[情報] Football Icon 馬格內憶往昔

看板Chelsea作者JamesCaesar (首席百人隊長)時間13年前 (2013/03/26 20:27)推噓0(0推 0噓 2→)

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2298458/ On the road... Chelsea's former 'Football Icon' Magnay putting injury hell behind him at Gateshead By Michael Walker - PUBLISHED:23:39 GMT, 24 March 2013 ‘There I was, a young professional at Chelsea.’ So says Carl Magnay, the football icon you may never have heard of. Magnay has just turned 24. He is recalling the events of 2006, when he was released by bankrupt Leeds United, played Northern League for Washington, got a job in an envelope factory and won a Sky TV competition called Football Icon. Its prize was a six-month contract with Chelsea and on New Year's Day 2007, three weeks before his 17th birthday, Magnay signed it. http://tinyurl.com/cgehf58 Bright future: Magnay has appeared 33 times for Gateshead this season and is studying his coaching badges http://tinyurl.com/cpslhfy Icon: Carl Magnay (second right) meets his hero John Terry in the closing stages of Football Icon in 2006 There are different routes into professional football; few have taken Magnay's. He reflects on his zigzag path at the International Stadium, Gateshead, ‘home’ to the Conference club which is literally all over the place. Behind Magnay is a waterlogged pitch, newly-laid last summer. Its dreadful deterioration over the winter means Gateshead are playing home games at Carlisle United, York City, Blyth Spartans, Hartlepool United and Middlesbrough — although not at closest neighbours Newcastle or Sunderland. Gateshead will do well to stay in the Conference given the circumstances and a backlog of fixtures. They lost 3-0 at Dartford on Saturday to stay two places above relegation. The ‘Heed’, as they are known, could do with local-boy Magnay fit. But last week he injured an ankle. Those who know Magnay from the six months that became five years at Chelsea will recognise a pattern. Magnay is one of many young players whose careers are shaped by injuries as much as talent. http://tinyurl.com/bwac4g2 Leader: Magnay was made captain of Chelsea's reserves but injuries put paid to his time at the club A gifted defender, as a boy Magnay received offers from the three big North-east clubs and Manchester United. He chose instead to go to Leeds. It was season 2000-01; he was 11. ‘At the time I thought Leeds had the best youth set-up in the country,’ explained Magnay. ‘Leeds were Champions League semi-finalists, they had a lot of British players and they were really pro-youth. The atmosphere was fantastic. ‘I had a great five years there but obviously the finances changed. When it came to earning scholarships, my whole age group were wiped out. Leeds couldn't even afford scholars on ￡90 a week. So I had to leave. I was 16. Then it all went a bit bizarre.’ This is where the envelope factory came in. ‘I lasted about a month there,’ he said. ‘Hard work. That showed me the reality of real work. I thought to myself “I'm not made for that”. I was lucky, it was a wake-up call.’ Magnay went on trial to Middlesbrough. It was then that he heard about Football Icon ‘at the first trial I got a top score. I kept going through the rounds. Before I knew it, I was in a mansion in Surrey in the last 12. ‘Every week, two would get released — X Factor type. It was a gamble not staying at Middlesbrough but it paid off. It began in the summer of 2006. I won in the December and signed my first professional contract on January 1, 2007. ‘The judges were Jose Mourinho, Jamie Redknapp, Eddie Newton and the Academy director Neil Bath. Brendan Rodgers had a say in it as well and I ended up being in his reserve team for two years. There I was, a young pro at Chelsea (above).’ http://tinyurl.com/c2q9cpy Special one: Jose Mourinho (right) helped select Magnay (left) from the young hopefuls on Football Icon Magnay's initial six months became 18 months after five youth-team games, then three years on top of that. There were good times. ‘I was made captain of the reserves and I was pushing like hell to get into the first team. I trained with them the odd time. In my first session I had to mark Didier Drogba. ‘That gave me a sense of the difference, not just technically but physically. He is an absolute athlete. I hit the gym after that.’ And there were bad times. ‘I was on loan at Northampton, playing Peterborough. I felt a pain in my back before half time. I had to come off. A scan showed I'd fractured two bones in my lumbar spine. That was March 2009. I was out for five months. http://tinyurl.com/cv8d8c3 Horror: Magnay (left, on loan at Northampton) fractured his spine in this match against Peterborough ‘A year later, March 2010, I did my cruciate ligament in a reserve friendly against Charlton. There was no-one near me. I went up for a header, landed on one leg and it went. That was the defining moment of my career, basically. It took 13 months to recover.’ Most of 2011 was spent getting fit and Magnay stresses how compassionate Chelsea were. He is also appreciative of the patience and deep pockets of Gateshead chairman Graham Wood. Last January Magnay decided to go home. He asked his local club if he could train with them. Then he joined and says brightly of this season: ‘I've played 33 competitive games.’ It would be 34 but Gateshead versus Newport County has been postponed four times. It will now be played on Thursday at Boston United, a near 400-mile round trip for the ‘home’ team and one of nine games in 26 days. The Conference is the world of one-season contracts, so the future is usually uncertain. But Magnay is happy. He is about to begin his B License coaching badge. And he is home. Even if, for Gateshead, that is a different concept. -- 以伊露維塔的名為證發誓 — 若有誰敢奪取屬於我們的藍色之心，不論對方是天使、惡魔、男人或女人，包括尚未出生者，若有任何的生靈，不論偉大或渺小，是善還是惡，我們都將懷著復仇與憎恨之心直追到天涯海角，直追到世界結束之日。 -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 36.231.134.230