Luke: Dan and I were approached to take on the team when they needed a coach,
we got the impression they would no longer continue if we decided not to.
So, as we both have daughters in the team, neither of us wanted that to happen, so
we talked and met up regularly to discuss and decided, why not.

Dan: The role was really thrust upon us. The team needed somebody to coach, Luke
& I were approached, it was, to be honest take it on or the team will fold. We didn’t
really know each other at all so after a few long phone calls where we found we
shared the same ideas, met up and talked it over, we decided to go for it.

Luke: I can say that I am extremely glad Dan and I decided to do this, he’s a great guy
and we share the same ideas and philosophy’s about football, we only really chatted
on occasions on the side-lines before and now have become great mates, I’ve always
been someone that appreciates someone’s views on football once I’ve seen them
play (odd I know) and he certainly can. With us both having busy lives doing this
together has made it possible, having now taken it on, I wouldn’t want to be on this
journey with anyone but Dan.

Dan: From my point of view, it’s been so good to do it with Luke. We tend to agree
on most things & anything we don’t we discuss. As I say, we didn’t really know each
other but he is genuinely a great guy, a brilliant footballer & I couldn’t do it without
him. This hopefully will bear fruits with the U11’s.

How have you found your first season at Sirens?

Dan: Our first season in at the deep end has been tough but enjoyable. The admin
was unforeseen and there’s a lot of it. Dealing with the younger generation at Sirens
is challenging but also very rewarding. It’s still early days for Luke & I, we are trying
to implement a style & give the girls the basics which they haven’t had before. Every
training session and every match I do feel like we are making progress.

Luke: I have really enjoyed it; it’s been very tough but well worth it.
Also been an eye opener dealing with the youngest team, but I feel Dan and I have
made big progress towards what we are wanting from the girls, all whilst keeping it
enjoyable.

You have the youngest team at the club - tell us more about this and how this affects
your coaching style and approach.

Luke: Personally, I think that Dan and I having daughters in the team has helped,
despite them being the youngest Sirens. Initially I found it quite challenging regards
their concentration, however that has improved massively.

Dan: I feel proud that we have the youngest team at the club. Obviously, they have
the most to learn but they really are a great bunch of girls, all of them. Willing to
listen & take on board what we say.

Luke: The girls really are a great bunch and seeing what we have been teaching them
start to transition into games is a great feeling.

Dan: As Luke said, training is great, we now just need what the girls learn there to
transition over to matches all of the time and we are starting to see that. We have a
few girls who are in their first season, and they have progressed brilliantly both in
their football and also socially at training which is great.

Luke: We both knew it would be a long process as we basically have a new team with
fresh players coming in (most having never played before) and losing some key
players, but the girls have settled in so well and it’s a joy to watch them, not only as a
team but as friends.

Dan: As I mentioned, Luke and I both have daughters in the team, so we are used to
dealing with girls this age which helps massively. Great thing about the U11’s is they
all get on, although they all have certain close friends as a group there are no cliques,
we are lucky to have them.

What made you want to become a coach originally and why Sirens?

Luke: I had a very brief spell coaching my daughters first team, this was very short
lived as not long after she moved to Sirens. She had never played before and decided
she wanted to play football and joined her best mates’ team. They were the only two
girls in the team and not long after her joining I was asked to help coaching, it was
not long after I started, they wanted to join a girl only team and Sirens were local to
both. I didn’t ever see myself coaching again as all was set with Sirens, then the
situation kind of came out of the blue, and here we are, glad it did.

Dan: I had never thought about coaching kids’ football seriously. As I mentioned this
came from nowhere which sometimes the best things do and hopefully in the end it
will all work out.

How has the season gone so far for you both and the team?

Dan: It’s been a tough season so far in terms of results. We’ve had a couple of
highlights but in the main as a unit we aren’t quite there yet. This for me is down to
the fact that this team is starting from scratch, I’m really confident we will get there.
Glimpses of what we focus on at training are coming through into the matches, we
just need more of it for a prolonged period.

Luke: Seeing as we have had to kind of go back to basics, I would say it’s been very
good but also with some low moments. Dan and I believe this season is very much
about learning and development, any positive results would be a bonus. However,
now being involved, it can be tough to take results against us as I would say in most
negative results, we probably should have come away with something. We both feel
we understand football well, but coaching is very different, and we are still very
much learning ourselves.

What’s your favourite parts about being a coach?

Luke: I would probably say seeing the girls enjoying themselves, happy and
improving, it is a real buzz.

Dan: As cheesy as it sounds, my favourite part of coaching is seeing the girls happy
which I’m sure they are, win, draw or lose.

Luke: I do think myself and Dan should also be proud and take credit from this. It’s
also really nice to now say I am on this journey with my mate.

Dan: As long as the team are happy then as far as I’m concerned everything is good
with the world. Another positive thing about taking on the role has been gaining Luke
as a friend.

What has your coaching journey looked like to date?

Dan: My biggest achievement, I have to say, is that we are actually doing it. This time
last season Luke and I were spectators and now we are in the thick of it, Tuesday,
Thursday and then Saturday mornings.

Luke: Being involved with Sirens - I think that is a big achievement itself, with juggling family life as I have 3 other children.

Dan: I haven’t got a lot of memories to draw on, but fond ones are of parents saying
how well we’re doing when maybe you don’t think you are which I suppose leads on
to the down part, which is although at this age it isn’t about winning, you still want to
win and feel a sense of a failure when you don’t.

Luke: As Dan said, it’s hard to refer to memories as we are still very new. We do get
messages from parents saying how their daughters have really enjoyed training and
then praise us for what we are doing. Getting that positive feedback from games
noting that they see improvements in not just their daughters but the whole team,
really means a lot. We both take a lot of pride in the bond we have developed with
the girls.

Dan: Like Luke touched on, a massive positive is the relationships with all the girls, it
does feel like we’re making a difference.

What are your targets for the rest of the season, personally and for the club as a
whole?

Luke: Personally, I think targets would be to continue to teach the girls the values of
football and the importance of the team as a whole, I think for Dan and I it’s more
about continuing what we are doing and completing our first season.

Dan: I like to set small achievable targets but lots of them. Targets for the remainder
of the season include an upturn in results, installing confidence in the girls & getting
them, as I have said multiple times, to take the great things they do in training into
matches.

Lastly, what’s your life like away from coaching?

Luke: As I said, I have a big family and love being a dad. I have continued support
from my partner in all that I do, and I provide the same support for her and the kids
in anything they are doing. We also have many pets as we are all animal lovers.

Dan: I have a daughter who plays for the U15’s, I absolutely adore watching her
which is not as much as I used to because of this role, which is a shame, but I still do
make it sometimes. I feel massively proud of both Imogen and Isla (who is with the
U11’s), they are great, and both really put it in for the club. I’m a family man and am
very lucky to have a wife who is supportive of what I do with Sirens which is
important.

Luke: I was overjoyed when my youngest decided to play as my other children have
never really shown an interest and I didn’t want to pressure any of them into playing.

Dan: Away from the club, I’m a keen Saints fan which, this season, has killed any
passion for football I have outside of Sirens, so I am glad to have been able to amerce
myself in coaching, instead!

Luke: I am a very social person and run my own football group on a Monday night
(playing with mates). I also play for another group of friends on a Friday night, so
football is a big part of my life. I work at a school as part of the site team providing everyday
maintenance and love most sports, in particular pool, snooker, and darts.