Hello everyone

Welcome to my blog.  Before I start my debut contribution, here's little bit about me.

I am a 27 year old men’s singles Scottish badminton player, having competed internationally on the world circuit since I was 19, first capped for Scotland at 20.  

By the age of 24 after far much more ‘erroring’ than trialling, both personally and professionally, I pretty much had to stop playing for a year.  My debts had mounted up and my badminton career was on a one way ticket to the toilet.

I had transgressed career wise into the licensed trade (pubs and clubs!)around that time, if anything only tripling concern for those around me and probably rightfully so. But the trade has served me well, I worked up rapidly, as a barman, through to manager then to owner.

Positions of greater power seemed to be facilitating more flexibility, earning more and working less and then indirectly finding myself with more options again.

But I was becoming progressively aware of an area of my life that I knew I hadn’t done myself justice in.  Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock...

At 24 and 25 I hadn’t trained and hardly played badminton at all, and things were getting a little ropey on the court to say the least.  By January 2006 a time for change commenced. I decided for a little employment sabbatical, and started training again.

I nearly quit three times in the first month, I was finding it brutally hard to see anything constructive in what I was doing. Ropey was a kind description of my game through those first few months.

However I dragged myself through to April 2006 where I played my first international in two years in Lima at the Peru International,which turned out to be a massive turning point.

In Peru I met and teamed up with Richard Vaughan from Wales, British No.1 at the last two Olympic Games and world No.7 in 2004. Richard was returning from an acute illness and injury, and we seemed to share some common goals and as our tournament calendars for the next six months virtually mirrored each other, we decided to travel together to these events, cutting hotel costs and giving each other a daily training and practice option, sometimes hard to find when on constant tour. Richard is now my coach.

From not being even on the world ranking list and getting humped in the Peru International by a third rate Brazillian, by May 2007 I was ranked number 58 in the world, was top seed at international events, won my first International event, signed a club contract in the Spanish Liga and qualified for the 2007 BWF World Championships.

Things developed dramatically in the space of 12 months. From May to September 2007, I decided to throw a little caution to the wind in an attempt to best prepare for the biggest event in the world, and I stayed and trained in Asia for 6 months, playing predominantly on the Asian circuit for tougher competition. I lost in the World Championships in Kuala Lumpur in August 2007 to World No.11 Ronald Susilo from Singapore 23-21 21-17, holding set points in the first game.

From September 2007 I decided to base myself again in Scotland.  I owned a bar in Glasgow City centre and decided to focus attention on that, make some money and refill the pot. I didn’t enter one international event from September through to April 2008, but continued to play club matches in Spain every fortnight or so, making some money and again refilling the pot.

In May this year I sold the leasehold of the bar and threw myself straight back into international badminton. My ranking had dropped to the mid 300s as a result of non-ranking event play.

I’ve been shooting up the rankings again, and have stayed in New Zealand since May as a more apt base for skirmishes in and around Oceania, Asia and the Americas.

In the last eight weeks alone I’ve won my second World Ranking event, made the semi finals of a World Grand Prix and, in the last fortnight, made the main draw and final 32 of the China and Hong Kong Super Series tour events.

How did it go? Well draws couldn’t have been tougher for a start. In China I was drawn to play the Beijing Olympics Bronze Medallist and current All England Champion Chen Jin from China in the first round.  That game was so physical it couldn’t have ended quicker.

Then last week in Hong Kong I was drawn first round to play Lin Dan the world number one, Olympic and World Champion, and lost 21-10 21-10.

But it’s been a fantastic opportunity to play two of the best players in the world, one of the best of all time. I’ve been given an acute benchmark of the level. I’m a player that’s travelled far and wide, I’ve lived and trained in varied environments all over the world, and I suppose if you talk to me, I talk like I know my stuff.

However knowing about it all and being on the receiving end of it are two completely different things. What pisses me off more than anything is the emails from well wishers and friends “Did you get his t-shirt??”... Why would I want his T-shirt? I want to beat him. How did I feel? Really? Honestly? SMALL.

I’m not in the business of feeling small, I’ve qualified for a World Championships and acquitted myself well at the highest stage in the world, but if you ask me the one think that would directly influence the end of my career it would be thinking that this is all I might ever be at this level.

I spend my own money to compete at this level; I don’t spend that money to make up the draw, to be first round cannon fodder. No thank you. That said, the experience is one of immense fortune, and something I will move forward rapidly from, I will not be back to Scotland for Xmas / New Year for the first time in 27 years, I will train every day, I’ll cry if I have to. For that one chance, just that one chance to walk back on that court in January and have him ask me for my t-shirt.

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