The birth of David Whelan Coaching

David Whelan started his footballing career with Currie Star at the age of seven, later moving to Hutchison Vale and eventually towards the latter stages of his teens started playing men’s amateur football. After a stint of playing football in the States, David returned to Scotland and joined Corstorphine Dynamo where he currently is captain and coach.

David wanted to share his knowledge and love of football with others and set up David Whelan Coaching which offers free one-to-one sessions for youngsters to develop their football skills. David carries out the sessions from his teams dressing room which he kits out with training equipment creating the perfect space to train during the winter months. His sessions are free and open to anyone, however, are particularly helpful for kids who struggle in group settings.

Some of the kids David coaches have ADHD and anxiety and his one-to-one sessions give kids the chance to play in a comfortable environment while also receiving valuable coaching. When speaking to one of David’s pupils Coby, he explained that one of the benefits of David’s sessions is that it is not too loud and doesn’t have the same distractions that a group session might have, helping him concentrate even more on developing his skills.

Some of the kids David coaches play for local teams and his sessions give them a chance to gain some extra skills away from a group. For David the most rewarding thing about coaching is ‘hearing them laughing and smiling when they see something click in their mind’. He aims to get more kids involved in football whether that be through joining a local team or playing five a side.

David hopes to one day start his own coaching business and is currently working towards his UEFA coaching C license which will allow him to hold formal coaching sessions and will give him the opportunity to get more kids involved with the game. David Whelan Coaching can be found on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook with the handle @dwhelancoaching.