Diary of a Scout: My First Outing | OneFootball

On a recent FA course I joked around with another scout and we called scouting, ‘the ugly sister of the beautiful game.’ Rather tongue in cheek, but earlier in the season it felt more like a Cinderella story as I travelled to the Priestfield Stadium on a sunny September afternoon.

My First Time at the Ball

This was my first live scouting experience. I was nervous, but also excited. It was actually part of a course I’ve now passed, where I had to write a report on a defender. The course organiser issued me a free ticket for Gillingham vs Tranmere Rovers in League 2. I’d heard stories of being able to park in the stadium carpark, relaxing in a dedicated scouting lounge with free food and drink and having one of the best seats ins the house. Sounds cool right?

Well it wasn’t quite the picture I had painted in my head.

The parking was a nightmare. Luckily I have a friend who is a Gills season ticket holder and he advised me of what residential roads to park in. But it was still a long walk to the ground. Then on arrival my ticket had me sitting with home fans. I had no problem with this, but I didn’t see any other scouts to network with and there was definitely no free drinks, let alone any food!

Priestfield. Photo by the author.

Once I’d settled into my surroundings I felt comfortable and ready to watch football live in a way I had never done before. Priestfield is a bit rough round the edges, the 4th tier of the English football pyramid is less than glamorous, but it’s a proper old school football stadium.

Feeling awkward and anxious I got my notepad out and began to observe the warmups. I got some strange looks coming my way from some supporters who had definitely had a few alcoholic beverages.

The Aftermath

After I’d watched Gillingham cruise to a 3-0 victory, with the player in question putting in an impressive shift, I made my way back to my van for the lonely drive home. Of course, only half the battle was won, since I still needed to write a report on the player.

I started to wonder if this was for me. Football used to be a social occasion with mates down the pub. A few beers, some laughs, the game and the memories of the day were often the main reason to attend. Win lose or draw it’s a social day out. Now there’s no beer, no laughs and no company. But there’s still the football and the fact that there will be a second diary entry I think you can guess the answer of whether I decided to pursue football scouting on top of a full-time job and having two small children!

The Scouting Report

Although I feel he wasn’t tested that much in this match, this player has promising potential and can definitely play in a higher league.

He has a commanding physical presence, strong and good in the air with the right height for a defender. Sometimes he looks too relaxed and not the quickest, but makes up for this with impressive tactical awareness and being in the right starting positions. He showed that he can be reliable, steady on his feet and certainly looked confident in his ability to defend comfortably, even providing cover for his left-back. There is also the potential to be more of a threat from set pieces and corners in an attacking sense.

Ogie was born in Limerick, Republic of Ireland and has represented them at U18 and U19 level. He played youth football for local club Pike Rovers and when he moved to England he played football in Hornchurch’s youth academy, before joining Leyton Orient in 2018. He then had loan spells at Bishop Stortford, Dover Athletic and Aldershot Town before he joined Gillingham in 2023.