All-star panel give career insights during Talking Sport conference

Tuesday 5th of November saw our third ‘Talking Sport’ Evening, with over 150 pupils in attendance from the Shropshire region.  

The purpose of evenings like these is to provide pupils with an opportunity to hear insights from those who have made it to the top of the sporting world, with the panel all being at different stages of their career.  

Our all-star line up was:  

Former 3,000 metre international steeplechase runner and now Head of Talent Development for England Athletics, Sarah Benson 

Old Salopian and former Worcestershire Cricket Captain Joe Leach, who took 467 wickets and scored nearly 4000 first class runs during an amazing career.  

Old Salopian Issy Wong. Issy remains the only female to ever represent Shrewsbury School’s boys’ 1st XI cricket team when she was in Lower Sixth and has gone on to play for Warwickshire, Central Sparks, Birmingham Phoenix, Mumbai Indians and England. 

Former CEO of Inter Milan, COO of Manchester United and one of seven members of the Club Financial Control Board (‘CFCB’) which oversees financial fairplay rules for UEFA, Michael Bolingbroke. 

Former Professional Footballer and Senior Scout for the Football Association (as well as numerous top flight clubs) John Marshall. 

Hosted by Old Salopian, Sports Journalist and Broadcaster Jonathan Legard, the panel shared a range of experiences, varying from ‘following your heart’ to the impact of technology and social media in sport, as well as the mindset required to succeed in not just sport, but in any industry.  

An incredible evening, thank you to our amazing panel and host for sharing their insights so openly and honestly. 

Chris Wain

Head of Futures

You can watch the Talking Sport Conference below: