BRYAN HUGHES: There are some decent players who have their coaching badges but don't have a job... it's all about who you know

Published: 01:30 EST, 20 September 2013 | Updated: 10:54 EST, 20 September 2013

Bryan Hughes is a former Premier League footballer who played for Birmingham, Charlton and Hull. Growing up as an Everton fan during their eighties heyday, Hughes has aspirations to become a coach and is currently working towards attaining his badges. As well as being the first goalscorer of the new Millennium Stadium when he scored after just 12 seconds for Birmingham against Huddersfield, the midfielder can also lay claim to scoring a winning League Cup penalty for Charlton against Chelsea in one of Jose Mourinho's very few defeats at Stamford Bridge. He's currently playing for non-League side Scarborough Athletic after short spells in Iceland and Accrington Stanley.

 

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Doing your coaching badges is a long process. I’ve done my Level 2 but you must take the next badge within five years or it runs out.  If you decide to do your badges while still playing then league campaigns do get in the way if you’re focusing on promotion or avoiding the drop.

I’ve actually got to start my Level 2 again but have a bit more time on my hands now than I used to.

I hope to push forward with my B licence and get it sorted before the season finishes.

Budding coach: After an impressive football career spanning 20 years, Bryan Hughes is doing his badges   

By start of next season I’ll have my UEFA B licence in place and hopefully something wil become available.

There is a large amount of work done in the classroom when obtaining your badges. The FA send their people in who show you didn’t drills and techniques.

I’d say around 60 per cent of the course is done in the classroom while the rest is done out on the pitch.

Having been a professional footballer, a lot of the drills you already know. You know coaching, you know different drills and how to put a session on.

There are a number of players who have their coaching badges but I expect there are those that fail, although the failures are never publicised and the individual does have the opportunity to take the course again.

A lot of work goes into it , one course lasts two weeks and you’re there from 9 in the morning until 9 at night.

At Hull, a few of us did some of the course together and quite a few clubs do that.

The B licence is a bit more spread and you don’t know which players are going to be on it. During one course, I was pleased to see my former Birmingham team-mate Ian Bennett in Belfast.

A lot of teams do the courses together, we did at Hull and it is signed for by the club.

I certainly feel that coaching can be about who you know rather than what you know. Friends in football can certainly help each other out and managers will employ coaches they can trust.

There are a number of players out there who’ve had great careers, have got their badges but still find themselves out of work.

There is much talk about the England squad and youth football in this country. We have an abundance of talent in England and realistically we should be fighting for World Cups and European Championships.

However, for some reason, we just don’t seem to do it in the major tournaments. I really can’t put my finger on it but there is something going wrong somewhere and we maybe need to take a different approach.

Promotion: Spending seven seasons at Birmingham, Hughes helped the club to the Premier League in 2002

Flying high: Bryan Hughes played for Birmingham, Charlton and Hull in the top-flight

As a nation we have some brilliant players. For example, I heard about Ross Barkley a few years ago and know Everton have really high hopes for him. Injuries have slowed his progress down but he’s a quality player.

It’s perhaps too soon for him to be playing in the England squad but I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do at Goodison Park.

Take the youth coaching they have put in place in countries like Belgium and the Netherlands. They seem to be really coming good right now. We’re behind those countries at present but the FA are doing things to help us become a force in the future. It won’t happen immediately but we have a long term plan in place and the new National Football Centre at St George’s Park will definitely help.

Talent: Hughes has known about Barkley for some time and is looking forward to seeing him at Goodison

It starts at the grassroots level. Johan Cruyff started it at Ajax, playing players in different positions as they are developing as footballers – players playing centre back in one game and then performing on the left wing the next, goalkeepers being played up front. It helps teams and players figure out their best positions. Those players become world class stars at the ages of 19, 20.

If you look at other countries, winning tournaments certainly goes in phases. Italy were winning everything at one time, then it was the turn of France a few years back and more recently Spain have dominated. Now it looks like it’s time of the Germans.

Where it began: Johan Cruyff's football philosophy has seen Holland nurture a number of talented players

Good mates: Hughes with Dean Windass

I think it’s very difficult for some players to cope after they are forced to hang up their boots. One of my good friends Dean Windass had a difficult time after his father passed away.

He finished playing and his marriage also came to an end. However, having spent time at the Sporting Chance clinic he’s come out stronger. I see him on a daily basis and although every day can still be a struggle for him, he can see the positives.

Clarke Carlisle highlighted depression in football in a recent documentary and I believe a number of players have been affected by it when their playing days are over.

The documentary touched on certain cases but there will be hundreds more.

I joined Scarborough Athletic last March. I was meant to sign for Bury with Kevin Blackwell there as a manager but their financial position at the time meant the move didn’t materialise.

I hadn’t been fixed up and so dropped into non-league football with Scarborough – Windass’ brother in law is the assistant manager.

The club are currently playing in the Evostick Northern Premier League Division One South and are keen to get back into the Football League.

That’s what enticed me to the club, I’ve always wanted a challenge in my career. It won’t happen overnight but it will be good for the people of Scarbrough and there are a number of good young players in the team.

High hopes: Hughes claims he always loves a challenge and thinks Scarbrough can get promoted

Tony Hackworth is here too, he was part of the Leeds United squad that enjoyed all those famous European nights when the likes of Lee Bowyer, Alan Smith and Jonathan Woodgate were at Elland Road.

Scarborough are a great advert for the league. Some non-league sides like to play the long ball game but we’re trying to pass the ball and we’re doing well. All footballers think differently but I’m a midfielder and I want to play the ball.

If I became a manager I’d want my teams to play the right way, football which would make the fans happy. It’s ok to play the long ball when you need to but I’d like my sides to play good, attacking football.

I’m keen to stay in football for as long as I can and playing for Scarborough allows me to help out with the coaching.

Leader: Steve Bruce managed Hughes at Birmingham and the midfielder had big respect for what he achieved

I spent seven years at Birmingham having joined from my first club Wrexham. 

Being an Everton fan I played with the likes of Gary Ablett, Anders Limpar and Mike Newell at Birmingham. It was amazing to play with players I’d always looked up to.

The club had had so much play-off heartache before finally getting promoted in 2002.

Our first game in the Premier League came against Arsenal at Highbury. We went there with great expectations but were like rabbits caught in headlights against the likes of Thierry Henry asnd Dennis Bergkamp and we lost the game 2-0. Welcome to the Premier League.

We managed to stay up and our manager Steve Bruce brought in a player that made a massive difference to the team, World Cup winner Christophe Dugarry – what a signing he was!

He was a fantastic player and was great to play alongside. I must admit he was a laid back character but he came alive on the pitch.

World Cup winner: Hughes played with some top players at Birmingham including Christophe Dugarry (right)

I very nearly joined my boyhood club Everton on two occasions. David Moyes was interested in signing me when I was coming to end of my contract at Birmingham City. There were talks with agents but the move never materialised

Then, when I was about to leave Charlton, Moyes showed interest in me again. I was 31 years old hoping and I was desperate for it to happen but it didn’t.

At that stage Hull came in for me and I had a big decision to make, Do I wait for Everton?

Once a Blue, Always a Blue: Hughes nearly signed for Everton on two occasions but the moves never came

To be fair Hull offered me a really good contract and  dropping out of the Premier League to join them seemed like a good challenge. The chariman had great aspirations to get to the Premier League

There was a three-year plan in place but we got promoted after one!

As a footballer when you let your contract run out you can’t hang around too long. As you see now there are still players without clubs a month into the new season.

As well as playing for a host of clubs in England I also had a spell in Iceland in 2011. My former Charlton team-mate Herman Hreidarsson invited me to play for IBV Vestmannaeyjar.

It was coming up to the summer but instead of going on holiday and resting I wanted to keep fit, ready for the new campaign.

Come over: Hughes' former Charlton team-mate Herman Hreidarsson invited him to play in Iceland

It was a much better standard of football than I’d anticipated and the club really looked after me.

They paid me good wages and I had a hosue to stay in and would regularly go round to Herman’s for dinner with him and his friends.

I really enjoyed the experience out there.

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