About
Hello, I'm Andrew.
I have been coaching football teams and players on the Isle of Man for the last 16 years.
Setting up and running the junior set-up at Douglas and District was just the start. After coaching every junior team and the first team there, I moved on to first-team football at Rushen, Laxey and St George's, and was fortunate to be part of the team that won the Grand Slam of Manx Football in 2017. I then became first-team coach at FC Isle of Man under two different management teams. In 2014 I was named Isle of Man Coach of the Year and North West of England Grassroots Football Coach of the Year.
Alongside the senior game, I've worked with the Centre of Excellence from under-11s to under-16s, and with Laxey's under-6s and under-14s. For the last two years I've coached the Onchan first team, reaching the Railway Cup semi-final for the first time since the Second World War, and the Hospital Cup final.
I've also delivered more than 4,500 sessions as an MSR Sports coach and worked as a coach mentor for the English FA, helping other coaches improve.
These days I teach sports coaching and development in further and higher education here on the Island, and I'm completing a doctorate on physical health interventions for young people on the Isle of Man. A lot of my week is spent helping other people become better coaches.
One-to-one coaching is where all of that comes together: one player, my full attention, and a plan that belongs to them.
After 16 years of coaching and 6 years teaching coaches, I know where I do my best work: one-to-one coaching, small groups and mentoring other coaches. I want young players to build confidence in their own ability, through coaching that is planned around them and delivered in a positive environment.
What I bring to a session
“A good coach is one who helps his players maximise or discover their potential. That is his principal function.”
Marcelo Bielsa
Qualified, prepared, attentive, safe and reliable. Every player gets the same standard of care and coaching, whoever funds the place. It isn't a promise of outcomes. No coach can guarantee trials or academy places, and I won't pretend otherwise.
- Knowledge
- My coaching is athlete-centred. Your player helps set their goals, makes decisions in practice and reflects on what worked, so they understand what to do, when to do it and why.
- Experience
- 16 years coaching from under-6s to first-team football means I can adjust the space, pressure and difficulty of a practice to suit your player's age and stage.
- Education
- I teach sports coaching and development in further and higher education, so sessions draw on current evidence about how players learn: game-realistic practice, planned progressions and focused feedback, with something specific to work on before the next session.
- Qualifications
- UEFA B Licence, FA Youth Award, a first-class master's in Sports Coaching and Development, safeguarding, football first aid and a fully enhanced DBS check, all kept current.
Talk to me directly
The consultation is a conversation with me, the person who will coach your player, not a sales call.