My review of the season that was
Back at the beginning of the football season which seems to never end, I can’t say I would have envisaged how the next nine months were to pan out.
To say I’ve enjoyed it is probably safe to say is an understatement! This blog didn’t exist as the season began, that arrived in October. This season I was set up to be Wick FC website editor and social media manager as I was the season previous.
I’ve long harboured a dream to be a football journalist, something I wanted to do since my schooldays, but never seriously made the effort to pursue it and fell into retail, which did serve me well. So, website and social media writing was doing me just fine, but I felt I wanted a bit more.
So, out came the Google search for ‘freelance football writing’. And back with it came some places to contact and see if there wasn’t something that would come of it. And it did! Having contacted a couple of websites, I was soon writing a weekly column for www.o-posts.com entitled ‘The League Two Chronicles’ which the final piece of the season goes up this week.
But I didn’t stop there! Soon after I found another site to satisfy my non-league thirst, www.leaguebelow.com. That one hit the spot and produced a great number of hits on my posts, but unfortunately due to a work promotion for the person involved running the site, the site ceased publication and so far, I’ve not found another site to share non-league postings.
I had a thought for a few months before to start this blog you read today, but as I follow a lot of sports and some as big passions I wanted a broader meaning to it and www.footballwritingblog.wordpress.com was born in October 2017, comprising of football, of course, and also what the Americans call ‘football’, the NFL, giving me a platform to air my views for whoever wants to read them, agree with them or disagree with them!
Then in November, I added more to what I was already doing. A tweet from Worthing FC owner George Dowell asking for volunteers to produce more content for their website, www.worthingfc.com led to some more exposure for me, a twice weekly phone call to their manager Adam Hinshelwood to preview and react to the games played and uploading onto their website. A chance reading on Twitter at the right time, something I’ve enjoyed doing this year watching the Rebels rise under Hinshelwood’s stewardship from the bottom of the table to mid-table safety with games to spare and Adam is always accommodating with information and his time. With what is planned over the next few years for Worthing FC I am involved at just the right time.
I’ve been fortunate to interview a Football League player this year as well, Barnet FC have given me more than enough League Two and blog pieces this year and not always for good reasons. Changing jobs in November last year has given me the time and opportunity to take the chance to follow the path I want, and the next step is to find a way to get rewarded further for what I write.
If that doesn’t materialise, then writing for fun and enjoyment of people reading what you write is good enough for me. 159 people came to view this blog in May, suggests to me I’m doing ok or I know a lot of nosey people!!!!! I’m aiming to hit some regular figures as we move into next season and who knows we’re it will lead, all I know is ‘if you don’t buy a ticket, you can’t win the lottery.’