Across the season Club Chaplain, Rev Grant Hamilton, speaks to members of the Sons squad about life on and off the park. Last week it was centre-half Morgyn Neill, and this week we’re at the other end of the park – with Grant sitting down to chat with striker Ally Roy.
GH: I’ve got an obvious first question. How does it feel to be back?
“I’m delighted about it. As soon as it became an option I was really interested. I spoke to the manager a couple of times and while it took some time to sort stuff out, I never had any thoughts of going anywhere else. I really enjoyed my loan spell 8 years ago (I think) so when the option of returning came up, it was a no-brainer.
GH: Have things changed much at the club since 2018?
“I’ve been looking at some of the pictures on the wall around the club and the season I was here in the Championship is well represented. Back then we were the only part-time team in the league so it was a totally different challenge. Expectations were a bit lower in terms of league success but we did pretty well and even made the Challenge Cup final before losing to Inverness in the final.
“Everyone knows about the recent financial challenges and the impact they have had but Dumbarton FC is still well known around the country and we are ready to do everything we can to help the club finish as high as possible.
“The stadium is still the same and the pitch has got a lot better despite the wind and rain that comes off the water. I remember playing a game here on Boxing Day when the pitch was just wow! It is good to see some of the same people around the club as well.
“Some of the staff are still the same like Big Andy (Scott) on the camera. He was one of the first to message me when I came back and I like the fact that despite what the club has gone through, there is still so much that is familiar.”
GH: You played under 21 football for Northern Ireland and scored the winning goal for Derry City in a European tie. Can you tell us about that experience please?
“That Derry City match against Dinamo Minsk was probably the best experience I’ve ever had in football. When I was a kid playing football, it was a dream to be able to play in European competition and one that I wasn’t sure would ever happen. When I signed for Derry City, one of the main selling points for me was that they would be playing in the Europa League.
“We lost the home leg 2-0 and the feeling was that the return leg would be really tough for us, especially as they were a team full of international players. I scored early on in the away leg though and we went on to win the match. The style of football in European competition really suited me and I liked the technical side of it. In the under 21s you could find yourself playing against teams packed with players who were worth hundreds of millions of pounds so these memories are treasured ones.”
GH: As a Chaplain I’m interested in your support system and how you deal with difficult times. What helps you through the tough times?
“I have had bad injuries and as recently as last season I missed the second half of the season with a health issue. That was tough because I was mentally ready to play football but my body wasn’t letting me do that.
“Football is what I do and it’s hard when the thing you’ve done and you work hard for over the years, suddenly becomes unavailable to you. Thankfully I do have supportive people around me, especially my wife and parents, that I can have real conversations with and know their support is available to me.
“It is good as well to have team mates to lean on as they understand more than anyone, how much football means to you. In our squad just now we definitely have a few good people who would go out of their way to include everyone and make sure no-one feels left out of things. For your own personal integrity you also have to graft in life to get things out of it so you have to be focussed in yourself and do the things you can to keep fit, get yourself back in shape and keep yourself in a good head space.”
GH: Do you have a day job and how do you manage your responsibilities?
“Football coaching is my day job and I have a business I’ve been running for 5 years now. I was a full-time player in Ireland but when I came home and we had our wee boy, I decided to try and organise my life to give me plenty of family time as well. (So if you are the boss, can you give yourself time off when you want?) Yes, that always helps!
“The reality in football, especially with all the travelling together, is that you can spend more time with your teammates than with your family. That’s part of the sacrifice we make to be able to have the best job in the world. We need a balance though as family are the ones who back us up or pick up the pieces when the football doesn’t go to plan.”
GH: What are your hopes for the season?
“To finish as high up the table as we can. We have our targets as a club and we keep those to ourselves but the obvious first one was to get rid of the -5 points. Now we have done that we are back in the mix and looking for consistency and a regular run of winning matches.”
Chaplain’s Corner is available to read first in every edition of our matchday programme, Sons View.