Lichfield City left back Tom Patstone tells Luke Dingley how his injury struggles encouraged him to start coaching to pass his knowledge onto the younger generation
Vulnerable. Unsettled. Isolated. Tom Patstone felt like his early football career had come crashing down like a ton of bricks at 11 years of age. He had already been forced to learn one of the hardest lessons in football, how to sit still.
A significant leg injury kept a passionate and energetic prospect out of action for nine months, unable to kick a ball, and it was a mission to leave the house for over half of that time.
Helpless.
Yet in that period of silence and despair, while the ability to play the sport that he loved was stopped, a new fascination of understanding it had started. Almost a decade later, this exact curiosity expanded towards coaching, the idea of developing others and improving them at the game that was once taken away from him.
Now seated opposite me, Patstone is in his second year at the University of Derby, studying a foundation degree (FdA) in Athlete Professional Development. Broad-shouldered with a proud smile on his face, he unfolds a rollercoaster journey that got him to where he is today.
He starts by explaining his early career which is far from the traditional development of most aspiring footballers. “I started playing football when I was four years old for a grassroots team called Whittington. I actually started as a goalkeeper,” he says with a smirk displaying a hint of embarrassment. “Then I just got bored. I liked running with the ball too much. Even when I was in goal, I’d end up using my feet. I switched to left-back and never looked back.”
That decision displays features of Patstone’s personality: fearless, intrigued and eager to move forward. Perhaps those aspects were catalysts for his future in the technical area where he reads the game, anticipates situations and tries to think two steps ahead of his opposition.
However, those traits of his may have been part of the reason he suffered a “horror tackle” that shocked him at a major chapter of life.
In a quieter tone, Patstone expands on his injury and its consequences. “When I was 11 I broke my leg. I snapped my tibia and fibula clean through,” Patstone says. “I was out for nine months, with six months basically stuck in my house. I’d say it probably did affect my development because that age was a big year for growth and going into secondary school it just got cut out of my life.”
After recovering from an extended absence, Patstone moved from his grassroots club Lichfield City, who he was part of for an impressive 12 years. However, there came another series of frustrations. He reflects on the setbacks which seemed like a constant occurrence. “In my first year at Lichfield I managed to sprain my ankle three times in one season,” he explains. “The third time made me think, what’s the point?”
Despite these challenges, Patstone has never shown signs of struggle, according to former Lichfield teammate and fellow FdA student Mason Boswell, who says: “He’s never really been down. Even when he’s had bad injuries, he’s always positive. That’s just how he is, on his own a lot through injury, but always keeps going.”
During Patstone’s period on the sidelines at Lichfield, his curiosity for coaching resurfaced and he finally started putting it into practice. “I spoke to Darren, my coach at Lichfield, and have coached there for work experience,” Patstone says with a smile. “Now [on my university course] I’m working with a team of eight or nine coaches, but then, it was just two of us delivering to everyone else. That experience made me realise that is something I enjoy.”
After experiencing what Patstone is like both as a teammate battling on the turf, and as a comrade in a coaching team, Boswell heaps praise on him. “At the start at Lichfield we were both on the bench together and that’s where we connected,” he says. “That carried over to when we broke into the team and we knew what each other was going to do. Coaching with Tom is good, we were in their shoes at one point, so we just try to pass advice on.”
When asked about the coaching sessions, Patstone laughs, indicating the strong relationship between them. “I’ve loved it ever since I started and I want to continue,” he says while chuckling. “It’s rewarding. Especially with lads who are around the age I was when I started at Lichfield. I know how important it is to have someone to believe in you.”
The 19-year-old has maintained his passion for coaching and is now experiencing some much-deserved success on the pitch. He is now injury-free for two years and is “as confident as ever.”
When asked to describe his football career to date, Patstone pauses to assess his options. After all, it has been a whirlwind of emotions.
“Messy. Different. Fun.”
Patstone gives an appropriate summary for a player and coach whose avenue has been anything but straightforward. From in between the sticks to bombing up and down the left wing. From broken bones and agony to coaching and developing. He has overcome his setbacks through an undoubted determination.
Now rebuilt, he still dreams of playing at the highest level possible, but his destiny may just be on the sidelines, mentoring others through the bumps in the road that have shaped him.
