Ahead of our match against Cannons FC tomorrow at 6.15pm we sat down and had a little chat with the fantastically talented goalkeeping coach we have here at FC Olympique 13.
First of all, tell us a bit about your role at FCO13…
I’m the club’s goalkeeper coach and I was convinced by the gaffer to join this project over the summer as I had recently retired from playing (for now!) and coaching seemed the natural progression to be able to still be involved in football.
and how did you get into goalkeeping?
I started off as a player in Gibraltar’s youth leagues however I wasn’t getting much enjoyment so I stopped playing for a while. When I began thinking about returning to football I must have been around 10 or 11 when I decided I wanted to go in goal. I can’t pin point the exact reason why I went for this position however I come from a very decent family of good goalkeepers with both my uncles, Aurelio and Mario plus my cousins Christian and Adrian having represented Gibraltar at one time or another. Even my dad gave it a go at times and set about coaching me for a while. It wasn’t long before I fell in love with the GK position and knew that my life in football would be better served here.
What advice would you give to someone looking to progress their career as a goalkeeper?
My message to anyone wanting to get into the game is to study the current crop of top level goalkeepers such as De Gea, Lloris, Oblak and Neuer but also not forgetting greats such as Buffon or Schmeichel. Goalkeeping has evolved greater from when I started and now a keeper is expected to be as decent with his feet as any outside player so that’s why I believe that observing what these guys are doing nowadays is imperative. I’d also highlight that showing the same level of commitment to the position such as somebody like Kyle ‘Chino’ Goldwin at Gibraltar United does will help any young keepers immensely.
It’s been a difficult first half, how have the lads handled it?
I reckon it’s been a steady process which has been hampered by lack of decent facilities to be able to properly train my keepers at all sessions. I hope with the news of improvements to Gibraltar’s sporting structures, we will get quality training areas which can make good use of. Results wise, we are doing ok, although we all know that we could be doing better with points being dropped in the final stages of the games however we seem to be clicking as the past couple of results have shown. It’s also a bonus that we have kept two clean sheets which is something I’m always happy about.
What’s it like working with the fantastic Jordan Perez?
Jordan is a great goalkeeper, who in my opinion is technically one of the best that Gibraltar has produced. He’s been brave enough to drop down one division even though I’m sure he’d be a number 1 at most Premier clubs and his passion for the game has not been lost (and neither have his reflexes). I enjoy coaching him as I also get an opportunity to learn from him considering his experience in the game.
And we’ve also got two other great goalkeepers at the club, young Dion Danino who is highly rated by the gaffer and the talented Boyd Wood…
Dion can achieve great things both with club and if he maintains with his great attitude, even with Gibraltar. He’s young so he has age on his side and he’s very agile which works well in his favour. I’d love to see Dion do well as a keeper and he knows he can seek both Jordan and my advice whenever he requires it. At the end of the day, the Gibraltarian footballing world is his oyster, it all depends on what he does with it but judging from his performances in training he will go far for sure.
I’d also like to highlight Boyd Wood who is also on Olympique’s pool of keepers. I’ve known him from playing with and against in the past and he too is a quality keeper who is able to test both Dion and Jordan to perform to high standards.
Pop down to Victoria Stadium to give the lads your support against Cannons FC. Kick off is at 6.15pm and entry is free.