The former Luton Town head of Academy coaching has joined the club after almost a decade with the Hatters.
After spending his first week with The Imps, Jordan is looking forward to even better times ahead. With a FA Youth Cup second round tie against Wrexham at Sincil Bank on the horizon this weekend, the new Academy Manager says he is settling into his new role quickly.
The challenges ahead of Jordan are ones which excite him and he admits that the vision for the club and the academy moving forward is something which really resonated with him, and it was something which was key to him leaving his former club despite him still having much affection for his former employers.
There’s always differences between football clubs and I’ve been really fortunate to have worked in a fantastic environment in my previous football club as well so I’m slowly getting to grips with the culture of Lincoln City and the values. But the vision from Jez [George] and Liam [Scully] is first class for where they see the academy and it’s long term strategic objectives and that really is a part of what really enticed me to the role and it’s crucial now for us to deliver on that and make sure we can deliver those objectives for the benefit of the football club.
As academy manager, Jordan understands that creating the future footballers for the club is a key part of the role, but he says it’s also just as important to create an environment where the young people thrive off the field too for if their career takes them in another path within the game or elsewhere.
“I think to produce footballers for the team is really important but really good people generally make better players. So sometimes we don’t necessarily here to separate the two, but the idea is to give the young players and the children at the football club a real holistic, rounded education and development at the club. So, if they go into the first team squad with Michael they go with the same values of hard work, grit and resilience which are values that the club hold so dearly and bring that onto the pitch and then we also have a brilliant situation where some of the ex-scholars are working in different parts of the club.
It’s equally important in the success of the academy that we can keep helping people progress in their careers and in life.
He continued: “We’ve got Luke Andersen who is an under 11’s coach which is great to see, that boys have gone right through the pathway at Lincoln City and are now employed by the club in a coaching role and then we’ve got Kieran Walker who will be joining the club as a physiotherapist and that’s fantastic.
Jordan has shown his commitment to the club after relocating to the City, and says that it’s a beautiful place to be, although he’s finding the weather the hardest thing to acclimatise to!
“Yeah, I’m finding out about the weather pretty quickly!! There’s a lot of rain and freezing temperatures so hats and gloves are a must but it’s a beautiful place, a beautiful city with the Cathedral here behind us so it’s been all positive so far. The area is magnificent there’s some great scenery and some great views and the people have been great, everyone has been really welcoming which has been a massive help.
“You always have a level of apprehension when you move somewhere new and take on a new challenge, so everyone’s warmth and generosity has been fantastic and it’s helped me settle really quickly.”
Why not come along this weekend and give Jordan and all the other academy staff and players your support as City take on Wrexham in the FA Youth Cup 2nd round at Sincil Bank on Saturday 23rd November. The reward for the winners is a trip to take on Manchester United in round three of the competition.
Season ticket holders can come and support the team for free on production of their season ticket whilst non-season ticket holders will pay just £3 for adults and £1 for concessions.
Tickets are now on sale from the club store at Sincil Bank.