Life outside football and personal interests

This episode is brought to you by Flexemoise, a multi-award-winning digital business lender dedicated to providing UK SMEs with flexible finance done properly. Welcome back to Port man Road . Burns, trying to find Jackson, it's Caiden Jackson! It's two-nil ! Oh it's Chaplin! It's Cody Chaplin! Jeremy Saviento! Jack Taylor. Oh my goodness me! Jack Taylor ! Welcome everybody to the official Ipswich Town Podcast powered by FlexMise with me, Aaron Paul. Now today we've got another great episode. I've been speaking to town defender George Edmondson about the highs and the lows of his career, injuries, promotions, and of course how good he is at football manager. This is a long one to sit back, enjoy let's start at the very beginning by asking if George is even his real name your first name's not even George is it? Nah, it's uh it's actually Sam, but uh I don't know what every I've had this conversation with my mum and dad, and so my first name's Sam, middle name's George, but ever since I've been that when I can remember being a kid they've always come with George so I don't know I've asked them oh who picked George who picked Sam and they both say oh my mum says oh it's me who picked George and my dad says oh it was if we pick George um but I think when I was born they couldn't decide so obviously on the birth certificate you have to uh put something obviously can't go without a name so I think they just put it as Sam George and then obviously at a later date just decided to call me George full still. Nice. So Sam Sam Edmonton. Yeah, I don't think it really suits Sam either. I mean, really small first name and massive last name. Um born in Manchester . Yep. Wonderful place. Vibrant, eclectic, very different to Suffolk. Very different. Um tell me about growing up in Manchester. What part did you grow up in? What was it like? What was it like for young George Edmondson? Tell me about your family. Yeah, um family's supportive. Uh my dad comes every game, if I'm playing, if I'm not playing, even he goes games when I'm not in squads yeah it'll come it'll come it goes to every game um support me throughout from when I was born to to now um and they knew obviously I wanted to just play football and I wanted to do that as a job and they push me sometimes to the point where I probably get a bit upset with my mum and dad. But that's obviously that that's kind of the the job and you know they just wanted to see me do well really. So um so yeah, so grew up started playing local Sunday team uh back home and then obviously just kind of escalated from there really. W were you were as a defender? No, I started off right wing I did actually because I was tiny when I was a kid. Uh like really small because I'm I would say it's down to this but I'm August birthday so technically I'm a year behind if that makes sense. So I was always I felt like I was a late developer, so I was always really small. Everybody else my age was already bigger. And at that age it's quite you know physically. People can get the better of you on the pitch and what have you. So I started off because I was small and dead quick. I started off right wing and then as I got older I went, I think I did a bit of a stint up front, uh wasn't very good like, and then slowly worked my way back to centre mid as I got a bit bigger and then CDM I played for county and then um I ended up putting going centre off. I if we were to profile Manchester at the time when you were born, I mean again I really want to hone in on what it was like as a place. What was it like what was it like growing up for you? Where what part of Manchester did you grow up in? Who'd you support? I really want to try and learn more about you because this is what this is about. It's it's such a a a a unique experience having the ability to sit down with someone you watch all time. I come here, I watch you play as I do with everyone else and having this opportunity to sit down with you for 40, 45 minutes. I'm here to learn about you and I love I love learning about people. So tell me about you as a child, little George Edmonton, little George, little Sam, now George. Where did you grow up? What did you do? Who'd you hang out with? Tell me about you. I grew up in Sale which is like South Manchester. I think closer stadiums old Trafford but I am a blue city fan. I think that comes from my grand dad really and my mum's a city fan and I used to spend so I used to play football on a Sunday and then after Sunday football I'd always go to my granddad's, we'd always end up having a pizza uh and then watched the football but was on sky um so that's how I become a city fan really um granddad just non-stop talking about city um dad wasn't too pleased um you're like fan he's a Bolton fan oh wow okay um so yeah, so he's uh his family and he's he's from Bolton so um I do keep tabs on on Bolton obviously but um but I was city all the way through since I was I can remember, had all the kits. Um Who's your first hero? Hero. Your first hero. Probably Sean Wright Phillips, to be honest. That was the he was kind of the one coming. I really liked uh Michael Johnson. Obviously had his problems, but um he was kind of coming through uh that when when I was a kid and he was the like kind of star boy really. So it's him obviously Shawnee Wright was Shawnee Wright, obviously. Um so and I played that position at the time right wing so I kind of thought uh Sean Wright Phillips for a City fan that was kind of who I would watch but then again when I was coming through even though I am a City fan there was like Rooney , obviously Gerard there, you had all the Lampard, Skulls, you know, I I as much as I'm a City fan, I I I just like football in general. So I'll go and watch any game, doesn't matter if it's United City, Blackburn, whoever it is, um I'd end up going going and watching So yeah, so grew up in Sal em, um and just as a child in my life just revolve around football really. Yeah, always I didn't want to do anything else. I was always ball in hand, ball at my feet, kicking balls in the house, obviously mum going mad. Um so yeah, so just just football, football, football. That's all the I used to go out with my dad all the time, just I used to go in net. He used to go in net, just absolute length balls at him. I've got a sister, oh this but she likes football though, she to be fair, she probably my my biggest fan um apart from her dad she she goes as many games as she can um she lives in London but um every London game she goes to even she wanted to come to Plymouth which is still quite far away but she still goes Southampton she went to um she comes home to the home games if she's if she's not working so yeah she uh she loves football but I think that's from coming to watch me when I was a a kid and then uh obviously she just kind of fell in love with the sport as well. Take me two school years to going through to playing in Manchester because there are so many clubs in Manchester when you look at it. Yeah. Done them all in the wow I didn't want to say it, but there are so many clubs, so many different places and so many routes in, but getting to that goal is very difficult of actually signing your first pro contract and saying, right, this is me now. Forget going out and and doing the nine to five or going out and working as a brickie or a plum or whatever. I'm here, I'm playing football. This is me. This is my career for the next 25, 20, 25 years. Take me through that journey because we're gonna come on to Oldham, but I'd like to know what happens in the years before Oldham. Phew I was well, if you don't want to go on to Oldham yet, my cause my story is a bit bit mad, but um I was playing Sunday League all the way up until under sixteens. So obviously you go Sunday League under sixteens and then it's a youth team. Um but I was uh I was playing with my mates, uh local team all the way up till under sixteens, school team, played for the county team, um Trafford Boys, we had a great team for for them uh so yeah I I I was playing all there all the way up to under 16s, um I trial that I think every North West club possible, probably Everton, Burnley , Bolton , City, which I think United when I was very young, um, like every every player I think has, um, you know, done all the clubs in their area. Why did it not work? Um When I was young, young, I always thought it was probably like my size. I was tight, like really small. Um and it was always I just physically probably not even though you can be seven, eight and thirteen and fourteen, it was always oh you're probably not physically ready yet which I think looking back at it was fair enough obviously at the time you you goted but uh it was physically and then when I kinda got fourteen, fifteen, sixteen and I went to like City, Everton, Atkinson Stanley. Um it was always oh yeah you're kind of good but you're not as good as what we've got um so yeah so I was uh finished school, done all right with GCSEs and then I ended up obviously I was kind of stuck really. Um I didn't really know what I was gonna do and I used to go to so I was at Man City and they had a shadow squad so I don't know if you know what Shadow Squad is. It's kind of like you have your main city teams to say the under 16s and they'll have a separate group called the Shadow Squad and they kinda used to have players go there but who they thought they're good players but the aim goal was to get them into city but if they didn't think they're not good enough but they're good players . The goal was to get the likes of Accrington, Bolton, Oldham to come down, have a look and then kind of cherry-pick players for trials, which I thought was quite good, and I used to love the training. I used to think oh it's brilliant. Um, and you play games and against other teams, foreign teams, it was really good. Um, and from there I ended up going to At on-Stanley on trial because one of the coaches from there went to Atkinton, left the shadow squad, went to Atlington and said I want you to come on trial. So I the first time I ever got signed on was under 16 at Crinton Stanley for two weeks I got signed on for um and interesting place isn't it what's that it's an interesting place yeah yeah it is it is an interesting place and uh I got signed on for for two weeks I did and then uh two weeks obviously into being signed on they give out the scholarships and they went, oh you're obviously not getting a scholarship, so I was kind of back at square one then really um so the I didn't know but the coach who took me to Atkrington moved from Atkington to Alden within once they kind of basically give out the scholars um so he's moved to Oldham and I'm kind of sat there at home thinking, I've done my GCSEs, I wanna play football, but How do you feel at that point? What were your parents saying to you? Because naturally, you know you are looking at I think they call it like a pathway. You're looking at options. You're looking at am I doing the A levels? Am I going to college? Am I going to go out at sixteen and work? You're sat there, you've done AGCSEs, this is summer the summer where your powers are out doing their thing, going to new key. Yeah. And you're having to grow up very fast and make career-based decisions at the age of 15 or 16. Yeah. Luckily I I I didn't amazing at school but I'd done alright. So at least had my grades to sixth form college where A levels whatever you want to do. I didn't actually know what I was going to do. But I found Altringham FC had a program for basically like their youth team and you do a B Tech in sport. And so I just applied for it for oh at least to I get got a play football do a B Tech and there might be half a chance of a pathway through to Ultragram FC. So uh I applied kind of you you got on the course and then you kind of had to trial to see which team you got in. So they I think they had like three teams. And they ended up I was getting put in the second team actually. So I won't even get in the first team as in for the youth team. I was getting in the second team so it was quite disappointed and Do you think you took a lot of knocks when you were younger? Yeah I've been turned down from every Northwest Club in there. How'd you deal with it when you were younger? Er to be fair you obviously you're upset at the time but I think uh you're just a kid aren't you so I kinda just was like uh right okay cheers loved it, loved the training and then you just go back to school, play with your mates, back to your Sunday league team and you play football again so I didn't really think about it that much to be honest. Um and obviously at that age you don't really have any cares in the world do you so um I was just thinking oh if I play well I'll I'll get an opportunity somewhere else. So um obviously actually never came that opportunity. But so I signed on, got my got in the second team, and then obviously I'm on this uni course um or B Tech and Sport course kind of thing at college. So I'd kind of signed on to do it, but the the youth team season hadn't technically finished. I think old them had they had one more game left against Walsall . So the coach who took me to Accrington, he was now at Oldham, and it was the last game of the season for the youth team at Oldham. And the ones who got pros in Oldham's U team went with the first team. The ones who got released said we're not playing the last game. Like I'm, they're finished. Yeah, the under 16s who've got scholars had come up. um into the youth team and I think quite a few of the first years who were going into the second year were injured. So they had literally just like 10, I think it was 10 or 11 players. So the coach Simon Cooper, he uh rang me, it was uh Thursday or whenever and he was just like oh right George can you do you want to come and play a game of football for Oldham's youth team um he was like, look, there's not gonna be anything for you at the the end, no scholarship, we're literally shorter players, we've not got any and we need a centre half. So um I was generally that oh yeah, no worries give up. Yeah but I I knew there wasn't gonna be anything 'cause I'd spoke to I call him Coops um but I spoke to Simon and he said obviously I've come to hold them and we've they've given the scholars out. So um when he did ring, he obviously said to me, uh, like there's there's nothing here for you, but we literally need a centre half. Can you can you come and help us? So I was thinking a game of football for one, it's for a youth team which I've never played before even if it is older, you know I mean it's still like youth team football which I think is a high level um for that age and I thought I might as well go and see how I cope. And it was against Walshall Walsall who were top of the league so they were doing really well. Um so I said to him, yeah no worries, I'll see you Saturday. So jumped on the coach with obviously load of random lads, signed the trial papers just in case you obviously get injured. Ended up playing and actually played really well, like really well. We won, beat them 2-1 . Simon was obviously buzzing after the game with the other coach Mick, um obviously like I played brilliant, but obviously there's nothing here for you but thanks for helping us out. So got back on the coach, mum and dad picked me up and then obviously went home and that was it. So I had my kind of art set around gonna probably end up doing this course at Altringham and then it gets to the middle of July I think it was. Did panic set in a bit? Panic didn't set in really. I kind of thought yeah, I think this is what I'm gonna have to do now. I thought I at least wanna have one more crack at it, kind of thing. So uh comes to July and next minute, Coops rings my mum and this is two weeks into July, so pre-seasons for all the clubs have started . Um rings me and uh obviously I go on the phone and what have you and he says our um Like how are you small talk and what have you and then he just says look there's a we've uh sat to one of the youth team players who I actually know um won't say his name but he 's um top player. Like he's one of them he had everything but just mindset and doing things he shouldn't have been and kind of wanted to be somebody else or somebody who we thought, you know, that kind of uh person. Um but top player, played f with him and against him throughout I was when I was a kid. Um but obviously wanted to be some uh a different kind of lad, let's just say. Um got in trouble and Oldham sacked him. So he was a centre half and Coops rang me two weeks into pre-season of Oldham's pre-season and just said look there's a there's a space we need a centre half do you want it basically so I just said yeah so next day I just went signed the papers um couldn't believe I was actually getting paid to play football even though it was probably paid for my tram ticket but still A and A getting paid to do what you you love and then that was it. Got my got my skull. I mean I wanna talk about Oldham and and the people that really sort of help carve your career out because obviously you go from Old'em, you play uh non league football, you have loans, and you move to rangers. Yeah. Old'em to ranges is qu quite ite the jump. So it it'd be interesting to know about more about Oldham getting into the first team, breaking to the first team, playing a really good amount of games for the football club and and also those stints in non-league and what they did for you? To be honest, I think biggest influence at uh Alden was probably when I was in the youth team, I had Tony Philliskirk, my manager, you had Simon Cooper, Mick Priest, Pete Wild , Chris Millington come towards the end as well. Obviously Pete's doing really well now at Barrow. Mick Priest has been in a prem with Fulham, had a good career, Salford he's been uh coaching at, obviously Tony Felix Hurts, great player, been at um Alden for ages now he's at Burnley, doing the under eighteen was there, so I think the youth teams where I probably learnt most of 'cause Tony was you want to say he was old school. Um the fine old school. Yeah. Oh well pfft I don't know what I can say on camera here, but just for me he was brilliant I I'm trying to say in a way I can you can put it in a family friendly way but uh just one of them like not really tactics as such but just like learn told me kind of what like mentality was and hard work and like we used to do running they probably done it here up the stands that was like our pre-season, just like old school running and yeah, but they didn't have stands like this a boundary, do they? They they have a big one actually, big, just call it a cop like. Have you ever been in the stairs? Up the stairs over there. Yeah, I have yeah. I have it. It's not fun. Some of them are one and a half tool. The one that the ones that hold them, you try running up all the way up and down them. It's tough. I probably he turned I would say probably turned me from like a boy to a man really. And I ended up obviously I come in at Oldham really late, oh well I say really late, two weeks in, um and some of these lads have dropped from United, uh Burnley and etc etc . So obviously they kinda got a good pedigree, the players anyway. So I kinda went in thinking just work hard, um do my best and obviously there's lads there who were top top players um especially the centre half who I was har I won't I was kind of behind um Ryan Ellison um he was fantastic. And I think they've really had high hopes for him, but obviously I don't wish it on anybody, but he had two really bad knee injuries in his scholarship, first year and second year. So he had his first one in the first year and they had no choice but to play me. So I kind of got lucky again really and took my chance and Tony turned me into a a manaphor and um obviously he was he was great Tony though. Um like he would I'm trying to think of another word to use. He'd have a goat, yeah. Um Tough love. Yeah, tough love, that's probably the best way. He would when you needed a a rocket up you he would give you one. Um How di how different and this is just sort of me just fast forward into twenty twenty-four, how different is his approach to Kieran McKenna's approach now? Uh yeah. Completely different. But they still say the same things, like if we're talking tactics or we're talking uh off the ball or on the ball. The if you if you got like two clips of them, they ch they do say the same things, they just say it in a different in a different way. There's probably a few more expletives for Tony. Um than the gaffer here, but uh what they're saying is both right and obviously Tony speaks for himself for the amount of players he's brought through um hold them. Um obviously he must be doing something right to to get that many players through. And obviously the gaffer's doing brilliant here, so obviously what he's saying obviously working and is right. So um so yeah so Tony would give you tough love when you needed it and uh when you just needed that arm round you or just that kind of bit of love. But he had that side to him as well that not many people saw, but uh he would he would give it to you and then um and then yeah to get my pro uh was quite a funny one actually again I ended up originally I'd I'd done my two years and I've really improved as a player I was I loved it there uh as a scholar and then obviously, when it comes to decision time I, originally got told no. So I've gone in and Tony said you've done brilliant, blah blah blah, but we're not gonna we don't think you're ready for first team football. Um because I had the size, but I wasn't probably strong enough. Um which I what goes to your mind though when someone says that ? Uh you are a obviously you got it because you've just worked kind of your whole life to become professional footballer and then you've really worked hard in them two years to get your pro and obviously I was gutted me, really gutted. But then again I was thinking, you know, I kind of got my scholar, I was a bit lucky to get it. I've loved it. I'd no regrets uh from my two years there. Um, so I was disappointed, but then again, I was thinking, right, I've been in this position before, kind of don't know what I'm really gonna do so I um Tony to be fair um he s kinda set up a few trials for me to go. I think I I went to Birmingham on trial actually. Um didn't get on, obviously but uh set me up a few things to try and get signed on somewhere which is um great from him and then we still had we done really well in the national cup , so that was basically the biggest cup all them could win by the FA Youth Cup because realistically they're not gonna win it. Um so we got to the final against MK Dons of that, um, so obviously we had the decision we were going for the league as well. So as like a team, second years really we kind of come together and said look probably never gonna get to play again together. Um obviously we're going for the league, we're going for the Cup, we might as well just give it our role for these last r few remaining games, hopefully win the final as well against MK and then we've had a we can say we've had a great two years. So we all decided to stay, worked dead hard for each other. We finished second in the league and then we had this final, the final's our last game at Boundary Park. We beat MK 4-0 and to be fair the chairman after the game, Simon Corney, he said obviously we've got a great this team, youth team, the second years, I think are really good. I'll give you the he'd already give three pros out and he said I'll give you the money for two more. So I was one of them and another lad called Calamech , but he went to he'd already sorted to go to America so he turned his So so how do you break in from I mean from that it what I really enjoy about this story so far is you've always been on the brink. You've been on the brink. And it's like some at the 11th hour, someone's coming and be like, here's an opportunity to bring it and I love that. But if I'm if I'm sitting here now, I'm reading this story and I'm enjoying this story , how do you take it to the next level? How do you go right, I'm not gonna be the nearly man again, I'm not gonna be the one that they think yeah, Guam will give them a chance and we'll take a chance and I'm gonna go in and I'm gonna play first team football. How do you how do you grow from being uh the guy who signed the contract because of that game and and the chairman decided to open up two more places to first team centre half George Everton? Yeah, so your point's probably bang on with what I'm gonna say next. So obviously I've signed my pro and I just kinda thought if I do get released from Oldham and this is no disrespect to Oldham but where do you go from from Oldem? So as soon as the season started, I wanted to go on loan because then I thought if I go on loan, get games at men's football, then if I do well and I get released from Oldham, hopefully I'll have them to fall back on whoever it is I go-to. So my first loan was Ramsbottom in the Evo Stick North. Um you probably don't even know where they are. I know I'm yeah of course so uh Rams bottom um brilliant that ri like I said Tony turned me into a man that really turned me into a proper channel defender really. I really I'm really interested to know about non-league loans because you see players take them all the time. And I just wonder is it is it like kind of taking it back to the old school is it kind of like taking it back to going back to school effectively playing out school football like everyone mucking in just having a bit of a laugh? It's brilliant. We had a good we actually had a good team. We were when we went well when when I went, there was a few other lads who went with me who were new from other teams. We ended up having a really good I w I think I went for two months, a month or two, because in them you could do like a U flow and then you could it's non-league, you can go whatever out the window. Um , so I was doing month by month, and then um we went, we had a really good team, and we they were bottom of Evo Stick North as well when I went, so obviously they were just getting kind of battered every week and I think we we done well I think we lost like one won the rest for the month or two I was there um but that was proper muck and bullets your typical if you wanted to draw a non-league striker, big, fat, just bald, just sees a young kid and just thinks right, he's he's probably had a hard week's work. He's on toast. Yeah, um taking all my anger out on on this kidder, but I loved it and I thought it was brilliant. You know, it's it was the first time I'd kind of really played for a team that like three points meant a lot to to the players but also I was buzzing like the F fans and I thought like obviously this is brilliant like you're actually playing for three points that means something to someone. Um so I loved it. The it was on night games we used to have obviously the the ground and you'd just have the floodlights. So the chairman night games he just used to turn three on so you'd save electricity so you didn't have to pay the bill. So you'd be literally running in the corner if you just had the one in the middle on this side and it'd be honestly like pitch black. Really? Yeah, and it'd be hard to see. Um but that was kind of like the little things. Lads were brilliant, loved them there um like obviously knew I was a young kid I was only eighteen seventeen eighteen um yeah they were brilliant obviously there was a few other young lads there and but that really turned me into I I kind of I wouldn't say learnt a trade, but you know I mean just kind of honed your craft. Yeah and your game know how just kind of now's not the time just to be tippy tappy and you know w sometimes it just needs clearing and putting your head where it hurts. Um that's kind of where I f or my non-league loans that's where I felt like I learned it but that was my my first one Ramsbottom. So Ramsbottom, um you you have two feather non-neglades? Yeah I went to so going but so I went to Ramsbottom thinking for at least from Oldham I could hopefully sign on there. Um Oldham took up my option the following year. So I was thinking, right, I need to I've done well at Ramsbottom, which was the University North. Can I get a conference north loan? So I ended up one of the lads, Josh Law, his dad managed Alfreton Town. Um so I ended up going to Alfred Town, which was brilliant because it was so far away from Manchester, it was like three hours. Um he literally the manager just said just turned up for the games um basically so I trained I was training with all the men right um I just trained with them all through the week and then on Saturday or the Tuesday I'd go and play for Alpha and so that was good,. really enjoyed it there At what point I mean look you you you enjoy Alfred and you go and play at a higher level at what point do you start thinking mmm old um I could start doing something yeah? Uh I think uh in my first year I played the last two games at Oldham and I done well and then I played the following season come back from Alfreton in the January I think did I play two or four four games I think it was and I done well again um and that's where you kind of are thinking, oh I could I I can obviously play at this level 'cause I played a few games but to go and then play a full season at that level I was thinking I'd probably need another loan, another, you know, like a conference, and then and then maybe you might get your chance to have like a run of 10 games, say, and then it's up to you to stay in it. Um but I'd probably say after the filed um after the filed loan, that's when I felt like I really matured, like football wise, and then um obviously it kind of worked out all right, to be honest because Oldham obviously I don't wish they got relegated but they got relegated and we got in the playoffs that year with foul um but I'd come back just before, but we we were in and around playoffs all season. Um and then obviously they got relegated, I was just in a team that got in the playoffs for the conference, so it was like only naturally the next step up is League Two and obviously unfortunately Oldham got relegated but um personally for me I think it was probably the best thing that that ever happened to me. You you play for Oldham, you cement yourself as a really solid centre half and then Rangers come calling amidst all the chaos at Oldham because it was chaotic wasn't it at the time and there's some stories about Oldham, I don't know if I can tell you. That's the thing. I mean, yeah, we uh about the owners, about Paul's goals. I mean I'm gonna come on to Paul's goals later on. Can I just say though, all of them was I loved it. They gave you a home. I l honestly. They give you a home. They gave you an opportunity, they gave you home and you're you're naturally gonna be you're you're naturally gonna have those feelings from but from the outside from an outsider's point of view, covering it as a journalist, looking at it going, What is that? Oh I From the outside, well even the inside looking in kind of it was some of the stories I've got I could go on for hours what happened at Oldham but it was I loved it I thought I used to love going in every day it was I thought it was brilliant and like the people not just um like the players but like the staff, it was their family, like you had um people who'd been there for years, you know, like doing like been there fifty years, the ground staff, tea ladies. That's what it's all about a club like that, isn't it? Yeah, it was brilliant and then we ended up getting a new owner and he got rid of all them and it just was never the same really. In my last season. I loved it because I was playing, but you know, I the people who had been there with like the laundry women or uh the handyman, the groundsmen, they'd kind of all all been sacked, obviously unfairly and it just was never the same. So take me to the move to rangers. How did that come about? And what are your thoughts? Because it felt like organically you you've you've got a chance. You're not kind of like the nearly man. You are yeah, they're picking me now this is it like they they're coming in for me so what was that like it was a bit obviously I played the I played 45 out of the 46 games in the in the season um and all the cup games, um so probably had about 60 games for that season. I ended up so I played I I'd done really well got in team of the year for League Two and what have you, so I had a good season and and obviously I knew a few clubs were sniffing round and interested so obviously in high divisions so personally for me I just thought it's probably the right time to go. I still had a year left, so at least told them, you know, I mean, they'd give me my chance, at least they're gonna get something for me. Um, like I wasn't going on a free or kind of at least to get money, um, which I was happy about and when I first heard about rangers I was on the way to Tesco to get some sweet because we were going to Exeter away so obviously I'm a young lad. I had Anthony Gerrard, a few others, Peter Clark, you know, older boys, go on George, get down to Tesco, get the sweets for the lads. So I was on the way down and then yeah, my agent rang me um just said where are you so I was obviously I'm just on the way to Tesco get some fruit um so he was like are you on your own brother and then just said uh I've had Rangers on the phone so I was like effing ill um Queen's Park or Stafford yeah well I was just like obviously the kind of one want of to f no it wasn't it's like yeah they they want to meet you, um really interested, want to sign ya . Um so it's like obviously a few expletives when I was on the phone but um but yeah, just obviously it's static. But then I still had the next day to I think there was three games left of the season. Um so it was like just focus, don't get injured, touch wood. Um and then but you couldn't sleep. Yeah, I was buzzing. But obviously I played with Anthony Gerrard who's obviously um related. Um so got the sweets, come back, um Well you just shake you gone, obviously, but I smile, don't I? So obviously I'm just sat there on the bus like buzzing trying to text my mum and d ad. And then Anthony come and sat with me and just said uh I could like basically you know don't you? And he was like I was like, Yeah and then Anthony just said I've he's obviously asked for like a reference off me. Um obviously told him what I thought, this is what I thought. Um so I think he wants to ring ya, uh Gerard and he did at the hotel and X-T. It was only a five-minute call because he said obviously you've got a game tomorrow, I don't want to bother you, but um I'll sort it out and come down, meet us and let's try and get this thing rolling. Funding your business doesn't have to be complic ated. It doesn't have to take weeks. It doesn't need to involve your bank. At Fleximize, we believe there's a different way to do things. We take the hassle out of finance so you can get on with what you do best, running your business. Think of us as your trusty sidekick with the power to boost your business with fast, flexible loans built for you. Visit us at fleximize.com or call our EpSwitch office on 01473 208108. Flex imize. Business Finance done properly . So I've got a really interesting one to kick off the second part of this this episode. Um you play for three England greats um and so I'm gonna ask you for a one-word answer, be it a name, for both of these questions, and it is Skulls Gerard Rooney the player Skull's Gerard Rooney the manager. I'll have the best player and the best manager please Probably say oh player player I'd probably probably go ruin ing Just because when when I was a kid and coming OP was like the Euros, he was he was like that that star boy. In his pomp. Yeah. I remember he's called the street footballer . Yeah. I just think like he was when I was a kid, like ten , eleven, he was the poster boy everywhere. And probably coming from obviously I know he's a scouse but um him coming to Manchester he's just it was all over. Um so I'd probably say Rooney like when he done the strike against Newcastle the volley, straight on the field, with my banana boots on, trying to do it with your mates, you know what I mean? He was the the one. Um butt manager, um I'd say Gerrard. Um Skulls, I thought he was brilliant. Didn't have him for very long, did you? Well I only had him for a month. Um but for he came in and he set his stall out and he said I'm doing it this way and this goes back to a few stories I hold him um said he's picking the team like it's his style of football and um it wasn't I think everybody got the feeling that Scholes was he couldn't cut it or he he didn't do very well. He did. He was The circumstances were different. Yeah. The owner had a lot of input and he came in from the first day and said, it's my way. And if anybody tries to have input basically, look, I'm not doing it. And I think before the Lincoln game, someone had to try and put a bit of input on the team and he just said no I'm not doing it then and then left. So I only had him for the month, but the month I did have him, I thought he was brilliant, like really good, but I just didn't have him for uh for very long. Great answer. Appreciate it. Some people would skirt around that. So yeah, well done, George. Um take me to Ibrox. I love it. Beautiful place. Stunning stadium. Not quite Portman Road, but still it's got its own unique charac ter um and a huge football club, a massive football club. Again, not quite Ipswich Town, but a massive, massive football club. What does little George Edmonton think when he gets up to ranges ? Mental. Uh well it's it is mad up there. Everybody calls it the goldfish bowl. Uh and it is it's just you can't get away from from anything. Everybody has like a team, you know that El Classico, you're I've a Real Madrid Barça, old firm. I was always Rangers. Um obviously I have pictures on social media with me and my kits as kids in uh in rangers kit so that was my Scottish team um as such if obviously you always watch the old firm um being a football fan so you'd always kinda sign to one or the other um obviously I I'd pick rangers and then obviously when I got up there it was just it was mental yeah it was so I was mad but loved it up there I'd probably say I was I wouldn't say it's a regret but the bit I was disappointed at not disappointed at uh rangers or anything is the I was probably too young when I went up there . Um it was too big for me. Not too big for me, that's probably the wrong way to put it, but I'd come from old em. Was a step too big? Not the step as in I don't think football, like playing, I felt like I held my own and that was fine. It was just I'd come from Oldham where I could play on a Saturday, I could go for food, I could go out with my mates and I'm obviously still only young and nobody would bat an eyelid who you are or what you do, whatever. Um but you go up there and it's generally like signing for United or Chelsea or Liverpool but in Glasgow. It's a religion, literally. Yeah, well yeah it is. Um so I felt like I was you know I'd gone from going for food, going out of Manchester, whatever is going to cinema and and nobody's bothered. I go to Sainsbury's to get a loaf of bread and you can have the whole shop come up to you, you know, like, oh my god, Joe's gonna photo and this is the first time I'd experienced this. Um, so obviously I was buzzing off it, but then it's a bit like I probably didn't know how to handle it. And I was a bit like, well , this is it's only me, it's only George Trum from Manchester. I'm not like a big player or anything and that was probably my only I wouldn't say it was a gr regret but I think it was I think if um I went later on in my career as opposed early on my career um I think things would have been probably a bit different. You you go to Derby under Wayne Rooney, again another club in real difficult difficult waters. Did you just have to go and play football? Yeah, er pretty much. I didn't in my first year I'd done really well um up in Rangers. I've played a few league games, played in Europa League, last 16 quarterfin als um played come on old firm centre mid actually uh which was new but um that was brilliant love love that game. Um done well, but I was kind of at that stage now I was getting to like 22, 23, and I wasn't really playing that I'd done the first half of the season and then um didn't really get much of a a sniff but the the lads were flying in the league doing really well so um obviously it wasn't gonna change it. So the chance come to go to Derby and and I went, which was a different change all the altogether there they were fighting relegation um the club as a whole was in everybody knew was in a bit of a mess but I just went there literally just to kind of play football again really. Unbelievable team spirit in that derby squad. Yeah, led by Wayne Rooney and obvious Liam Rosina there as well, who's absolutely killing it at a whole city and and a really, really good guy. So um you learnt a lot there. I remember watching you there and I just thought this guy's got real boxy shoulders, hasn't he? He's just he's he he's got real boxy shoulders and he's just he's very upright when he plays. Um and of course things then change for you. What what what happens after Derby? Tell me how we go from Derby back to Rangers and then to Ipswich Town. Yeah um Um went to Derby I loved that Derby, I thought it was kind of reminded me not the s the size, obviously Derby bigger but um just kind of obviously they're in a a mess off the field and things were going on which were out of our control but it reminded me being a bit back at Oldham it was kind of like Oldham on a bigger scale. Yeah a bit things are a mess but we're all in this together let's just kind of like fight for each other and hard work and and the fighting for you know uh the staff behind the scenes who who nobody sees really and um I did love it there. I thought it was brilliant obviously stayed up on the the last day relegated Mass actually uh mass was playing for Chef Wednesday so uh so yeah relegated him uh we stayed up but um but yeah that was really enjoyed it and then had the conversation with uh the manager at Rangers obviously come back clean slate you've done well on your loan um yeah come back clean sl ate, uh , come again, try and get the team. So I was thinking oh buzzing, that's what I want to hear . Um and then a week into pre-season, I got pulled in on the Friday . Just said look, George, we uh probably gonna get get rid of you. Um so they do whatever put you on the is it transfer list or uh I don't really know how that all that stuff works but um obviously basically saying there's we've got players ahead of you that I don't think there's gonna be a space for you so if you wanna go and look somewhere else you're more than welcome and then um yeah and then Ipswich Ipswich ran group so I've got the call from them. Tell me about your thoughts uh going from from the bright light to Glasgow to Suffolk. Yeah. It's a a bit of change, isn't it? Sleepy Suffolk, yeah, it's uh it's a lot quieter anyway, but I've like uh I think that's probably done me the world of good. Um to be honest, like loved it at Rangers brilliant football c lub. Um love Glasgow, unbelievable city. Um but obviously there is a lot of distractions up there and there's a lot of things which is good on one side, but then again sometimes you've got to remember you play football and you know I mean your training and your games come come first um so uh come down here and it's obviously a lot different a lot more quieter kind of um well I I don't mind it I think like I've matured now I'm a bit older than when I was down uh up there um so obviously it's probably town I've settled down and you know, kind of not be that Jack the ladder's as much. W when you come down here to this football club, what do you find? Who do you find? What the personalities like? What's the dressing room like? Because th this football club it keeps on evolving every single window, every single week. It's the evolution is so fascinating to track and chart. So what what who do you find? What do you find? Tell me. It's quite we weirdird when I first come actually as in 'cause the whole team was brand new. So we how many did we sign nine? Twenty? Nine nineteen new players? So we were kind of all in the same boat, um really so did you know anyone? No, didn't know anyone. Wow. So um but that's been every club I've gone to I've not known anyone really apart from Ramsbottom I think. Calfred and I didn't know anybody, fil ed, didn't know anybody, old em obviously only because I come through the Rangers, I didn't know anybody in Derby, I didn't know anybody. Knew they were but didn't know them personally. Um so again coming here, didn't know anyone. Uh signed the same day as Connor dinner . So seeing Connor in the hotel, but then you're a bit like, is that Connor Shopping ? Um yeah, obviously I haven't been announced he'd sign yet, but you'll be like, oh I think that's him. Um and then yeah, first day um a bit obviously everybody was brand new so everybody was just in the same boat so felt like we all got on like our house on fire really just kind of all in the same boat here and we're all in the same hotel together and then I moved in with Joe Piggott actually for a few months. Um so I was in his spare room for a bit while I was getting my house sorted and what have you and then um moved out of there and then moved into my my own point. Tell me about your first season. Uh up and down really. Um bit frustrating. Um like we had great team like most of the lads uh still here from my first season um so we obviously knew we had good players we just really couldn't find a co consistency really and I don't think that was through lack of trying or nobody cared, like we all tried really hard, we all cared. It was just kind of I don't really know, it just didn't really click. Um then we obviously had the change uh manager and then obviously the new gaff er coming and we were on fire and then unfortunately uh got injured at this end actually . Um yeah, against Lincoln. Um so then I've gone from being on a high to obviously fur this is probably my first proper serious injury I've I've ever had in my career. Um Do you ever think back to when it happened and do you ever relive it and do you ever think about the minutes because I always wonder I mean you look outside now we're looking at the corners for Sir Bobby Robson stand and and the main stand over there the the West and I look at that pitch and I think if you're lying down on that pitch staring at the sky and you've got twenty-nine thousand around you making noise, what does it even feel like? Especially when you're in agony as well. What was it like? Alright, I knew I'd done something, obviously I landed on the lads, I think everybody's seen the picture. Uh on the lads back of the heel. Um then ruptured my uh ATFL. So obviously I knew something wasn't right, but obviously I flick it went near post and I've ran across the near post and flicked it like that and then obviously as I've come down so I've broctured my ankle and I'm on the floor obviously screaming and shouting a few swear words. And I've Caden come up to me, went, come on, soft lad, uh, you didn't even score anyway. Thinking, oh I'm I'm alright. And I just told him to to do one. Uh and then like you said obviously you've got all the fans chanting and obviously your adrenaline's pumping so I said to physio come on but you can feel your ankle obviously inflat ing and I thought nah I've had one of these I've just rocked it um I think I jogged round jogged back on the pitch near the halfway line and then went to do a sprint and it didn't agree with me so obviously I I sat sat back down, went in and then took my sock and boots off and it was like a watermelon. I've been there. On both. So uh Yeah, it's it's horrible. What what does the time off bring you though? Because we're watching Ken McKenna build a team, we're watching Ken McKenna build a style and really have influence on this football club like sort of just it's quite mad when you think about it, like all the s th the minutia, the small little things that are going on, yet you're sat having to recover. Yeah, um obviously well at the time when I had that injury we were on a good run um like winning loads of games late push for playoffs but even though it was a big ass but there's still that hope you think or and then obviously for it to kind of come crashing down obviously personally um just got him really and you're a bit but then again I've as I saw there's no point kind of soaking about it. How'd you deal it? How'd you do? To be fair, the lads are brilliant. I've said in countless interviews, Connor, he's he looks after me. Um but all the lads do I I single out Connor just because I'm always around his house. I've said many a time his girlfriend cooks um lovely food so I'm always around there for tea but um but other lads are brilliant always texture , try and do things, include you, you know, when we win. The lads are great to be honest. And and the staff as well. The staff are all key involved. I remember we I was injured, uh obviously I had the boot and crutches. The gaffer was still saying come to we had Oxford, um thing we drew one or but he was still like, No, I want you to come, come down, you're still involved, like um so uh they were trying to include your how people that was good yeah like uh it's just nice to feel everybody wants to feel uh wanted um so that was nice obviously still include me um obviously I'd come to every home game but no, it's nice just sometimes you just need that, especially when you're injured and you've got a long term injury. Um you just probably need an arm round you sometimes and like I've said, Connor does it to me all the time, uh Gaffer done it, uh that Oxford game that's just one that stands out. But um everybody's brilliant and everybody you know like gets around you so you recover and we witness a team build something really special and and something that had been brewing for a while. This club like this club had been through a really difficult time. I remember coming here as a journalist for Five Live and dreading it. Dreading it because it would be boring, it would be turgid, it'd be quite depressing to come to. But a buzz is building in this town. We all I think from the back end of his first six months it was a everybody kind of had that, no we've we've got something kind of, we got an identity, we got a way of playing and you could kind of feel like we've got kind of something special here. At what point do you realize yeah something's cooking I 'd probably say after you get like your first couple not probably first couple wins but you kind of think oh yeah we're doing well here like we've got a good style we everybody knows the positions the the jobs we need to do and you just get them first couple wins on the board and then it's it just starts snowballing and then you just think yeah we just you go into every game thinking you're gonna win. Promotion season has its highs and lows for you . Again This is the George Edmondson stuff. It really is . Um what should we do first ? Tell me the high what would you like to talk about first, the highs or the lows? We'll go with the lows, we'll get them out of the way. Take me to him. Well I got injured again. Done the same ankle, but worse this time. So I only snapped my ATFL the first time and then this time I done my ATFL and CFL. I was training that. Ball went over my head and I've tried to do an Ibrahimovich leg up, right in the air , don't quite get there, but then land and then my ankle just goes bang. And I knew straight away Sean he was next to me at the pop that nobody wants to wear. Um and then then yeah, I knew which as soon as I went over, you know, you can you like feel the pop. I don't know if you've you like feel it and then you're wondering, did I hear it or did I just feel it and then I knew straight away that I'd um done it again, but obviously this time worse. Um so I had to have surgery. Um but I was in a way I was kind of half pleased really 'cause I felt like from the first time I'd done it, 'cause you can see something building, you want to be a part of it, I don't think that first half of the season I could get by, but I don't think I was really honest that my ankles per it wasn't 100% but I kind of got by and thought no just strap it up or whatever it is that I need to do just to get through games or get through training and then obviously that only uh like last for so long and then um obviously ended up doing it. I think it was I was six days off doing it on the same day. Um, I think six days before. So if I'd done it six days later, it would have been the same day I'd done it as the previous year. Um see you you play a game with me, you turn around and you say, well, you know, no point thinking about it, but you can pull something out like that and tell me that it was three hundred and fifty nine days away from the last time you did it. Nah. So you have thought about it? No, I do. Obviously I 'cause we were flying in the league at the point as well, um, like I was playing quite a few games and um you can really see something's building special and obviously to get injured's I was goated really. Um and I knew I was gonna miss the whole of the back end of the season. But then on the flip side I was in a way quite happy because I thought this should put an end to my ankle as in I'm having surgery. Um um I there's I'm not gonna rush back to get back for the end of the season 'cause like in the first year we had playoffs that we had a bit of a hope for so there's part of me thinking if I can half get back for that I might make the playoffs. Um this time it was no surgery, you're in a cast for however long, you're gonna be out for this length of time. So I kinda thought, oh well, at least now if I have the surgery I'm that should be my uncle kind of boxed off. If I do everything right and do all my rehab properly, hopefully when I come back then I have no problems with it and touch wood. I haven't. How does it feel and this is the last question I ask on the lows on this subject because I want to talk about the highs and write yourself into sorry. No no no you do you. How how do we how does it feel being part of the team in the epicentre of it in that team that is doing so well in what was a really difficult league one yeah it was too one of the most impossible league ones in years to and I say this with the greatest respect to a a spectator slash cheerleader because your job there is to be not the comedy value for one of the boys, but a support link, someone to go right, don't worry, come on, we can get through this. Well, you're still in boot, but you still have a role to play. How how does that differ? How does that make you feel? Because you're not out there, you're not walking out with the team out the corner and onto the pitch. You're on the stands cheering with the other 29,000. What what happens? To be fair, uh obviously you you are goated in that everybody wants to be out there and help the team and play but um I just thought this is the situation I'm in um you know I mean if the team wins I win um so and when I've played, I've said uh previous interviews as well, like when I've been playing Burge, me and him have a really close relationship and he's always supported me. Um so I thought it was only right, obviously I've got injured, he's now got his chance and it's only right for me to go and support him like he's done to me. Um I feel like if I didn't, you know, there's been a poor teammate and a poor friend I've known Cam for years now. I thought, you know, I mean I'm in this situation, there's no point kind of soaking about it or moaning, I don't want the team to do well. Like um if they still do well, I still do well and it means next year I become a championship player. So um so I thought I might as well just get my pom-poms out and uh just try and help the lads with whatever they needed really and just try and support and encourage the best way I can? The highs . The celebrations, because that was one heck of a race, wasn't it? I mean what a marathon. I always say about the EFL, it is generally a marathon, not a sprint and leagues aren't one and promotions not won in November, but it is the biggest battle, an Ipswich Town battle. But what what a side, what a team. It's unbelievable. To be fair, the lads the everybody goes on about the second half of the season obviously we had that fantastic moment where we didn't lose um after Bristol Rovers I think it was um but even like before, like the there the games go into I don't know Aki Away and wherever you have to go Cheltenham and places like that and everybody you could go for the whole team I've read the book that the club done um about that season and you go through every player has like a little paragraph for every player and every player played the part um however big however small um every player every player done their done their bit and uh it was brilliant to be fair the whole the whole season um obviously the ending was the best bit um but from the first game up until the last uh I loved it. What the celebrations like? How long have you got no they were uh they were brilliant to be fair. Um obviously I've never seen switch down they're so busy to be honest. Um no, it was a rough couple of days. Um Does it make you realise you and like and I could go on and ask about parting and stuff, but I really want to get deeper and and I really wanna understand what makes you tick and and understand from your point of view as well because I can sit here and look at photos if I want to understand what pipe was like, I'll sit and look at photos and watch everyone having a good time. But when you are going through your town centre and there are thousands upon thousands upon thousands upon thousands of people. What's it like from your eyes? Because again, I take you back to a few years ago when I thought this club was it was a it was a difficult place to come to. It was emotion ally very difficult for people to come in but now people are excited they have fallen in love with their football club again and you're part of that so tell me about the celebrations and looking at and seeing everyone. Yeah, it was it was brilliant to be fair, obviously we kind of heard the they weren't rumours, but you know like all the fans coming to to greet us at the the stadium for the Exods game. Um but then obviously turn up and you get the smell of the blue flares and you can half see them in the distance. You just kinda get that sense of achievement, even though at the time I was injured, um obviously like I said, the gaffer everybody's on the bus to go to the game like normally. The ones who aren't in the squad will train in the morning and then they'll just drive themselves but the gaffers know everybody's um on the bus together obviously it's been a team effort it's not just the eleven and the subs that play in on the game um so the gaffer included us all there obviously then uh come down to stadium it was it was mad to be fair, it was just f people everywhere, just fans up trees and their flares, kids with flares that and just I've got it all on my phone. Obviously we're all filming it just for them like memories. I think you sent me a video didn't you? I think maybe. Um but no, it was brilliant. You just got that sense of like achievement and we hadn't even done it yet. We still had obviously had to win that Exodus game but honestly I don't think you could have put Man City's team in front of us that day I I think we were that s like dialed into the game like we were quite the win. Yeah, if we were winning that game however we needed that . Um but nah the the lads that season were brilliant. You come back to the championship well this football club's back in the championship for you . It's uh it's uh a throwback of an experience but how do you approach it because I mean look again I only got involved in this club in the summer I looked at it as a as a bystander and um you wonder when a club keeps the crux of its League One squad what's gonna happen. But I think we've proven that if this is a heavyweight battle we're we're swinging, we're throwing punches. Yeah. And this club c continues to throw punches. What's this season been like for you? Because again , it's you've had to be very patient and and uh it feels like you've been like that for your whole career? Yeah um yeah I have been patient to be fair. It's been obviously a bit obviously I've just come back from my ankle at the start of the season um but like I said the lads have done well from finishing the back end of the league one season so um it's just about one of them really I've just got to be be ready um when my chance comes, I've I've had chances early on in the season, uh in January, and a few games in Feb and um feel like I've done really well and that's just through kind of staying patient and doing all the little extras and things behind closed doors that nobody really sees. Uh to be ready for when you get your chance to take it and just helping the team anyways, you know, if they need me for one game, whether it be on Saturday, if it's three weeks down the line, you know, if that's the game they needed me for, that's the game they needed me for and I've got to make sure I'm ready and help the team get three points. Is it hard to remain patient though? Because you look at the players that have come in, you look at who you've got, Luke, Cam , Axel's come in as well, and he's you know he's gone from playing for Manchester United to coming here trying to scrap for a place . Is it difficult? Is it frustrating for you sometimes? Do you do you sit there and think, well, you know, I wanna be in there, I wanna be in the mix, I wanna be playing or are you' lookreing at is it a team effort always for you? Yeah, I d I'm I'm still in the mix, you know, like I I've played my fair share of games this year. Um but that's part of being a big club and I've had chats with the the boss. About this, you know, you look at every top team, uh take city for example, they've got Stones, Diaz, Akan ji, Ake , like the you could probably look at them all and go, they all deserve to play, but you can only pick pick two and obviously this season Camel Wolfie have played most of the games at centre half. Um obviously were second or third, you know, they've done well. Um but like I said I've just got to be ready for when when my chance comes, coming Jan, uh felt like I took it. Um and then now my next chance might be Saturday, might be like I said, three weeks down the line, when that chunch comes I over've got to be ready again. I I always look at the um and this is completely separate to tip switch but I'll bring it back to it. Look at you know the goalkeepers union and think that's one of the strangest things out there. Always i you know when whenever you're watching TV, you're watching uh a game on TV, be it twenty years ago, thirty years ago last year, the goalkeepers will always shake hands with each other and they were very pallied before a game. Everyone else is a thousand yards there, straight up straight, down the tunnel . Is there a another union? Is there defenders' union? When you look at yourself, you talk about Luke, you talk about Cam Burgess, you talk about those two forming a partnership. Is there a little defenders click? Is there a case? Yeah, there is, yeah. We to be fair, uh this is probably the first club I've probably been at where everybody seems like together and nobody's really bitter yeah you're disappointed not playing but it's not like uh oh I'm not gonna help him then because I'm not playing um I feel like the defenders especially like I'm just saying me, Camel Wolfie, because we've been here together three years. Obviously actors come in now. Um but we kind of have our that's our like little defenders hub kind of thing. Obviously we've been playing with each other now for three years so we formed a a partnership and the other strikers have one Connor wears you know about their partnership and keepers talk about gloves what do you guys talk about heading balls and body shape and line work. That's our that's our one um they're the things but we try and help each other as best we can. We have our own little group chats and kind of things like that that we talk about. We have a Twitter one that me, Cam and Wolfie are in. You know, I mean I think it just shows like how to g even though we're all fighting for the same position, um, how close we actually are and if it's me, Wolfie that get picked, Cam's supportive, if it's me and Cam, Wolfie is and if it's them two, I am. I think it just shows like how close we actually are as a as a unit and I think that shows in performances though like defensively, we do well throughout the gaffers being here, so I think it just shows how together we are. Certainly a very special group of players. The leader of the pack is Karen McKenna. How has he evolved? If you were to sit here and look at his performance and say, okay, well I'm gonna look at my manager and how he's got better, from start to now, what was changed? I'd probably just say um like he uh his philosophy is not changed or the way he wants to play's not changed. Um okay if things get adapted for certain games but the kind of core philosophy of how he wants to play doesn't change but I think probably just our our consistency has really improved and his messages are always dead consistent and then you know where everybody knows he's a great manager, great tactician, uh good fellas, like everybody knows that I then it's down to us to go and deliver that on the pitch for him uh really and I think he's just got us so dialed in now and so like focused on on Ipswich and football and how we want to play like um I think that's where he's really improved he's from the s first six months you probably saw him. We'd done well, but then we'd have kind of a couple of slip ups, a draw and a a loss maybe, and then pick up again. I feel like this year we've just been so dialed in and so focused that we just keep on winning and I feel like that's come from from the boss and not just the boss is um all this backroom staff behind him that goes from assistant to analysis to physios they're all sorry I don't know what I said to him but they're also dialed in and focus and they do any little bit that you want them to do if it's clips or can you get my stats up from this game or my running stats or can you go through this with me? Everybody's so determined and wants to do well. Um I think you just got us like a well a machine. I mean someone asked me to describe it, they said would you call it rock and roll? fo Butotball I said, No, this is like death metal football. This is like heavy, heavy stuff. Um it's so enjoyable to watch. It's heart palpitation time sometimes. But yeah, through the through the fan we've got most of them on board, but a few of them are still No, I think you've got everyone on board. I get a few get it forward. Uh I hear a few of them, but no, I think majority obviously we've been doing it now for what is it now, two and a half years, it's coming on to three years, so um everybody knows obviously the way we like to play and obviously it shows it's I think the best way to play football and it gets you the most chances most if you do it right you can get the most clean sheets I think it's the best way. What's life outside of football like for you? What do you do to relax? Do you have football manager? No way. And my mate will be buzzing and mention this. Well he won't be absent because I'm doing better than him. Tell me. So me and my mate, I've been playing football manager years, and I mean years. Last years I'd done I think it was near five hundred hours on it. Which ends up near Those are rook those are rookie numbers. 20 days maybe. Which is quite sad. But we I feel like we are good at it. Obviously, it's a game, so you can kind of know what works and what doesn't. So this year we've done third division teams in Germany. He's Monster. I'm SN Rottweiss Essen. Yes, yes, Rossweiss Essen. So we're them two third tier Germany teams, he won the third division and Bundesliga two. I come second in the third division and then went up through the playoff s in you know they do like uh third place and third place in the Bundesliga beat Verde Bremen so I went up I don't won a trophy then I've won the Cup, German Cup, and I've won the conference league with SN and he's not he's not even qualified for Champions League yet. Very proud of your chief. So I'm buzzing have mentioned that um and I'm on to win the title this year. So when I get home, I think we'll finish it tonight. Any anything else apart from football manager? Football manager, F1, lovely F1, we have a fantasy. Um, I come 39th for the world uh for F1 fantasy last year. Just gotta put that in there because that's one of my biggest achievements to date. That um so yeah, what love the F1, obviously, watch all the football. Um look after Connor's dog um when I can because I love dogs um and Keith has just moved in next door to me and he's got a dog so I've said to him if him his uh wife want a date night. Uh I'll look after the dog, no worries. So What a no fan . So er so yeah that's I go for coffee quite often. That's There's a lot of coffee drinkers in the squad, aren't they? Yeah. To be fair for Lent um I've stopped doing coffee. But I have decaf . So I s I uh what I was doing I was having too many coffees at mad times in the day. So I'd have like say like now I would go home, I'd think oh I just need to Starbucks and have a coffee in it, I don't know what time it could be, like five o'clock or whatever. Um and you shouldn't have coffee at five because you can be up all night and it was ruining my sleep a bit. So for Lent I've just said no coffee and I have D if I go for a coffee I'll have decaf . So interesting. 'Cause I like the taste of coffee but um obviously it won't keep me up at night. So let's about exciting as it gets for me. Uh I want to cap off by asking you one question . And that's by looking back at your journey and looking back at Oldham and and being the Nearly Man and being the guy who who always managed to get something in the end to now Ipswich Town flying high at the top end of the championship, really enjoying things . How how do you look back at your career so far? How would you do you sit down, do you reflect, and how would you reflect on it ? I think it's quite a unique journey to be honest. Um obviously had so much go on in it. Um but to be honest I I don't think I'd ask for it to be any other way. I think that's kind of what makes players you know the the kind of unique journey they have and you know I mean it can I feel like the journey I've had it can only make me better really you know I've had to I feel like deal with a lot of things football terms um getting released and then getting signed back on and having to work hard to go again. Um and I feel like people see me as quite laughy and jokey but uh there is a side to me that that does work hard and you know I mean I've had to grit my teeth and kinda get on with things and um I think that's aside people outside of football might not see as much. Um but nah I think it's I don't I think it's a unique journey and uh I wouldn't have asked for it any other way really and I think it's kind of made me who I am today. So George, what a fascinating insight. Thank you so much. Genuinely, it's been an absolute privilege even looking into your past and reading up and then you sort of supplementing it and adding layers to it. So thank you for joining us on the Official Epsilon podcast. Looking forward to to watching you do your thing out there and hopefully bringing you more success to the football club. Fingers crossed. That's the aim. That's it for this episode of the official Ipswich Town Podcast. I hope you enjoyed hearing about George's eventful journey in the game with plenty of twists and turns still to come, I'm sure. We'll be back next week with a special edition of the pod ahead of Town Women's Historic Game at Portland Road. Tickets still available for the game on March the 23rd. More than 5,000 have already been sold, but there's still time to secure your seat. The tickets cost them just five pounds for adults and two pounds for kids. There are discounts of super blues members as well. The tickets available from tickets. itfc.co.uk. We cannot wait to see you there