*** INTERVIEW with defender Andrew Gledhill ***
Brought to you by 3B Vehicle Hire & Servicing, Haddenham & Aylesbury www.3bhire.co.uk – The Official Media Sponsor of Thame United FC
Andy is one of the longest serving players at Thame United. Andy is sponsored by www.fineclub.co.uk

Thame United FC and WWW.THAMEFOOTBALL.CO.UK would like to thank Andy for giving up his time to answer our questions.

*** QUESTION TIME ***

Andy, could you share with us how you got into football?
ANDY – ‘It all started at a very young age at home with my 2 football-mad older brothers. If we weren’t playing football in and around the house, we were playing it in the garden or the local park. When I was old enough, I quickly got stuck into school and club football and it went from there really.

What position(s) have you played for us at Thame United FC?
ANDY – ‘I think an easier question might be what positions haven’t I played! In my first season here, I primarily came off the bench to play on one of the wings, but the following season I managed to work my way into my preferred position as a centre forward or at the top of the midfield. I played there up until earlier this season when I was thrown into the centre of defence and have played there ever since (bar a few cameo appearances back up front). Who knows, I could be playing in goal next season!

What do you do when not playing football?
ANDY – ‘Well, sport (any sport - not just football) has and continues to be a big part of life for me. So much so that my work combines my passion for sport with another thing that’s central to my life - my Christian faith. I work for a charity called Christians in Sport which seeks to share the good news of the Christian faith with sportspeople, so it’s the perfect job combining my main two passions in life. Beyond working or playing for Thame, I also have a dog, so walks in the Oxfordshire countryside are a regular occurrence, and in the summer I love running or going for bike rides. I’m also heavily involved in my local church, love hanging out and going on adventures with my wife and I’ve now got a little boy to look after, which I’m loving so far.

Do you support a football team? Do you have an all-time favourite football player?
ANDY – ‘I do, yes. I support Aston Villa - have to blame my Uncle for that one! He started supporting them because he liked the name and the colours! He then became a season ticket holder and started to take my brothers and I along as well as lavish us with a host of Villa goodies, so it’s safe to say I had no option! Whilst I've witnessed some class players at Villa like Dalian Atkinson, Paul Merson and David Ginola, for me, there’s no going beyond Messi and Ronaldo for my all-time favourites - they’re simply taking football to another level.

What has been your greatest moment as a player?
ANDY – ‘I loved my school football and have some amazing memories of playing with a great bunch of boys and winning and scoring in cup finals. However, the season we won the league here was particularly special. A regular place in the starting XI, scoring in the FA Cup and playing what’s probably been my best ever football made it a really enjoyable season. I was gutted to pick up an injury just before Christmas which limited my involvement for the rest of the season, but to clinch the title on the final day of the season in the manner we did is something I’ll never forget!

What is the best thing about Thame United?
ANDY – ‘Without doubt, it has to be the facilities and the people. The facilities are what attracted me to the club initially, but it’s the people in and around the club - the players, management, backroom staff and supporters - that make this place what it is and makes training and playing here such a joy.

If you could go to any football match in the world which would you choose? Who would you take with you?
ANDY – ‘It would have to be either El Clasico or the World Cup Final and it would have to be with my boy, so maybe in a few years time when he’ll actually have some idea what's going on!

What football boots do you wear? And what are your all-time favourite boots?
ANDY – ‘At the moment, I’m wearing some Adidas ones that are white and bright green! They got a good reaction from the boys when I pulled them out of my bag earlier this season as they’re very different to what I would normally go for! I’m old school when it comes to boots, so Copa Mundials or boots of that ilk are what I’ve always tended to go for, but it’s getting increasingly difficult to find boots that are the right fit, are bigger enough and are primarily black!! Oh, and are within budget!

You were sponsored at the very start of the season by www.fineclub.co.uk, what does this mean to you and what sort of work does Fine Club do?
ANDY – ‘Obviously, it’s always nice to be sponsored and to know people want to be associated with you, so I’m very appreciative of the sponsorship. In terms of what they do, FineClub is the UK’s first dedicated fines app which aims to take the hassle out of recording and collecting the fines that players rack up throughout the season. It’s not yet launched but it is coming to an App Store soon, so do look out for it!

Do you have any final comments for our fans and followers?
ANDY – ‘The small following we have and the small group behind the scenes are very loyal and do an awful lot for the club and they make it a joy to play here, so thanks for all you do and your fantastic support.As with all non-league clubs, it’s the volunteers and supporters that make the club what it is and that’s certainly true here at Thame - we could just do with a few more! Saying that, it would be great to see more supporters from the local area down at the ASM Stadium and to see more people getting stuck in with helping with things off the pitch