Tommy Wright: Aberdeen FC exit mistake and Leicestershire Police

Tommy Wright will always regret walking away from Aberdeen.

Aberdeen paid Darlington £100,000 for the former England under-20 international in August 2008 and there was an air of excitement following the arrival of the former Leicester City attacker.

But Wright’s career in Scotland was cut short due to niggling knee injuries which restricted him to just 22 appearances – and two goals – in 18 months at Pittodrie.

One setback after another, from his knee to a change of manager after Jimmy Calderwood departed in 2009, resulted in Wright giving up on his career in Scottish football.

It is a decision he wishes he did not make.

Wright said: “I loved it up there and I would have stayed around a little bit longer if I was a little bit older – a little more mature.

“But when you’re injured and you’re a long way from home, everything tells you: ‘I’ve got to give this up. I’ve got to start afresh somewhere else’.

“It probably is one of my career regrets, to be honest with you, actually walking away when I did.”

Calderwood’s unwavering belief in Wright – even after he failed medical

Wright was 23 when Calderwood – who died last month at the age of 69 – offered him the chance to try something new in Scotland.

Having made his Premier League debut in his hometown club Leicester City, Wright had dropped down the divisions to England’s League Two.

When Calderwood came calling, offering a switch to the Scottish Premier League, Wright found the Aberdeen manager’s sales pitch impossible to resist – that’s why being unable to repay his manager’s faith in him was such a big source of frustration.

Aberdeen FC manager Jimmy Calderwood with Tommy Wright at his Dons unveiling. — Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood with Tommy Wright at his Dons unveiling. Image: DC Thomson.

Wright said: “Jimmy sold the club and Scotland to me. I knew the history of Aberdeen so it was an honour to even be linked in the first place.

“But then once I came up and Jimmy showed me around, I was sold on him and coming up, as he really wanted me.

“He believed in me, he rated me to the point where he wanted to pay some money for me, and I wanted to do it for him.

“When I moved to Aberdeen, I knew – even though I’d failed my medical the first time around in the summer – that the deal was still on the table.

“I rushed my fitness back if and I probably got thrown into it too early.

“Missing pre-season in 2008 was massive for me and I think it was just a knock-on effect from there.”

‘I was gutted when Jimmy left’

Wright’s first season at Pittodrie would be Calderwood’s last, with the Dons boss departing on the final day of the campaign after guiding the club to a fourth-place finish and qualification for the Europa League.

Calderwood’s successor was Mark McGhee – and Wright’s hopes of impressing his new boss suffered a blow from which he struggled to recover.

He said: “I wish Jimmy had stayed around at the end of that season, because I think he was the one who knew that once I did get fit, I could have showed my worth more than what I did while I was up there.

Tommy Wright climbs over David Van Zanten of Hibs in a game at Easter Road in 2009. Image: DC Thomson

“I was gutted when he left, to be honest, it was a real sucker-punch at the end of that season. We had qualified for the Europa League, but then he was gone.

“It was a shame, really, for me and for him, because I thought we did all right. I thought we finished the season quite well.

“But, with hindsight, changing managers was the final straw for me.

“Mark McGhee came up and then I got injured in pre-season when I hurt my knee again, which I think was the final nail in my coffin, to be honest.

“But that’s life, that’s football. I look back and I don’t see Aberdeen as a negative for me.”

Wright’s struggle to get career going again after Aberdeen

Having joined on a three-year deal in 2008, Wright was freed midway through his contract.

League Two outfit Grimsby Town offered the Englishman a return to a division he knew well and had thrived in, but Wright’s post-Pittodrie career followed a familiar pattern of one short-term deal after another.

He said: “Once I left Aberdeen and went to Grimsby, I thought I would be able to pick up the pieces again and it’ll all be good – and it just wasn’t.

“I went back to a league which I moved to Aberdeen from, that I was scoring in, and had the confidence that I’d continue to score goals, and I could go again.

“But it just didn’t work out from that point.

“I took that gamble of a short-term contract at Grimsby, but we were in the relegation zone.

I’m 40 now and I still feel like I can run around and play football.”

“Although you have that confidence in yourself, teams are in the relegation zone for a reason – they’re not scoring goals, they’re not creating chances and they’re losing games of football. Atmospheres in stadiums are different and it’s everything that comes with that.

“I look back at my career now and I can go back to my time at Aberdeen, my time at Grimsby, whatever. But when you’re not scoring as a striker, you’re aware that that’s what you’re paid to do – that is your job.

“It does get you down and you pick up injuries along the way and then others play and score.

“You feel lost as you’re going down the pecking order and it’s hard to play catch-up, it really is. That was the biggest one for me.”

Wright believes managerial chance came too soon

Grimsby would be the first of nine post-Aberdeen clubs for Wright, with the last two teams – Corby Town and Nuneaton Town – signalling steps into management for the attacker.

Wright was named player-joint manager of Corby Town at the age of just 29 in 2013, and was placed in sole charge at the end of the 2013-14 season.

He guided his club to promotion from the Southern Football League Premier Division, but the club were relegated from National League North the following season.

Having hung up his boots, further managerial stints at Darlington, Stratford Town and back at Corby Town followed – but Wright believes he made the move into management too soon.

He said: “I look back now and at the time it felt right because you kind of see your career probably within five or six years of a normal retirement.

Tommy Wright in action for Corby Town, contesting a high ball against Dover Athletic in an FA Cup first round tie in 2013 — Tommy Wright in action for Corby Town against Dover Athletic in an FA Cup first round tie in 2013. Image: Shutterstock.

“I was thinking: ‘Can I do this? Should I do this?’

“People around me at the time told me: ‘Don’t go into it too soon. Once your playing career is done and you can’t physically do it anymore, you’ll miss it.’

“I shouldn’t have gone in as early as I did and I do miss it.

“I’m 40 now and I still feel like I can run around and play football. But in reality, I could get nowhere near it.

“I feel like I wasted a few years more of playing to try management, but, at the same time, I did enjoy the managing and we had initial success.”

From the red of Aberdeen to being one of the boys in blue

Football had been Wright’s life since a teenager, but in his mid-30s it was time for a change – and what a change it has been.

Tommy Wright, football manager, was no more.

Step forward, Leicestershire Police Constable Tommy Wright.

It has been a change Wright has loved making – even if he had no desire initially to become one of the boys in blue.

He said: “We were in Tenerife just before lockdown when my wife spotted the advert to join Leicestershire Police.

“She got on me a little bit, saying: ‘Come on, do it.’

“I applied for it when we were on holiday, about an hour before the closing, so I literally left it to the last minute.

Former Dons striker Tommy Wright, who now works as an officer for Leicestershire Police, pictured in his uniform standing beside a police car — Former Dons striker Tommy Wright now works as an officer for Leicestershire Police. Image: Leicestershire Police.

“I had never done anything else in my life other than football. I never had any aspirations to be a police officer by any stretch of the imagination.

“But I think it was the whole lockdown thing.

“I realised I need a settled job now. I need a new career, something else to focus on.

“It has been a lot to take in during such a short period of time, but I’ve got no regrets.

“My dream was to play football. I achieved that.

“But this is a career for me now. This is something that will see me through to retirement – hopefully – and I enjoy it.”

‘If you can play at Ibrox, you can handle a little bit of disorder’

Being on the beat in Leicester has made for some interesting moments for Wright given his background.

But the former Don insists his past career as a footballer has served him well in the last four-and-a-half years in policing.

He said: “You know that feeling you get when you see someone out and about, and you think: ‘I know their face from somewhere but I can’t place them?’

“I’m that guy now and I get it a lot in and out of uniform.

“At Leicestershire Police, we actually have our full name on our collar.

“I see people clock my face, but then they clock my name. That’s when they then stare at you a little bit more.

“It’s funny because I find myself standing there, thinking: ‘They know, they know.’ And then it comes out – but honestly, it’s always been a positive for me.

“Each day is different. It’s a challenge, as you’re probably fully aware, but I genuinely enjoy my job.

“It’s good to meet new people. I think one of my strengths is talking to people in hostile situations.

“I think if you can play at Ibrox and places like Parkhead, and even Aberdeen in a big game, you can handle a little bit of disorder.”

Foxes fan was arrested by hero Wright

Given Wright’s progress from the youth team to the first-team at the Foxes as a youngster, it was inevitable his former career and his current one would cross paths while on a shift.

He said: “The weirdest incident I’ve had is having to arrest somebody where my face was on a poster on their wall in their living room.

“It was the most surreal thing – which obviously a lot of my colleagues found highly amusing!

“That was probably the worst part.

“And then the poor guy didn’t actually realise it was me until we were in custody booking in.

“One of the custody sergeants got involved because he spotted the man had a Leicester City tattoo on his hand and had some fun with it, which is a bit naughty – but it went down well.

“We all saw the funny side of it.”

Wright still enjoys football socially

He may be 40, but Wright can still be found kicking a ball about – when work commitments allow – as a member of his police force’s football team.

It has not been without its rewards, either.

Wright said: Joining the police has kept my career going, actually, as we’ve got a force football team.

“We’ve done really well, won quite a lot of leagues and cups.

“We’ve been over to the Euros, which was played in Salou last year.

“We all went away and played in that, which we didn’t do so well in – but I think that’s more down to the fact how much drink we had prior to the game.

“That was probably self-inflicted and my own lack of resistance didn’t help. It wasn’t a good idea.

“But it’s been brilliant. Honestly, it’s been really nice.

“Socially it has been good for morale, and for me, it was nice to meet people early on – because the organisation is massive.

“You have front line response police officers, but then you’ve got all these different units… in uniform, out of uniform. But we have this thing in common of playing football.

“It’s just a real good social, a lot of ways of meeting other people, and yeah, a bit of networking. It’s been really good.”