AFC Telford United players are a class apart
AFC Telford United are desperate to graduate from the Skrill Conference North this season – but a number of players are looking for different qualifications.
Even if the club pass the test with first-class honours and return to non-league's top flight next year, a full-time playing squad will still be some way down the line.
That has resonated with midfielder Charlie Barnett and winger Robbie Booth, who are looking to hit the ground running on the pitch and in the classroom as time wares on.
Barnett, a former Liverpool and England youth international, dropped out of full-time football after leaving Accrington Stanley in the summer at the relatively-young age of 25.
Shortly after joining Telford, he looked into studying for qualifications outside of football and began a course in physiotherapy at Salford University, so the part-game now suits him better.
By next year, it could be two Bucks who are hitting the books – with a hand from the Professional Footballers Association – as Booth is interested in a social work course at Edge Hill University.
Part of the PFA's remit is to help part-time footballers and players who have dropped out of the pro ranks find alternative employment and Booth doesn't want to be a landscape gardener forever.
