The 21-year-old left Rangers in 2017 but he returned in a new role recently as a full-time Children’s Academy and Scouting Assistant.
He played for Ross County, Stirling Albion and Stranraer before embarking on a life-changing adventure to America where he signed for Ventura County Fusion when he left the Light Blues.
Now he is delighted to be back at the club he loves.
Check out the highlights of his session…
Q – 4LadsHadADream – Biggest hero growing up?
A – My mum & dad have been massive for me and have been heroes in doing everything they have done for me and my brother in our lives so far. My grandad was another for bringing me up to have a love for football at such a young age. In a footballing sense it was Paul Scholes. He was the complete footballer and a master of the midfield game who I aspired to be like as a young lad.
Q – Biggest learning curve of your career?
A – Probably to embrace and enjoy things a bit more while I do them. Playing football in different countries and all around the world is a huge life experience that people dream of doing and I can happily say at 21, I’ve played in four different continents of the world!
While being there I obviously enjoyed it, but something that I stress to parents now is that youth football is the best time of these kid’s lives before it starts getting serious and lots of other factors are involved. So if anything it would be to just embrace the moments that are happening more, and I think the whole situation with the pandemic at the moment epitomises that.
Q – Your future career plans now?
A – Rangers have given me a huge opportunity to be involved in football again. Still playing part time, I still enjoy playing at the moment, albeit probably not at the level and heights I was quite expecting a few years ago, but I’m still young and who knows what can happen! Doing the best I can for Rangers as a staff member is the priority for me at the moment, enjoying every minute of it too. I’ve been quite lucky in my life that opportunities have come at the right times so fingers crossed that continues going forward.
Q – Boxset of choice in lockdown?
A – Well with no Peaky Blinders & Power I thought it would have been tough. Thankfully though I’m easily pleased and Disney Plus has been a huge blessing during this lockdown!! Watching every Marvel movie in order has been the evening entertainment and my geeky/nerdy side has not been disappointed!
Q – Iain Corbett – Why are you the worst player on pro clubs and what is it like to play with Iain Corbett on pro clubs?
A – Iain Corbett is a prolific goal scorer in the pro clubs world, but his recent run of form has made me question whether he is fit to wear the number 9 jersey and the return of Ashmore upfront is becoming ever more imminent as we were a Division 1 club before he vacated the striker’s role.
Q – Greg Statt – Any plans to improve your Teq Ball game during lockdown ?
A – I’ve been using this lockdown period wisely to be ready for our Testing and Teq Ball day and the right foot is no longer just for standing on so you can’t expose my weaknesses!
Q – Stewart McGaughey – Given everything you have went through with the club. What advice would you give to some of the younger players in the academy at the moment?
A – I think the biggest advice I can give them is to work hard every single time they walk into the building. Respect the work the staff do behind the scenes because as a player, you don’t actually realise the level of detail, thought and graft the staff go through every single day to give them the best learning and development possible in various different ways.
Lastly and most importantly, enjoy it. Actually enjoying those moments as a youth footballer is critical when you look back on it. Playing with a smile on your face and having fun is the most important thing when playing football as a kid in my opinion.
Q – Kimmie Irvine – Who was your biggest hero growing up?
A – As mentioned previously, my Mum & Dad, my Grandad and Paul Scholes. All for different reasons!
Q – Kimmie Irvine – Who is your favourite Rangers player?
A – Growing up in the era I did, watching Pedro Mendes was unbelievable. Like Paul Scholes he was a master of the midfield game and had an absolute gem of a right foot. Will always remember being a young boy and trying to re-enact his goal against Celtic. Albeit I had absolutely no chance using my right foot but I gave it a fair few tries with my left!!
Q – Fiona – Did you enjoy your time at Stranraer? Or were the bus journeys just too long?
A – Stranraer was great! Was ideal for me training in Renfrew two nights a week as it’s only 10 minutes from my house. There was definitely some long bus journeys, but being surrounded by good company and good people always made the journey not seem as long.
Q – Jamie – Hello Max, what additional challenges is the current situation giving you in Your role?
A – Many different challenges. I’m learning every day under the brilliant guidance and experience of David Stevenson (Academy Scouting Manager) who I’ve been in contact with every single day during the lockdown.
David has really helped me in various different aspects to understand how much level of detail goes into recruitment, not just in football but for other things in life too.
Working at a club like Rangers brings different and new challenges every day. The main challenge for every department that Craig Mulholland set, was to come out of this situation in a better position than what we were in before, and I feel every single member of staff has worked tirelessly & played their part during this period to ensure that has been the case.
Q – With your experience in America what sort of benefits will the young players on loan at Orange County get?
A – Massive experience in both a footballing sense and a life sense. Living on your own, surrounded by a different culture, environment, experiencing different things and having to adapt to situations you wouldn’t be faced with in Scotland, on and off the pitch is the biggest benefit these lads will take.
Playing in warmer weather will benefit them massively in terms of their fitness and push them to another level of fitness during games and training. The standard was very high in a footballing sense and for me playing against teams who all played with the ball on the surface and being surrounded by very good technical footballers who were all physical specimens on top of that, was something that actually took me by surprise more than anything else.
Many of the teams the lads will be facing out there, would comfortably challenge a lot of the teams in Scotland in my opinion.
Q – Who was your hero growing up?
A – Since I’ve already given a few, I would also say two huge influences in my life growing up at Rangers were Alan Boyd and Ally Dawson. Alan, who is now Head of Children’s Academy at Rangers, really matured me as a young lad to take my game to another level.
I always remember being 13 and had played at left back the following season and Boydy pulled me to the side at the very first training session before it started and told me I was going to be a deeper midfield player and told me he had analysed me and seen strengths of a midfield player, that would then see me go on to play as a deeper midfielder for the remainder of my Rangers career.
Ally brought his experience of being a Rangers legend and knowing what it meant to wear that jersey to give us all the tools we needed so we knew what it meant to put that jersey on.
They also gained the respect of every single player and parent in our team by teaching us as young boys about learning manners, to be a fair, to be honest and be generally a good person.
So for all those different reasons Ally & Boydy were brilliant, and for me to see Boydy when working with him now, passing on that knowledge and guidance that he gave me at such a young age, I know for a fact how good he, and the rest of the coaching staff in the academy are to give these lads the best guidance possible.
Q – Best memory as a Rangers fan & player?
A – Best memory as a player was captaining the lads in Hong Kong which ended up being my last trip with the club as a player which was a fitting way to end as it was still one of the best experiences of my life playing in a country like that against some of the best teams in the world and getting put out in the semi’s late on to the eventual winners Leicester City was an unforgettable experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Best Memory as a fan was seeing Maurice Edu score against Celtic in the last minute at Ibrox. What a moment, and what a fitting way for Rangers to win the first Old Firm derby I had gone to!
Q – Nick – How much do you impress your own experiences of the Academy onto the players who are there now?
A – I try pass on as much of my knowledge and experience as possible. Everyone has their own footballing journeys and everyone handles situations differently to what I did.
I feel I can help a lot of them and a few of the older lads, in the 16’s, 18’s & Reserves have come to me for advice and help on certain situations and I’ve been as honest and open with them as possible and tried to use what I learned and the decisions I made to help them out as much as I can.
I think a massive thing as well is having my mum and dad’s experience of being involved in it is huge because, not only for the players, but I can relate to the parents and help them with different things and with situations they might not have occurred that my parents experienced during my time in the academy.
It’s obviously a massive benefit for me but also a benefit for them in some ways as it helps me get clearer and better messages across to both parents and players. It becomes something I can relate to, rather than it being something I’m hearing for the first time and I think that builds better relationships and understandings of certain situations.
Q – Michael – First of all welcome back to the club. How have you found the transition from Youth Player to Academy Coach?
A – Thanks very much Michael. I’ve found the transition quite interesting to be honest. Was a bit strange the first few weeks being in and around the training ground and seeing some of the boys I’d played with through the age groups and being in that opposite role in the building to them.
So that definitely took some getting used to at first but now I’ve settled in, I have a very good relationship with all the players and all the staff and trying to put myself into the players shoes as a coach, and as a member of staff, to get a better idea of how I would have wanted to be coached and taught things, and I think a lot of the boys, with the relationships I have with them have bought into that.
Q – Michael – Also, what was the main difference you’ve noticed to the academy set up since your return to Auchenhowie?
A – Very good question. It’s actually very difficult to narrow it down to just one which probably shows you just how far the club has come. The games programme and overseas programme has been massive. Playing in over 300 different tournaments across the whole academy last year. That’s something not many clubs in the world, never mind Scotland can offer, and credit to the staff and everyone else who have pushed the project on so much which see’s our young players get various different challenges across all age groups.
The things that are also in place now for the kids in terms of the education at Boclair and the multi sports programmes and being the first club in Scotland to have a Health & Wellbeing team shows the level of detail the staff go to now to give these young players the best chance at becoming a professional football player.
Lastly, the training ground has been taken to a new level. The place was unrecognisable when I walked back in for the first time and it now has a real comforting modern feel about it with so many new pieces of equipment and infrastructure that I think, make the place one of the best youth set ups and facilities in Europe.
Q – Willy – Favourite goal you scored while at Rangers?
A – Willy I think you’re probably asking that because you know I haven’t scored many watching nearly every game I played in😂!! If there was one I had to pick out of the very few, it would have to be the penalty against Leicester City in the semi-final of the Hong Kong Soccer Sevens tournament to put us 1-0 up. It ended up being my last game for the club, and I felt it was quite a fitting way to end by scoring a goal against undoubtedly the best team in the tournament and it’s again something that I’ll never ever forget.
Q – Alan – How did you get into coaching and who is the person who helped you most?
A – Football has always been something I have been mad about since I was younger, and those that know me, know that I’m quite opinionated and know that I have strong views and beliefs in life.
Sometimes I’m a bit stubborn in that sense but I think that’s why me and Graeme Murty got on so well because there was certain occasions I would suggest something or say something to him that he would pick up on and he and Craig have seen something in me in the time I was in the academy that would merit me having value in becoming a member of staff.
I didn’t think I would’ve had a different role in football this early, but it’s something I always wanted to do at some point in my life and I’m very grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given.
Thanks to Max and all Rangers fans who took part, RYDC will have more Q&A’s in the weeks ahead.
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