remember saying diamond in the
monitor I saw Alan how are you doing I
thought ah he’s just been really
friendly said a long time no see
and I went do I know you he said yes
when you were younger playing for Celtic
I was a Celtic scope that managed to see
you in your first ever game so he was
actually the one that picked me up to
put me down to Celtic I have no idea how
that happens in life but that’s what
happened
now if football also played a big part
when I was at university I managed to
play for British universities and
another funny story again some people
might think this is funny some people
would I played for Scotland when I was
younger all the way up to under-21 level
so you always got the kit and I always
carry it and I always bought it when you
were training was just one of those
things and I went to I have to represent
English universities so I went to the
English University trial and the court
said do you not want in this team and I
said yeah I really wanted this team he
says do you really really not wanted
this team versus yeah I wanted this he
says why have you came to an English
trial wearing Scotland here and I was
like I didn’t think about that so I
managed to get into the English
university again played against Scottish
University team in a number of players I
knew I then went and represented in the
British University isn’t actually played
in Korea so again
football’s opened up many opportunities
for me I also got paged when I was at
university I went down I played
semi-professional and I actually got one
of the types of pains a week playing
football semi professionally so I was
very comfortable living life it universe
another thing that the Scotch loophole
associates association did and again
many people see through pullers and
football associations in bad light is
they paid for my education they paid for
my student fees they wanted people to
better themselves so I can only praise
the things that they tried to do for me
when I was going to universities now on
to the last feed you might like as yet
it’s my family and in Hong Kong in 2008
I moved to Hong Kong and not many people
know I was here before that I played in
1999 in the first ever soccer sevens
tournament for Celtic and at that point
I’d been to many countries I’d played
against many teams but that was the one
place I remember coming back same I
found this in it’s just different it’s
so good I loved it
and when my wife and I met her my first
year at university she always said she
wanted to go travelling I didn’t really
want to travel I like to talk travelling
I don’t want to thought camping out and
staying with other people that’s just
not me so what I did see was that when
were older I would like to live in a
different country and immediately she’s
if you ever meet her she’ll go where
she’s like what countries you want to
live in she wishing me snow there and
then what’s up
and I said I’d love to live in Hong Kong
so a job came up in Hong Kong I applied
for it and I managed to get a job at you
Chung international store for the book
for the next nine years I worked as a PE
teacher and in plastic athletics
director I played for the Hong Kong
Football Club and my two children who
are night two and six were born in Hong
Kong I now I’m here at CIS and many
people that I meet always sail used to
be a professional crew player you must
really miss it you must really really be
feel sorry for yourself that you got
into you know what I don’t there’s
actually no other place I’d rather be
there’s so much pressure in playing
football there’s so much commitment in
playing football and it just wasn’t very
enjoyable the Joey minute the movement
is very joy enjoyable
now there’s times I’m not going to tell
you and I’m not gonna lie to you that
it’s very challenging especially this is
this school however there is no day that
I go home and think what a bad day
there’s no day that I get up and think I
don’t want to go into work and anyone
that’s in the gym in the morning will
see that because I’m up bright and early
and I’m in there there’s no day that I
don’t want to better people’s lives
because that’s what we’re here teachers
are here for students and that’s why I’m
here for and just goes to show that
there’s many setbacks in life but you’ll
always get to where you want to get to
if you put in the effort and you always
find the solution thank you for
listening
[Applause]
you may see me right
however I will like to say I do like to
tell some stories but currently in my
year 7 advisory think that I was an ex
world record holder in the shop but I
was German Russian I’m currently and was
the WWE wrestling champion of the world
if you say it with the straight enough
face they believe it so go away ask some
year 7s what mr. Fraser did in his past
time and they will tell you and they’ll
confirm with you that I was a lovely Uwe
wrestler and it is not about that
today’s about finding out a bit about my
background I have a number of people
that asked me a number of questions they
all know I used to be an excel ball
player and the assumption it comes with
a football players all year must have
been great it’s been wonderful
everything must have been easy as a
child and that was wrong this court here
as you can see and as I go through my
talk will become more irrelevant with
some of the experiences and some of the
setback that has occurred
now those setbacks have a likely to get
where I am today and I just discussed
that as I’m going through it’s basically
more of a biography about what I’ve had
and how I grew up
first of all my family my childhood
story about pictures and they’re very
old school however that’s what it was
back then I grew up in a normal family
mother father and a sister however with
a little bit of a difference every one
of my family members represented their
country in sport
my mother played netball for Scotland my
sister played netball for Scotland and
represented Britain in athletics my
father played football for Scotland and
my grandfather boxed in the Commonwealth
Games for Scotland so there was
absolutely no pressure on me as a child
from a very early age I excelled at
sports wasn’t just scruple I was
actually in fact a better runner as a
child I represented Scotland and Britain
until I was 14
however I had to make that big decision
of what I’d rather do I played golf to a
good level I probably could have won
professional if I really wanted to but
football was my passion and everything I
did I lived I breathe football and from
a young age I excelled it I eight years
old
Albertine Football Club asked me to go
down and train and from 8:00 until 11:00
I trained every Tuesday evening and
played on a Saturday then the first
setback in my life which was a 11 years
old which is quite young not many people
encounter many setbacks in life but I
remember a letter coming through the
door now when you’re younger you don’t
normally get to letter so when it’s
addressed to your in your name you think
Oh what’s this my mother handed me the
letter it was one Friday morning I
remember it clear she handed me letter
says this letters for you so I opened up
and it was from Aberdeen Football Club
and they were just thanking me for my
time I’d spent there and effort I could
however they were telling me that they
weren’t gonna ask me back to train with
them now the reason they gave Arsenal
that as an 11-year old was I was too
small and not strong enough now if you
think how can you tell how tall an
eleven year olds going to be
or how strong they’re going to be now at
this point I made it my aim in life to
get stronger now let’s face it I
couldn’t get taller genetics just
doesn’t allow them my parents aren’t at
all his people in the world so I wasn’t
gonna be a six to five monster however I
did make a name in my life to get
stronger so from that point onwards I
did various body exercises now this
occurred and happened all through my
life until about my mid-twenties at my
prime when I was a professional football
player I was doing 1,000 sit-ups and
1,000 cups push-ups every single night
and I didn’t miss a day because that one
letter had that saara impact in my life
and I wanted to prove them wrong that I
could be stronger so that’s why I did
not go on to be a professional football
player at the age of 13 I went to attend
the trial now I didn’t go to play in
this trial and this is what happens in
life sometimes you get some luck
sometimes you don’t I went along with my
friend who was 15 years at the time he
was a little older than me it was an
under 15 trial so I just went along to
watch there was a little trick that I
always did just in case I could get a
game I always took my boots with me just
on the odd chance that I could actually
get on and play and by chance this day
there was one short and they said Alan
do you want it come on do you want to
play you won’t get in the team because
you’re too young
however you can play in this trial just
to make the numbers up so I played
mistrial
I played reasonably well to what I
thought and I went home and didn’t think
anything of it during that night there
was a phone call and I heard my dad
speak for a little bit longer than you
normally would on the phone he came off
the phone and he said Alan can you come
downstairs I want to have a word with
you at all what if I done wrong
I was always doing something mom when I
was younger so I said dad what would do
I don’t think I did anything wrong in
school I don’t think I did anything
wrong in my way home I haven’t smashed
any windows like an art no I didn’t do
anything wrong he says yeah I’m done
anything wrong this time
he said you played really well in your
team today this is all I did okay
anything else he said well that was
Celtic Football Club on the phone and
they want you to come down for a trial
he said how do you feel about that
subpoenas 13 year olds obviously I was
enthusiastic about it I haven’t had any
interest from any other clubs after I
left a birdie which is a year and a bit
before and they invited me down so I
travelled time and I played in this
product now I went down there as a
centre-forward hadn’t played in any
other positions and immediately they
said can you play left back nice and I
can play anywhere you want me to play I
was just enthusiastic wanted to play
there
I had a left food they had one look at
me and he says you’ll never be a centre
forward you’re gonna be a left back or a
last midfield so from that point onwards
I played in that position they wanted me
to come down continuously so in 14 years
old I used to travel down every Sunday
now bear in mind
Aberdeen’s three hours away from Glasgow
herself to car base so every Sunday
morning my parents we didn’t get to go
out in the south of the evening because
they had to drive me down in the Sunday
morning I had to travel down I played in
my game then travelled home then I had
to go to school in the next day at 15
years old I was a little bit different
from every other child I was a like to
have an extra day of school which I
thought at the time was fantastic but
when my grades came in it wasn’t every
Friday I got and this is the sacrifices
I had to make in order to become a
professional footballer I didn’t get the
same time with my friends but you get
with your friends I wasn’t allowed to go
to parties and exhibitions and games
that other people was allowed to go to I
wasn’t allowed to go in school trips
because you’re not school
as I was dying at Easter holidays the
Christmas holidays that took her whole
his training with Celtic I didn’t drink
until I was 22 years old I always made
it my private life that if I wasn’t
gonna make it as a footballer I would do
everything I could in order to be there
and I couldn’t turn right now and say I
could have done anything differently I
did everything that I could now the next
thing was at 16 years old I got signed
professionally now professionally means
you have to leave home so at 16 you
would have to leave home and I remember
discussion with them and my father again
had been through that professional
situation he knew exactly what would
occur
he always said what happens if you get
injured what happens if you’re not good
enough you must concentrate when you’re
schooling so I said what do you want me
to do he said I want you to stay on
another year at school to do your hires
which is equivalent to I be so I said
like I want to leave and my dad my
mother was very good they’d like me to
make my own decisions he said I’ll allow
you to leave and I would like to go play
professional football however you must
go to night school to do your further
studies so I agreed now this is very
very difficult to do that because you go
down there as a 16 year old and you have
to do your night school and I’ll tell
you a little funny story about another
setback that I did have in life very
early on at football I find out I had a
heart problem no I hadn’t what is called
an irregular heart beat so it’s nothing
major to me was nothing major to my
family it was quite major and I had to
go and get a heart operation that I
involved basically going up in zapping I
would what would call the rotation of
the beats the way the circular system
was running your heart my one which will
be deep
beep beep so they just zapped out and
then I had a normal normal heart rate so
that was a setback but more a mental
setback now I thought this was quite a
good thing at the time because I hadn’t
been home for six months you don’t get
every weekend off you train virtually
every day and you’re in the club every
day so I thought I’m going to get along
Christmas with this I knew it wasn’t
anything serious and operation is
serious it wasn’t too serious I thought
I’m gonna get home I’m gonna get home
Kim hey we got raided and this day I
remember the Celtic physio saying I’ll
see you on Monday for training I didn’t
get home however I was back playing and
doing everything else with that and the
first setback that occurred with me
proper setback that occurred with me was
when I went died in there as a 16 year
old I left home I was a young 16 year
old I was mature in certain ways but not
in other ways my family VAP virtually
looked after me my whole life
they took me everywhere they watched
every game they watched y8 they made
sure that I was comfortable they bought
me the best pair of football boots but
at that point I was on my own my father
was still on the end of the phone but it
wasn’t like there was mobile phones and
smart phones that there is now it was
still a phone call away now we went to
Ireland in a pre-season tour and very
quickly I got to up the ladder as they
would call so I should have been good to
the youth team but because I was a very
good player at the time I got quit
straight into the reserve team which is
one away from first with 16 and I
remember the first preseason games the
preseason before the season starts we
were in Ireland and we played a game now
I passed more balls to my coach he was
standing on the sidelines and I did
any of the players every time I got a
ball I kicked at the park
and I just didn’t have one of those
games and at the end of that game the
coach turned right to me and says Alan
you are the worst player that I’ve ever
seen you on the Celtic Jersey now I’m
struggling to deal with being away from
home I was struggling to deal with the
the fun element of sport went with
football football was always fun before
now it was my job that’s how I earned a
life livelihood normally I could go back
to my room and be on my own but when
you’re on a tour you have to either room
someone and you’re always around someone
and it’s very difficult to find that
time I’m not there’s no crime in
sickness I was nearly in tears so I
decided to go out a walk now remember I
didn’t have a mobile phone I had to find
a payphone and I had to have some change
to pull my father and I phoned him up
and I said look dad I’m the worst player
ever to play for sale today he started
laughing like he did he’s like no you’re
not I’ve seen worse I’ve seen far worse
than your team you’re not the worst
player i says the Senate the said I’m
the worst player to ever play in silver
Celtic people them so the next game came
this is against the Irish League
champions and I thought no point
listening to this team talk I’m not
gonna get again so half and half I was
this thing you always did listen or my
name came out so I had a game during
that game we played against them it was
sent objects at the time and I got mad
at the match and after the game in the
manager turned right and says I was just
texting your character now even it’s 16
even though I left school that year even
though it left my family who is three
hours away they were still constantly
testing your characteristics and how you
could become now bear in mind you have
to realize that if I played for Celtic
first limits in front of 65,000 people
okay not just the amount of people
that’s here today 65 fives of people
looking at everything that you do right
but also everything that you’re doing
wrong and still taking coaches and no
matter what age they were a constant
testing your character the next issues I
have and as you will see here is the
amount of injuries that’s occurred in my
life unfortunately I’ve had five
seriously operations I’ve had countless
boat broken bones and another story from
my childhood which I have told some of
the food players before and I don’t
recommend happening to everyone I broke
my arm when I was 13 but we had a really
important Cup final coming up so maybe
meeting the type of person I was I
decided I was gonna stole my cast off so
I went to my mom and says mom I’m gonna
saw my cast off I want to play in the
finals to which she said no you’re not
you’re not doing that you broke your arm
I’m not taking you back to the hospital
my dad was in the background in Houston
so I saw my cast off I played in the
final I went back to the hospital they
said what happened I was like I saw my
cast off in me basically said you’re
gonna be one of those are you and I am
I’m injury thrown however
Bena sportsman and a professional sports
person you will always encounter serious
injuries you will not find one person
it’s been a professional sports star
that will not went through one of these
injuries now the worst one that I
received was when I was 17 I just broken
into the Celtic thirsty
I was traveling to America with them on
pre-season tour and I played him in the
jury of their games in the papers
everything was saying I was going to be
this next time I was going to start the
season off I was going to make millions
and in your head you start to believe
that it was the last game before the
season started and we were plating his
Charlton at the valley which was their
old grind I went in for a tackle I went
across and when I looked behind my knees
touching the ground and I just knocked
in half
again me being me I go up and I stood
aside that I would try and run under
which I collapsed
now I was like a football for a year and
a half another thing you have to realize
about being a football is you go from
being this person where everyone wants
to speak to you everyone wants to know
what you are and that’s coaches as well
my coaches for a year and a half didn’t
speak to me they may be a high it
certainly was how you doing
why are you back how’s your equation you
may forget about because you’re the
least important person in their team
because you’re a year and a half away
your best friend becomes a physio I was
in the gym three times a day for hours
upon hours trying to get back and a year
and a half later I was back however I
went from a ten point nine 100-meter
Roddick to 13.5 100-meter on which is a
massive difference and in sport nowadays
if you’re not fast
you’re not gonna get anywhere especially
in football they didn’t seem to wanted
at the start they thought oh it’s gonna
come back it’s gonna come back so they
did keep me for a further two years and
I played in a number of games I managed
to change the way I played
however the pace just never came back so
I remember seeing diamond with Martin a
new who’s currently the national team
manager of Ireland and I said look I
need to do something different I need to
either try different club because I’m
not gonna make it Celtic or anything
maybe good and further enhance my
education because I always had this
thing I wanted to be a PE teacher very
early in life when I went to the careers
advisor that said what you want to be
and I said a football player and she
said what if you’re not football player
then I said I want to be a PE teacher
and that’s the two things I had become
so far the so then I remember that that
was the the case I I did that so I
became those two things so unfortunately
after speaking tomorrow nanoo he agreed
he said I like the fact that you look
into
educate yourself he was quite bright and
intelligent man I believe he did a law
degree which is very uncommon with
footballers and he led me to leave I
went to my home club team again Aberdeen
and for six months I played the best
football that I could ever have played I
changed my game I changed my position I
went and played a sit in centre
midfielder but I didn’t need as much
pace and again everything in the papers
was future star when I represent
Scotland gonna do this gonna do that
he’s gonna get a two-year contract and
again I went in Friday it’s someone
about the Fridays with me I went in on
the Friday and I went and spoke to the
manager expecting to sign a contract and
he just turns says Alan I can’t offer
you a contract we don’t have enough
money to offer you a contract at that
point I was I was ready to see the club
play for nothing but when you get into
your 20s you can’t say that sort of
thing you’ve got to start looking after
yourself so at that point I went home
and again I said to my dad I said you
know what football’s not for me I still
love playing football but professional
football’s not going to be what I want
to do I want to go to university so my
sister was at university she was also a
PE teacher and she had managed to
arrange an interview for me to go to
Manchester Metropolitan University or I
didn’t get enough grades at school in
order to go straight into doing the
teaching degree so I took on us but our
sport science degree first so I went to
Manchester Metropolitan University 2001
to 2004 and I did a sports science
degree another story another setback
like us to a setbacks I did one year of
do night school and I managed to get a
number of hires after that I did not
pick up a pen to write and I didn’t read
much for about three and a half years
all I did was went in I trained and I
went home so I was a bit apprehensive
about going to university by the first
two weeks at university as you know it’s
called freshers fortnight gorilla it’s
about getting to know people going out
socialization drinks and at that point I
didn’t drink so was interested and I
remember saying look I’ve got an
important physiology exam coming up and
I was really nervous about it while
everyone else partied I was the only one
left in the halls and I thought well
that’s good I’m gonna do the best here
because I’m studying so I set the exam I
said to my family I said I said okey in
the exam as I thought
and the exam results came in now back
then you went to a wall and you had your
student ID number and you looked at your
your grades for me it was just about
passing so I would have been happy with
a 40% of that stage in my life because I
just came out with playing football and
didn’t have that much education so look
to the 40% nowhere near so when up to 15
said maybe I got 50% then he went up to
60 instance I definitely wouldn’t have
gone above 60% so I said you know what
why don’t I look at the bottom and there
it was
7% in my first exam at university I
phoned home and I said to my dad I don’t
think I’m gonna manage this he’s very
supportive very supportive not very
knowledgeable not very bright man he
said look now you haven’t lifted a pen
for three years you haven’t read much of
a book in three years why didn’t you
give it a little bit of time so I went
to the lecturer my physiology lecturer
and he said like take two weeks studying
and I I’ll let you three sit another
test so I took two weeks and I studied
and on my reset I got 95% because I was
that adamant I was going to achieve
because I knew what was out there if I
didn’t achieve I would have been stuck
in a job that I wouldn’t have enjoyed my
score is my passion from that point
onwards at university I never missed one
lecture I never missed one class because
I knew if I missed that class that would
fact Howard get on another little story
and this is a good one
Liverpool John Moores I went to I went
for the interview and when you do your
PGCE
the only offer 13 PG C’s and there was
300 applicants I went to the interview
wasn’t sure about confident and going in
and I remember saying diamond in the
monitor I saw Alan how are you doing I
thought ah he’s just been really
friendly said a long time no see
and I went do I know you he said yes
when you were younger playing for Celtic
I was a Celtic scope that managed to see
you in your first ever game so he was
actually the one that picked me up to
put me down to Celtic I have no idea how
that happens in life but that’s what
happened
now if football also played a big part
when I was at university I managed to
play for British universities and
another funny story again some people
might think this is funny some people
would I played for Scotland when I was
younger all the way up to under-21 level
so you always got the kit and I always
carry it and I always bought it when you
were training was just one of those
things and I went to I have to represent
English universities so I went to the
English University trial and the court
said do you not want in this team and I
said yeah I really wanted this team he
says do you really really not wanted
this team versus yeah I wanted this he
says why have you came to an English
trial wearing Scotland here and I was
like I didn’t think about that so I
managed to get into the English
university again played against Scottish
University team in a number of players I
knew I then went and represented in the
British University isn’t actually played
in Korea so again
football’s opened up many opportunities
for me I also got paged when I was at
university I went down I played
semi-professional and I actually got one
of the types of pains a week playing
football semi professionally so I was
very comfortable living life it universe
another thing that the Scotch loophole
associates association did and again
many people see through pullers and
football associations in bad light is
they paid for my education they paid for
my student fees they wanted people to
better themselves so I can only praise
the things that they tried to do for me
when I was going to universities now on
to the last feed you might like as yet
it’s my family and in Hong Kong in 2008
I moved to Hong Kong and not many people
know I was here before that I played in
1999 in the first ever soccer sevens
tournament for Celtic and at that point
I’d been to many countries I’d played
against many teams but that was the one
place I remember coming back same I
found this in it’s just different it’s
so good I loved it
and when my wife and I met her my first
year at university she always said she
wanted to go travelling I didn’t really
want to travel I like to talk travelling
I don’t want to thought camping out and
staying with other people that’s just
not me so what I did see was that when
were older I would like to live in a
different country and immediately she’s
if you ever meet her she’ll go where
she’s like what countries you want to
live in she wishing me snow there and
then what’s up
and I said I’d love to live in Hong Kong
so a job came up in Hong Kong I applied
for it and I managed to get a job at you
Chung international store for the book
for the next nine years I worked as a PE
teacher and in plastic athletics
director I played for the Hong Kong
Football Club and my two children who
are night two and six were born in Hong
Kong I now I’m here at CIS and many
people that I meet always sail used to
be a professional crew player you must
really miss it you must really really be
feel sorry for yourself that you got
into you know what I don’t there’s
actually no other place I’d rather be
there’s so much pressure in playing
football there’s so much commitment in
playing football and it just wasn’t very
enjoyable the Joey minute the movement
is very joy enjoyable
now there’s times I’m not going to tell
you and I’m not gonna lie to you that
it’s very challenging especially this is
this school however there is no day that
I go home and think what a bad day
there’s no day that I get up and think I
don’t want to go into work and anyone
that’s in the gym in the morning will
see that because I’m up bright and early
and I’m in there there’s no day that I
don’t want to better people’s lives
because that’s what we’re here teachers
are here for students and that’s why I’m
here for and just goes to show that
there’s many setbacks in life but you’ll
always get to where you want to get to
if you put in the effort and you always
find the solution thank you for
listening
[Applause]
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