A Player's Perspective

Chris Greenacre has sampled the highs and lows of a travelling footballer, and is more than happy with what he has found at Wellington Phoenix.

Starting out as an apprentice at Manchester City gave him a taste of what top football on the road is all about.

“It was everything a young lad could ask for,” Greenacre says.

“All our travel within England was by coaches that had all mod cons, and we got to stay at some of the best hotels.

“At training we would arrive and all the kit was laid out, and once you finished your apprenticeship you had your boots cleaned by the young players.”

It was on some of those coach trips that Greenacre watched in amazement as the senior players got into their card games.

“There would be 5 or 6 thousand pounds in the kitty on some hands. It was amazing, more money than I had seen in my life.

“I hate to think what it is like now with what the Premier League players are paid. They probably gamble in gold bullion!”

The high life ended for Greenacre when he was transferred to then third division club Mansfield Town.

It meant taking his training gear home to wash, and the luxury coaches were replaced by more modest buses and overnight stays in hotels were rare. When they did occur it was not in the five-star luxury enjoyed while at City.

“The yardstick was that anything south of the Watford Gap meant an overnight stay and there weren’t many of those.

“If we went somewhere north such as Carlisle it would mean a long coach trip with a stop at a motorway service station for a sandwich and a walk and stretch in the car park.

“Then we had to go out and play with our manager’s words ringing in our ears: ‘Don’t use this as an excuse for not playing well!’” 

“Later, when I was at Tranmere Rovers I vividly remember a trip to Southend.

“Our bus broke down after about three hours and we had to wait for a replacement from the same depot. There we were sat on a motorway embankment waiting for two hours while it arrived.

“Then the lights on the replacement failed and we had to have another sent from a different company to pick us up. It took us 11 hours and it was after midnight when we arrived at the hotel.”

Since joining the Phoenix Greenacre has experienced the longest club journey in world football – Wellington to Perth.

“That is a tough journey, but the club makes it as painless as possible and as someone who has seen it from both sides I appreciate what is done for me.

“I arrive at the airport and all the big bags have been checked in. The players arrive, put their personal bags in and then walk to the Qantas Club lounge.

“Having seen travel from both sides I really appreciate what Crumpy (physiotherapist Adam Crump), Mal (football operations manager Mal Impiombato) and Russ (gear steward Russell Gray) do for us.

“Crumpy seems to be on duty 24 x 7, and I should know because I spend a lot of time in the medical room, which is the heartbeat of any football club, either being treated or just loitering.

“The way we are treated it is no hardship to help with the luggage when we arrive at our destination. It doesn’t cost anything to pick up a bag, does it?

“Being with the Phoenix is like being back at Manchester City again and I am so glad I came to this part of the world.”