Former Barnsley striker Bruce Dyer says he almost quit football at the age of 15 – four years before he became the country’s first million pound teenager.
Dyer considered walking out on Watford to spend more time with his mates and it took some wise words from youth team coach Kenny Jackett, who is now the manager of Wolves, to change his mind.
Dyer, 38, said: “My mates were doing their thing and I really wanted to join them. They were going out drinking, socialising and doing the things that young people do.
“I realised that I couldn’t do that and be a professional footballer. I very nearly quit but Kenny Jackett pulled me to one side and told me to get my act together.
"Thank God that he did and I listened to him because just a few years later I became the first teenager in the country to be sold for more than £1million when I left Watford to join Crystal Palace.”
Dyer is hoping youngsters across Barnsley will follow in his footsteps and make the right decisions while they are still at school. He is visiting primary and secondary schools across the borough, offering football coaching and teaching life skills.
He said: “I learned first hand that it’s important to make the right choices. The decisions we make won’t just affect what we do today but they will impact our futures too.
“I’m going around schools in Barnsley and sharing my story. I teach the kids life skills such as humility, determination, hard work, discipline and encouragement.
“As a footballer you can have all the skill in the world but if you don’t have the right attitude and character then you won’t go far. That applies to any walk of life and hopefully I can get this across to the kids.”
Dyer also coaches youngsters and has been impressed by what he has seen in Barnsley so far.
“I bring in professional coaches with me and we teach basic skills. Some of the kids are real quality footballers and I’ve already seen some of them get snapped up by clubs.
“A lot of the best players go under the radar so if I spot a talent I can advise them and feed them into an academy. ”
If you’d like him to visit your school or youth group, visit www.bdllss.com
