Each year the leading sporting bodies in Northern Ireland join together to recognise and celebrate the positive impact of young people who volunteer within their respective sports.
The annual Sports Inspire Awards are organised by the Irish Football Association, Ulster GAA and Ulster Rugby to celebrate volunteering in sport.
The awards programme is funded by Department for Communities through its Sport - A Home for Lifelong Volunteering initiative and is supported by the Community Foundation.
Dozens of volunteers aged 14 to 24 receive awards for completing 50, 100 or 200 hours volunteering in sport.
Sean McAllister, a 24-year-old volunteer from Larne, was recognised last year for completing 200 hours of volunteering with Amateur League team Larne Tech Old Boys FC. Here’s his story…
What inspired you to volunteer as a football coach, and what do you enjoy most about the role?
I have always been a football fan and played the sport during my youth. As I moved on from playing I was keen to return to the sport in any capacity such was my love of the game.
Growing up I was surrounded by volunteer football coaches and I felt inspired by their dedication and support to become a volunteer and get back into the sport.
The most enjoyable aspect of my role as a coach has to be the people I work alongside. I have met some incredible people who have helped me to develop my technical knowledge of the game alongside personal development and networking.
Can you describe a specific moment where you felt you made a significant impact on a player or the team?
Absolutely. The one that stands out was a home game against league leaders East Belfast Seconds when Larne Tech Old Boys Seconds were in 3A of the Amateur League last season; we are now in 3B.
Our head coach, Andrew Hardy, turned to ask my advice: do we go for the win or do we bide our time and pick our moment? I suggested the latter. We sprung on the break, scored the winner and celebrated raucously.
Being a trusted advisor to someone I admire and being given the window to offer my advice felt like a huge moment in my development as a coach.
What challenges have you faced as a volunteer coach, and how have you overcome them?
Finding the time can sometimes be difficult. Balancing paid work with volunteering isn’t always straightforward and it’s important to me to uphold my commitments.
Not only work but my personal life can detract from the opportunity to donate my time, so I have learnt how to more effectively commit my time without detracting from personal or professional obligations.
What advice would you give to new volunteer coaches looking to make a positive impact on young footballers?
I only played football for a couple of years as a youth player but the impact that my coaches had on me was immense. Instilling discipline, time management and teamwork has stood me in good stead in my personal and professional life far beyond the football pitch.
My advice would be to remember that you are an example to young footballers and that extends beyond training sessions and match days in how you carry yourself, respect others around you and inspire your players to be the best version of themselves.
Have you noticed personal growth or skill development in yourself since you started coaching?
Without a doubt. Volunteering in multiple capacities, with kids and adults with varying levels of abilities, has improved my communication immensely.
Honing my skills on how to convey instructions and advice has helped me to become much more effective and able to tailor my communication to those I’m speaking to.
In addition my confidence has improved greatly as a result of beginning coaching. Having a support system around me at the clubs with which I’m involved - I also work with Larne FC’s Under-19s - has filled me with the confidence I need to approach new and unfamiliar scenes with the knowledge that I have the skills to get me through.
How do you balance coaching with your personal and professional commitments?
Thankfully my volunteering experience has led to paid opportunities within the football sector, particularly in schools, and this means that I can commit my time to working during the day and volunteering in the evening.
Having been involved as a volunteer coach for over two years now, everyone in my life knows how much I value my evenings on the pitch and I’m able to organise my personal commitments around those.
Have you had any coaching mentors or role models, and how have they influenced your approach?
I am incredibly grateful to have met and worked alongside some incredibly inspiring and talented people. One in particular, Andrew Hardy, stands out.
I reached out to a former coach and he put me in touch with Andrew who brought me into my first opportunity at Larne Tech Old Boys without any prior experience on the sidelines.
Since then he has fostered every ambition of mine and selflessly opened doors for me in both volunteer and paid roles that I couldn't have dreamed of before I became a volunteer coach.
Having someone like that in your corner to champion you at every opportunity inspires me to become that kind of mentor to others.
What has been your most rewarding experience as a volunteer coach so far?
Having volunteered in a number of capacities over the last two years, working with kids and adults, refugees and asylum seekers from across the globe, people of all abilities and backgrounds, I think my most rewarding experience as a volunteer came recently at a five-a-side game in Belfast.
I booked on to the game a few days in advance with no knowledge of who I would be playing alongside or against.
When I arrived I saw a young man I had met a number of months before while he was living in temporary accommodation. I delivered weekly football sessions for him and other asylum seekers and he was always completely engaged.
On chatting to him I discovered he is now working, living in Belfast and studying in the evenings.
It was a full circle moment and I’m honoured and proud to have been a small part of his journey since he arrived into the country.
