jack - RUTTER
football
What was your sport and how did you get into it?
My sport is football. I got into it as a four year old boy who was full of energy. One day I saw Eric Cantona playing for Manchester United in that iconic kit with his collar up and I was hooked.
Tell us about the highlights of your sporting career?
As a youngster I played for Birmingham City and was on the verge of turning professional when I was the victim of an unprovoked assault which left me with a brain injury and deaf in one ear. A few years later I found out I could play for the England cerebral palsy football team and I went on to play for England and captained the team in a European championships in Portugal and two World Championships. I also captained Great Britain in one of the biggest sporting events in the world, the Paralympic Games in Rio.
What were some of the challenges you experienced and how did you overcome them?
I was on a night out with my friends in Gloucester and at the end of the evening I was talking to a friend of mine outside the nightclub and as I turned around and said goodbye to go home, a boy walked up behind me and bang, punched me straight in the back of the head. I had a fractured skull, severed my cochlear and vestibular nerve and was left deaf in one ear. I had ongoing problems with balance and co-ordination and was forced to retire from professional football. It took a few years and I had ongoing challenges with my mental health and alcohol, but learning I could play football again and having the Paralympics as a goal helped motivate me to get my life back on the right path. I’ve managed to overcome a lot of challenge and fortunately I've learnt a lot from those experiences and mistakes, errors and failures and now I have a bit of wisdom that I try and pass on with the work that I do now.
What have been your highlights while working at the Trust?
My highlights working for the Trust are definitely all of the programmes I have worked on but I love the AQA Unlocking Potential programme because you get to really get to know the students for a longer period of time. It’s really meaningful, long lasting work.
What do you do now alongside working for the Trust?
Outside of the Trust, I've now retired from football, my last tournament was the World Cup in Argentina 20-22 back in 2017 where we made the semi-finals for the first time ever. I have passed my UEFA ‘A’ licence coaching badge so I now coach the England Under-21 development cerebral palsy team but I’m also assistant head coach to the senior team and we have the European championships in Sardinia that we are currently working towards in May. I'm also still a McDonald's Fun Football ambassador and I work at Sports for Schools in primary schools. I also have my own company called Jack Rutter Skills School where I work with businesses, schools, universities and colleges, just trying to help motivate and inspire others to reach their potential and pass on all the things that I've learned along the way.
What life advice would you give a young person?
There are three mottos I try and live my life by:
You have to be resilient
You need to step out of your comfort zone to succeed
It’s important to have a good, positivre, attitude
What does Being Me mean to you?
Being Me to me means exactly that. Be yourself, be authentic, don't be scared to show your true colours and don’t be fearful of judgement. Try to live your true life, don’t live the way you think other people want you to live, that way you will be content and happy because you are living the life that you want to live.
Competitive Record
World Cup - semi finallists
2017
2016
Rio Paralympic Games
2015
World Championships - 5th
2014
European Championships - 5th
2013
Intercontinental Cup 2013 - 9th
