First Interview | Wayne Rooney
One minute, you are sitting in a meeting room, on a Monday morning with your departmental colleagues you are used to spending time with, and then someone knocks on the door.
Poking their head round the corner, a member of staff from St Mellion International Golf Resort asks if we are okay, tells us lunch will be at 12.15pm, and to ring ‘0’ on the phone for reception if we need anything. We thank her, and she leaves.
Five minutes go by, as backdrops for photos are being set up, and discussions are ongoing about the positioning of a camera with the 18th hole in the background, and another knock on the door comes. This time, a second helpful member of staff tells us to help ourselves to teas and coffees and reiterates the process for contacting reception.
A few minutes later, the door opens again, and it is one of the greatest footballers this country has ever produced. Standard Monday.
Wayne Rooney arrived in our lives, figuratively, on Saturday, when confirmation came of his appointment as the Head Coach of Plymouth Argyle. Now, here he was in person, breezing into the suite we had booked out for the day.
Manchester United’s all-time leading goalscorer, the second-highest appearance maker for England’s men’s team, had just wandered into the room, flanked only by his agent.
There was no fanfare, no air of celebrity. Anyone who was golfing at the venue that day, or was working in the corridors, that had no knowledge of football, would scarcely be able to guess at the place that the man they saw in a dark blue baseball cap holds in the footballing firmament.
Over the next hour or so, initial conversations were had, introductions made. Wayne put on some branded training and leisurewear and posed for some photos. The sight of him in Argyle livery was an interesting one, something we probably would never have guessed we would see.
It is okay to be respectful of someone who has achieved what Rooney has in the game. From his swaggering debut in which he scored against Arsenal for Everton as a 16-year-old, to everything else in his career, Rooney was constant headline news. He’s a big name.
But that level of respect, in his presence, never became awe. No-one felt starstruck, and that was in part because his humble demeanour meant the process of taking photos, conducting interviews and the like, became a smooth process. That all bodes well.
Standing to the side of Argyle TV’s Charlie Price as he conducted Rooney’s first interview as ‘the Gaffer’, I took in the next set of promising moments as they came in the form of what Wayne had to say.
He spoke of openness with supporters and discussed his footballing philosophies including, but not limited to, his desire to have players play with freedom. In addition, as you might expect from someone still very much a teenager when we were all implored to “remember the name” on his sensational debut, Rooney spoke of his desire for young players to have a pathway to flourish.
“Academy players are really important,” he said. “I was a player who came into the first team at 16. A lot of young players are good enough, but maybe don't get the chance. I've got a real passion for that.
“Everyone in the club, the community, when you see one of your own players coming through, it gives everyone a massive lift. Everyone's really proud to see those players coming through into the team, and it's something which I've done. I started a 15-year-old at DC United, at centre-back.
“If you are good enough and you have belief, and of course young players need protection as well at the right times, I think it's important, if those players are developing, that you give them that opportunity.
“I want players to play with freedom. I think that's really important because football has gone really structured in recent years.
“Of course, you need to have a structure - that's important as well - but I think especially in the attacking areas it's important that players have a freedom to go and be creative, to make mistakes as well.
“Players are going to make mistakes on the football pitch. They're going to give the ball away, they're going to miss a cross, but I think it's important that the players have that freedom to try things and be creative. If you don't do that, then you play within yourself. That's a message I really put forward to players.
“Defensively, we want to be a hard team to beat. When teams come to Home Park, we want to be front-footed, aggressive and make it as difficult as we can for the opposition.
“It's important that there's a real togetherness throughout the whole football club. That's something I've brought to every club I've been at. Every member of staff is important. It's important that when you win a football game, every member of staff feels they've contributed to that victory. I'm someone who really believes in that - whether that's the kit men, to the dinner ladies, to the media team. Whoever it is, everyone feels they've played a part.
“From a player's point of view, I'd like to really get to know the individual. Every player is different, every player thinks differently. They have different ways about them, and it's important that I get to know each and every one of them on a personal level.
“Players need different information. Players have different triggers which get them going. It’s my role to make sure I do that, to make sure that we're all giving the players the best coaching you can get to go and perform.”
As his playing career wound down, Rooney joined Derby County as a player-coach, before taking over the manager’s job in tough circumstances, with the club in financial difficulties. A move to former club DC United, in the USA, followed, before a stint in charge of Birmingham City, last season.
While at Birmingham, Rooney came to Home Park to take on Argyle, who were in their own state of flux at the time. Steven Schumacher had departed, with Director of Football Neil Dewsnip and first-team coach Kevin Nancekivell stepping in temporarily.
It meant that Rooney would be in the dugout opposite Dewsnip, the man who had signed him for Everton’s Academy as a young boy. In the intervening years, the pair had seen little of each other, but after football’s fates threw in one meeting in December, the pair now come together as a working unit.
It seems that December day, when Rooney visited the Greens with the Blues, coloured his outlook for the coming months.
“Last season, when I came with Birmingham, I was really impressed with the fans and with the setup,” said Rooney. “It felt like a really tight club and community; the whole club felt connected and that really impressed me.
“It was a good game; a really good atmosphere inside the stadium. That stuck with me. Once this role was available, I spoke with my agent and really wanted to explore it to see if there was an opportunity for me to come into the football club.
“When I was in Everton’s Academy, that's where I first met Neil and he helped my pathway through the Academy. I went a long time not seeing him, not speaking to him, we fell out of touch naturally, as you do.
“I think the first time I saw Neil in a long time, maybe over 10 years, was when we played here. It was strange obviously coming up against Neil, he was in charge of the team that day.
“It's been nice to see him over the last couple of weeks when I've been going through the process. People will talk about my relationship with Neil, but I think it's only fair to say that this has been the whole football club, not anything to do with my relationship with Neil Dewsnip.
“I went through a thorough process, alongside a lot of other experienced managers and thankfully, the board and the owner felt I was the right man for the job. I was delighted with that, and now I’m just really looking forward to getting started and trying to help move this club forward.
“A lot of people who I spoke to before I joined the club talked about how well run the club is, how stable the club is. That is something which really appealed to me, and it allows me to then put my blueprint on the team.
“I've put in lot of work and time to try to develop myself as a coach: to try to improve, try to get better. I want to be a coach who helps players and helps teams.
“The clubs I’ve been at all had challenges, like Derby County going into administration. I went out to DC to experience something a bit different, to try to keep improving and developing.
“Now, I’ve found my way here to Argyle, and I feel I'm in the best shape I can be in to go and lead this team.”
He is joining a club that, having survived in the Sky Bet Championship, has a positive outlook, reflected by the passionate Green Army. Rooney has promised the Argyle faithful that he will do what he can for them as far as matters on the pitch go, and wishes to be approachable off it.
He said: “It's their club; it's the fans’ club. People like myself, or players who are coming in, may be from different backgrounds and at different clubs, but ultimately now, we're together as one.
“I don't know how it's been before, but fans will see open training sessions where they can come watch training, really feel a part of it from that point of view. I'm a coach who really has nothing to hide.
“I think the interaction with players, with myself, with the fans is so important. I'll be living here. The fans will see me out in restaurants or in cafes, amongst the place. Feel free to come and say hello - I'm sure we'll have a great relationship.”
Watch the full first interview with Wayne Rooney now, for free, on Argyle TV.
