JACK of all trades, a Masters in at least one. Falkirk club captain Jack Ross is an intelligent guy. A swathe of Highers and a degree in economics prove he's book smart but that's not all. He's savvy.
It's a long time ago now but when he was released by Dundee, a raw 19-year-old ill-prepared for the letdown, he felt his world had lost its purpose. In truth it was the a moment which has helped fashion his life. And that of others.
That was over
a decade ago. And for a few months it sickened him of the game. "The problem was I was a Dundee fan and once they released me I couldn't even think about watching them, so suddenly I had no-one to play for and no-one to watch. They really did me over," he laughs now. Thankfully the passion returned.
He rediscovered it playing Junior football with local club Camelon. "I was lucky I signed with one of the better teams and enjoyed winning again. I got a Scottish Junior Cap when I was 21 and to be honest, if that had been the highlight of my career, I wouldn't have complained. It was great to represent Scotland and give my dad the cap."
But that was just the start. His spirit stoked, confidence was a newfound ally. Having decided to go to university, he graduated with a degree he admits he will probably never use. It wasn't as stimulating as the football but he stuck at it and proved he could succeed.
"I hear managers saying all the time that it's the hardest thing in the world to release young players, that it hurts them more than anyone. Well, if I ever do go into management then I might change my mind, but, to be honest, having been on the receiving end, I can't see how it could hurt them more than the player. There's the shock and the hurt and the feeling that you have let everyone else down. It's embarrassing because everyone in the family and their friends, everyone you went to school with, so many people have been aware of what you're doing so you feel like a failure. You're not prepared for what happens next because you have been focusing so hard on the dream.
"That's why I speak to the young lads here. I try to tell them it doesn't need to be the end, they can find their level and still play football. I don't like to see them giving up on the game. But I also tell them that they should have something else to fall back on. At Falkirk, education is important and the young lads are encouraged to get a trade or to study. One lad does a cookery course, which is great. Because when he eventually moves to a place of his own he can prepare healthy food which will help him as a footballer but if things don't go to plan then it's also something he enjoys that he could fall back on."
That insight was the primary reason he became involved with PFA Scotland. The inaugural chairman, it was the chance to educate players, young and old, which appealed most. It is only one of the strings to his bow. If he was ill-prepared as a teenager, the next time he is left at the end of a contract and the end of his tether there will be options.
He has experience in the hotel trade, having worked for his parents to subsidise the £200-a-week part-time wages he made when he decided to give professional football another go in his mid-20s, signing for then Second Division side Clyde and earning promotion. After that came a move to Hartlepool, moving to Falkirk in 2005.
Then there is the coaching. The B licence is already in the bag, sights pinned on the next ascent in the learning curve. He's not sure coaching is his future but it's a skill worth having.
Media work is the latest avenue to be explored, and he is succeeding due to the same traits which appeal to his manager John Hughes.
"He's honest, a great professional, a good role model. He looks after himself and prepares properly. He is very fit and loves to train. Look at him. That's him heading for his third session today. Look at that group, that lad's 19, he's 19, he's 20, he's 19 and there's Jack, 31!"
Ross does his homework on each opponent as though he was studying for an important exam, and his analytical brain is able to look for solutions when he comes up against a tricky customer.
Today he faces Aiden McGeady, a genius in his own way. But Ross is too long in the tooth to be perturbed.
"When I was younger, he would have worried me but I've learned that you usually find a way of playing each opponent. Sometimes they get the better of you, sometimes no matter how hard you try, you just have an off day but you just have to keep trying. Aiden is a wonderful player and I will have been thinking about the game from about Thursday, but I'm not scared. On our day I know Falkirk can worry them. You have to be positive."
And Ross is. Without being reckless. Life has taught him to be prepared for anything but to still aim for the best.
His contract is up at end of season and he has not heard anything from the club yet. Keen to see Falkirk maintain their year-on-year improvement in the SPL and make a top six place the norm, the preferred option would be an extension but there's not the same apprehensions if the contract offer doesn't come. "I think I've been around long enough now for other clubs to realise what I could do for them". These days there is a greater sense of equilibrium. Thanks to the university of life, there's also a much more impressive curriculum vitae.
The full article contains 1023 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
