FORMER Blues defender Richard Hope has swapped his boots for overalls after retiring from the game to work on an oil rig, writes Alec Doyle.
He fell out of love with football after leaving his last club, Grimsby Town, in February last year, having made just six appearances for the Mariners.
The 31-year-old went on a few retraining courses organised by the PFA instead and took to the North Sea rigs.
“I wanted to do something that would bring in a similar income to what I was earning as a footballer,” he said.
“A couple of friends from school had been working in the offshore industry for the best part of 15 years, so it was something I was aware of.
“I looked at the diving side of the industry but ended up training as a rope access technician, where basically you abseil down the aside of the rig to carry out any maintenance that needs doing.”
Born in Stockton-on-Tees, 6ft 2in Hope made 28 appearances for Chester under Ian Rush in the 2004-05 campaign before being released by the former Liverpool striker’s successor, Keith Curle.
Hope started out at Blackburn Rovers and, after Chester, went on to play for Shrewsbury Town and Wrexham before finishing his career at Blundell Park.
The rig Hope works on is Mercha, close to Norway, and he works two weeks on, two weeks off, giving him plenty of time with his family.
He clears the rig of rust caused by the corrosion of the salty seawater on the metal and paintwork.
It is a dangerous task, where one mistake could see him tumble into the North Sea.
But despite the challenging conditions, he is not looking to return to football.
“Although people tell me I left football too early, I don’t miss it at all,” said Hope in an interview with this month’s FourFourTwo magazine.
