For many Football League academy graduates, falling just short of breaking into the first team usually means having to evaluate your future in the game, with many taking the leap into non-league football in a bid to carve out their own niche.

More players than ever pass through the academy system and find themselves on the shelf, looking to catch on with teams outside the elite 92. And with the vast majority of non-league teams part-time, the chances of keeping alive the dream to play professionally are slim at best.

British footballers have long been seen to live in a bubble. Ask most fans to name 10 Britons who are plying their trade abroad, in any league, and the chances are, unless they have some encyclopedic knowledge of the European game born out of endless hours on Football Manager, they would struggle.

You get past Gareth Bale and the odd ex-Premier League player playing in the MLS and who have you got? And when you limit the list to players who are in their prime playing overseas then the task becomes a whole lot more difficult.

But for one Englishman, he took a leap of faith 12 years ago and made the bold decision to leave British shores in search of first-team football after failing to break through in the Football League.

Chester-born Ian Jeffs grew up playing the game on the pitches around his Newton home and honed his skills at a junior level with Blacon Youth Club. A talented midfielder, Jeffs played for the Cheshire Schools side and spent time with the Chester City Centre of Excellence until becoming part of the lauded Crewe Alexandra academy at the age of 10.

One-time Crewe Alex manager Dario Gradi and secretary Gill Palin, with Ian Jeffs when he signed pro terms with the club
One-time Crewe Alex manager Dario Gradi and secretary Gill Palin, with Ian Jeffs when he signed pro terms with the club

He spent a decade at Reaseheath, playing alongside the likes of future Premier League stars such as Dean Ashton and David Vaughan. He was a stand out player in that group and continued to make headway at Gresty Road, eventually forcing his way into consideration for first-team duty with the Alex, who were then a Championship side.

But despite knocking on the door, Jeffs found himself on the fringes of the squad and a loan spell away from the club looked to be the best option for both parties. His destination was not one he was expecting.

Culture shock

"There was a lot of quality in the Crewe academy then and the likes of David Vaughan, Dean Ashton, Michael Higdon and people like that were all in my group trying to break through," said Jeffs, now 33.

"It was a great club to be at as a youngster and they were ahead of the game at the time when it came to the academy and people have followed suit since. But I was 21 and at the age where I needed to be playing senior football.

"Stoke City were owned by an Icelandic group at the time and an Icelandic team called IBV were asking if there were any good players in their academy who they could take on loan for a brief spell.

"Stoke's academy wasn't particularly strong at the time and they put them in touch with Crewe. A game was organised for them to scout us and then the coaching staff asked how many of us would be prepared to go over to Iceland to play for a bit. Only about six of us put out hands up and two of us were chosen.

Ian Jeffs in action for Crewe Alex under-19s
Ian Jeffs in action for Crewe Alex under-19s

"It was all a bit daunting at the time but it was exciting at the same time. It wasn't somewhere I had envisaged myself making my debut but, before I knew it, I was in a foreigh country and playing in a foreign league."

Jeffs, along with fellow Alex graduate Tom Betts, arrived on loan at Icelandic top flight side IBV, a club based on the island of Vestmannaeyjar just off the south coast of the mainland with a population of just over 4,000.

"It was a culture shock, it was just so cold, but you pretty much expect that when you go to Iceland," said Jeffs.

"There was no language barrier, though, as Icelanders like to speak English to you, and they speak it very well. If anything their willingness to speak to me in English hampered my learning of Icelandic. Thankfully, I'm fluent in Icelandic now.

"The league was competitive and I was enjoying myself and the chance to play football. That was the most important thing to me."

Jeffs made 16 appearances on loan at IBV, netting three times in the 2003 season but headed back home at the end of his spell with his sights firmly set on breaking into the Alex first-team.

He had looked to be making headway and made his debut for the club in an FA Cup clash with Telford United on New Year's Day 2004. But that breakthrough was to prove a false dawn for Jeffs who wouldn't feature for the club again. Facing the reality that his time with Crewe was nearing it's end, Jeffs was left facing the drop into non-league football and an uncertain future, until a chance to head back to IBV and the Úrvalsdeild turned up.

Returning to Iceland

"They asked if I would go back over to Iceland and play for them as they had been impressed with me during my time there," said Jeffs, who attended Kingsway High School in Chester.

"I didn't really want to drop into non-league football and I wanted to keep playing full time, so I thought it would be a good move for me and my career. My intention was to stay in Iceland and then see how things went. Maybe spend a season or two there.

"I ended up playing a lot for IBV over the next couple of seasons and I was enjoying my football. I had an agent and we discussed the chance of me moving on and trying my hand elsewhere. My stock in Icelandic football was quite high so I though that I would try and see if I could find a club in a higher Scandanavian league."

Jeffs did just that and, in 2006, moved to Sweden to sign for Örebro SK, a club playing in Swedish football's second tier, the Superettan.

He was a mainstay at the Behrn Arena during the 2006-2007 season and helped the side return to the Sweden's premier domestic league, the Allsvenskan, at the end of the campaign.

"We had a good season over there and it was enjoyable but I ended up returning to IBV at the end of the season," said Jeffs.

"I had started to put down roots in Iceland, I had a girlfriend and a new born son and Vestmannaeyjar had become my home. I'd gotten used to the bitterly cold winters, the football season running from May to October and the near 24-hour daylight for parts of the year.

"I didn't have that urge to go back to England and play over there. The reality was that I would probably have to play in the Conference or something and the risk just wasn't worth it."

Family ties

Jeffs moved from IBV in 2008, remaining in Iceland to play with Fylkir, a club based in the capital Reykjavik and currently managed by ex-Crystal Palace and Portsmouth defender Hermann Hreidarsson.

A season there was followed by a season with Valur, also based in the Icelandic capital, in 2009, but a return to the island that Jeffs now calls home came the following year. He signed once again for IBV, a club with whom he remains.

What had been viewed as nothing more than a brief sojourn to a foreign land in 2003 has brought Jeffs a family of his own, too. He and his girlfriend of over decade, Siga, have two sons - Liam, 10, and four-week old Erik.

And Jeffs, who was coached at IBV by ex-Chester City striker Siggi Eyjolfsson back in 2014, is eyeing a future in football when he hangs up his boots, a moment which he acknowledges is fast approaching.

"I have been interested in coaching for a long time and have done my badges and it's soemthing I really want to get into after I finish playing," he said.

"I'm 33 now and I think I'll play another season and then see where I am from there. I know the end is approaching for me but coaching over here is very much in my thoughts.

"I have been coaching the juniors at the club and am now the coach of the women's team on the island. Coaching over here has gotten so much better over the past decade or so and there are indoor facilities now and more opportunities than ever before."

And while a regular visitor to the UK to see his family in Ellesmere Port and friends in Chester, a life in Scandavia is one that Jeffs has chosen and where he sees his future in football.

"It's where the opportunities are for me in the game as I have made a name for myself in the game over here," said Jeffs.

"I want to be a head coach at a club either over here or in Scandavia somewhere and that is something I am working hard to achieve. It's an exciting journey."