Dmac
09-08-2006, 07:30 AM
Swapping boots for gloves
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/1691/42002166woodhouse203ym2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
At some point in their lives, most football fans have walked away dejectedly from a game, wondering "Why do I bother?", only to return the following week.
But it is a bit of a surprise when a player asks himself that same question - and decides not to come back.
That is precisely what former England U21 player Curtis Woodhouse has done, turning his back on football at the age of 26 to pursue a new career as a professional boxer.
On Friday, he makes his debut in a welterweight bout against Dean Marcoantonio as part of a fundraising boxing night for the DebRA charity at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.
"I first got the feeling when I was at Sheffield United," he told BBC Sport.
"I thought maybe I just needed a change of scenery, so I moved to Birmingham in 2001 and realised that wasn't it - my actual passion had just gone."
"It wouldn't have made any difference if I'd been at Real Madrid, it was just gone - and once that happens, you can't get it back."
Woodhouse's career began when he made his United debut in November 1997, aged 17.
Within two years he was the youngest captain in United history, and he says the whirlwind start to his career may be to blame for its premature end.
"I wasn't really ever going out to be a pro, it just happened," he said.
"Before I knew about it, I was in the first team."
"It took off without me having a chance to stop and think if this was what I really wanted to do. I was already playing".
While some fans may struggle to believe it, Woodhouse says being paid to play football started to get on his nerves, leading to off-the-field disciplinary problems.
"Everyone loves football, but I didn't. It felt like a job," he said.
"I felt empty playing, it got me angry."
"I could have carried on playing football until I was 35, making a nice wage and having a nice life, but that's not what I wanted to do."
"At the end of the day I like fighting so I thought rather than get locked up for it I might as well get paid for it."
Although he has no experience as an amateur boxer, throughout a career that also took in Rotherham, Peterborough and Hull, Woodhouse regularly attended local gyms for sparring practice.
"I used to go sparring all over the place, blagging my way in by saying I was an amateur who had a fight coming up.
"But after a few weeks I'd get recognised so I'd have to find somewhere else down the road."
Having decided on his career change several years ago, Woodhouse, who has two young children, continued playing until he was sufficiently secure financially to follow his dream.
The last game of his professional career was for Grimsby, in their play-off final loss to Cheltenham in Cardiff on 28 May.
"Even though the game's been great to me, quitting was a big relief, like a weight being lifted off my shoulders," he said.
"When you wake up every morning to do something you don't want to, it gets on your nerves."
But as the football chapter of his life closed, the boxing one began - and he could not be any happier.
"Doing this makes me feel 16 again. I've got that buzz back," he said.
"I've lost two stone since quitting football - this is the fittest and strongest I've been in 10 years.
"I'm training four times a day so there's not much freedom, but I love going to the gym so it's not a chore for me.
"This doesn't feel like a job - football did."
To come into boxing at the age of 26 is a big challenge, but Woodhouse is undaunted.
"There's no blueprint to being a boxer," he said.
"Bernard Hopkins didn't come out of prison until he was 23 or 24 and is one of the best middleweights of all time, and [Commonwealth heavyweight champion] Matt Skelton didn't start until he was 33 - now he's in line for a world title fight."
On the plus side, football taught him the discipline of training as a professional athlete.
But the physical demands of boxing were a whole new challenge.
"The first couple of weeks of training were murder and my body was screaming at me," he said.
"After that, gradually it got easier - but the first couple of weeks were like nothing I'd ever experienced."
On Friday the talking stops and the fighting starts.
And while being realistic about his short-term goals, Woodhouse says he is raring to go.
"There's easier ways to earn money but I'm in it because I believe I can achieve things," he said.
"The first day I stepped in the ring as a boxer, it felt like I'd finally found what I'd been searching for all these years.
"No-one goes into anything just to be alright at it. I want to be the best in my category, so I can walk down the street and know I'm the best.
"At the moment it's just about getting experience, but over the next few years I'll be looking to establish myself."
Although he does not want to give too much away about his style, the clues are there.
"My two favourite fighters are Nigel Benn and Mike Tyson.
"With them, you know what you're going to get - they hit hard and give fans what they want to see."
Credit - BBC Sport
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/1691/42002166woodhouse203ym2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
At some point in their lives, most football fans have walked away dejectedly from a game, wondering "Why do I bother?", only to return the following week.
But it is a bit of a surprise when a player asks himself that same question - and decides not to come back.
That is precisely what former England U21 player Curtis Woodhouse has done, turning his back on football at the age of 26 to pursue a new career as a professional boxer.
On Friday, he makes his debut in a welterweight bout against Dean Marcoantonio as part of a fundraising boxing night for the DebRA charity at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.
"I first got the feeling when I was at Sheffield United," he told BBC Sport.
"I thought maybe I just needed a change of scenery, so I moved to Birmingham in 2001 and realised that wasn't it - my actual passion had just gone."
"It wouldn't have made any difference if I'd been at Real Madrid, it was just gone - and once that happens, you can't get it back."
Woodhouse's career began when he made his United debut in November 1997, aged 17.
Within two years he was the youngest captain in United history, and he says the whirlwind start to his career may be to blame for its premature end.
"I wasn't really ever going out to be a pro, it just happened," he said.
"Before I knew about it, I was in the first team."
"It took off without me having a chance to stop and think if this was what I really wanted to do. I was already playing".
While some fans may struggle to believe it, Woodhouse says being paid to play football started to get on his nerves, leading to off-the-field disciplinary problems.
"Everyone loves football, but I didn't. It felt like a job," he said.
"I felt empty playing, it got me angry."
"I could have carried on playing football until I was 35, making a nice wage and having a nice life, but that's not what I wanted to do."
"At the end of the day I like fighting so I thought rather than get locked up for it I might as well get paid for it."
Although he has no experience as an amateur boxer, throughout a career that also took in Rotherham, Peterborough and Hull, Woodhouse regularly attended local gyms for sparring practice.
"I used to go sparring all over the place, blagging my way in by saying I was an amateur who had a fight coming up.
"But after a few weeks I'd get recognised so I'd have to find somewhere else down the road."
Having decided on his career change several years ago, Woodhouse, who has two young children, continued playing until he was sufficiently secure financially to follow his dream.
The last game of his professional career was for Grimsby, in their play-off final loss to Cheltenham in Cardiff on 28 May.
"Even though the game's been great to me, quitting was a big relief, like a weight being lifted off my shoulders," he said.
"When you wake up every morning to do something you don't want to, it gets on your nerves."
But as the football chapter of his life closed, the boxing one began - and he could not be any happier.
"Doing this makes me feel 16 again. I've got that buzz back," he said.
"I've lost two stone since quitting football - this is the fittest and strongest I've been in 10 years.
"I'm training four times a day so there's not much freedom, but I love going to the gym so it's not a chore for me.
"This doesn't feel like a job - football did."
To come into boxing at the age of 26 is a big challenge, but Woodhouse is undaunted.
"There's no blueprint to being a boxer," he said.
"Bernard Hopkins didn't come out of prison until he was 23 or 24 and is one of the best middleweights of all time, and [Commonwealth heavyweight champion] Matt Skelton didn't start until he was 33 - now he's in line for a world title fight."
On the plus side, football taught him the discipline of training as a professional athlete.
But the physical demands of boxing were a whole new challenge.
"The first couple of weeks of training were murder and my body was screaming at me," he said.
"After that, gradually it got easier - but the first couple of weeks were like nothing I'd ever experienced."
On Friday the talking stops and the fighting starts.
And while being realistic about his short-term goals, Woodhouse says he is raring to go.
"There's easier ways to earn money but I'm in it because I believe I can achieve things," he said.
"The first day I stepped in the ring as a boxer, it felt like I'd finally found what I'd been searching for all these years.
"No-one goes into anything just to be alright at it. I want to be the best in my category, so I can walk down the street and know I'm the best.
"At the moment it's just about getting experience, but over the next few years I'll be looking to establish myself."
Although he does not want to give too much away about his style, the clues are there.
"My two favourite fighters are Nigel Benn and Mike Tyson.
"With them, you know what you're going to get - they hit hard and give fans what they want to see."
Credit - BBC Sport