Jack Russell, the endearingly eccentric former England wicketkeeper, is turning his immense talents to football. Russell is coaching the goalkeepers of his local side, Forest Green Rovers, and has found the buzz to be every bit as intoxicating as Test match cricket.
"Gary Owers, who played in the FA Cup final for Sunderland in 1992 and for Bristol City before he became Forest Green manager, lived round the corner and popped in to see me one day," recalls Russell.
"He had heard me on the radio, comparing a wicketkeeper standing back to pace bowlers with goalkeepers trying to save penalties and he thought the two arts probably shared many coaching principles.
"Gary asked me to come down and work with his goalkeeping coach Mick Byrne at training sessions - and I've ended up on the bench on matchdays, helping out during the warm-up and even filling in at the odd practice match.
Now I clean my boots every Friday night, put the dubbing on, and I get the same adrenalin rush, the same excitement, as I used to get when driving to a Test match.
"The current manager, Jim Harvey, even lets me chip in with the odd word in the dressing room and it's been an incredibly rewarding role - Forest Green's keeper Ryan Robinson has been picked for England's non-league side and we've made a decent start this season.
Mike Walters has the full story in today's Mirror.
