My development journey: 1
In the first part of our feature on the development journey of Michael Carrick, the former England midfielder and his family discuss his early years in the game.
Lynne Carrick (mum): From 18 months old he had a ball at his feet. That’s all he wanted to play with from a really young age. We’d go to toy shops and they’d have cars or whatever, but he’d just make straight for a ball.
All the neighbours would laugh. In the garden he’d have his slide and other toys, but all he wanted to do was play football. From an early age he’d sit and watch football with his dad. He’d climb on the settee and watch. When he got to four Vince took him to Wallsend boys club.
Vince Carrick (dad): He came with me at four. At five and a half he actually started playing 5-a-side in an U9 league. And they were getting beat 14-0 or whatever. But they persevered and he enjoyed it.
Lynne: He just loved taking part and playing the game. He wasn’t bothered about the score. It went above his head. He just enjoyed what he was doing and was so happy going along. He loved it. Putting the strip on and just going along and playing football. He just really, really enjoyed it. So it just carried on from there really.
They had toys to play with before they went to the 5-aside, but instead they’d always get something to make a goal. It was initially Michael with his little pals, which then continued when his brother Graeme came along. All they wanted to do was play in the garden.
As they were growing up that carried on with their friends, they all loved to play football. After school they’d go to the school fields and if they weren’t doing that they were at the boys’ club. All the friends would go to football together.
By this time Graeme was coming on the scene as well. He was like Michael, football daft. There was no pressure at all from us. It’s what they wanted to do and if it was making them happy we supported them. As a four year old, you just wanted your child to be happy. Graeme was Michael’s shadow. He just loved football.
Michael: My earliest memory in terms of playing football is at the boys club when I was about 5 I think, 4 and a half maybe. It was a Saturday night and it was sort of an all-comers session really. Anyone could just turn up and have a kick around. You were put into teams and played, and I just remember Dad and Grandad taking me along.
I can actually remember the first time I went on the pitch and it seemed like such a big deal. I think I cried the first time I went on just because of the way it was set up; because there was a little balcony and then stairs going down it seemed a bit like an arena, everyone watching, it was a bit intimidating at first.
But then Dad took us on the pitch and that was it after that. But that’s my first memory of going there on a Saturday. Just having the buzz really of playing and thinking it was the best thing ever and getting in a team. It wasn’t about skills or knowing the game or anything it was just about running around and having fun.
Nearly every lad in the town went to the boys club. It was the thing to do
The joy of play...
Vince: I think when you start playing 5-a-side at 5 or 6 years old you learn straight away. You start to learn the game to a certain extent. What I’m trying to say is you’re not coached. You get on and you play the game.
We’ve found some of the parents, more so the dads - because they’ve played football themselves, maybe they’ve got to a certain level and they’ve wanted to get to a higher level and they couldn’t do it - they’re trying to live their lives through their sons playing football.
Lynne: Vince played to a good semi-professional level when he was younger but we’ve never ever tried to push the boys. I pinch myself now and this is the honest truth, because I can’t believe what Michael has achieved. And with Graeme when he was playing football and even with what Graeme’s doing now it’s just like, ‘Well, how have they done it?’ It’s not a case of having pushed them, we’ve just been supportive in everything that they’ve done.
Vince: It’s been their decision on what they’ve done, how they’ve done it and how they’ve gone about things. I wouldn’t say coaching [is the reason] as such because the lads went to the 5-a-side at the boys club and I think that helped them a lot. They played and played. They didn’t have to be coached early on because they played 5-a-side for years. They picked things up. I didn’t turn round and say you’ve got to do this, you’ve got the do that. I’d say "how about doing this, how about doing that." And with the 5-a-side, I’d come and support but let somebody else run the team.
Michael: Nearly every lad in the town went to the boys club. It was the thing to do. U9s was the first league but Saturdays was just getting kids into the boys club and getting the younger lads to have a game really, it was just a kickabout.
They’d have a blackboard and Bob [the coach] would sit you down with teams of 5. It seemed like it was packed full of kids. It seemed like there were about 20 teams and he’d have a blackboard and he’d go down and write your name on and he’d be like, "You’re Brazil" and everyone would be buzzing, or "you’re England".
It was basic stuff but it just got you so buzzing that it was like a free-for-all. The league started from 9 year old as I say and then I still played in the 5-a-side league all the way through. I was still playing 5 aside when I left for West Ham when I was 15.
Everyone seemed to go to the boys club and take an interest in the 5 a-side. We talked about it at school, like "Who’s playing tonight?" or "they’ve got them tonight it’s a big game", people would turn up to watch this game of 5-a-side. I wouldn’t say it got heated but it was competitive, especially if there were a couple of teams who were quite near the top of the league. It was quite serious but it was fun at the same time. There was the element of winning because it was a league and you wanted to win but it was just playing against your mates.
Vince: Michael and Graeme had their own night for their own age group for 5-a-sides and playing a year up too on a different night. The boys club offered them a game of football two or three nights a week and a challenge with older lads. Plus they had an 11 a-side game on the Sunday as well. But I would honestly say that playing 5-a-side for those years is what brought them on.
Graeme and Michael would go to the boys club early, sometimes two hours early, to watch their mates play football. And they’d help each other. They made friends as well and that helped. They had friends from different schools and they’d make different teams up for different tournaments. So they’d make other friends.
Graeme Carrick (brother): I don’t think the competition was really driven by parents so much, I can’t remember that. It was more from school friends really.
Michael: We’d even go to the boys club, I’m guessing like 3-4 times a week, just to hang out amongst the other lads, to play.
Graeme: You used to play in the league your own age, you played the year above on a different day and even two years up as well.
Michael: It was the freedom really. I was guided, my dad would sort of give us guidance but it wouldn’t be dictated, it was just more like trying to give you little bits of tips and help really.
Graeme: Dad didn’t have any direct involvement in it at all.
Michael: He just totally stepped away from it and just followed us through. He didn’t have anything to do with any teams or any refereeing or things like that. [With Dad] It wasn’t a case of how good you could be it was just go and enjoy yourself really.
We’d even go to the boys club, I’m guessing like 3-4 times a week, just to hang out amongst the other lads, to play
Michael Carrick is currently first team coach at Manchester United and Graeme Carrick is an FA coach mentor.