Rachel Mair is just one of a number of coaches working with our young players in the Glasgow City Academy. The 23-year-old began coaching as a teenager and in this interview we put a spotlight on her journey.
Joining the club in March 2024, Mair now primarily works with our U15s Next Gen team. In this role, she is helping shape players who could be the future of Glasgow City. It's a responsibility and challenge she embraces.
We chatted to Rachel at our Petershill Park campus to find out more about her experiences as a coach, her time at City and how she hopes to make an impact on the wider landscape of the Scottish game...
You started coaching at 16 years old, what made you take that first step?
"I was playing at Giffnock at the time. I was the captain of the team. They asked me to come down to one of the U14s sessions.
"I went and gave them a bit of information and stuff then from there I got involved as a coach. I absolutely loved it.
"I was only two or three years older than them, but being able to give them my knowledge, offer my personality and support – all things I wish I had when I was their age – was great. I could definitely see myself pursuing it.
"From there, I went and got my badges and Giffnock supported me to my C Licence. Then I went to Motherwell. I went to Hearts when I was 19 which was a great experience."
You have previously said you want to make a name for yourself in coaching. What does that mean and look like to you?
"I just want to be an influential figure for the women’s game.
"Being a young woman myself and seeing the impact I can have; I want to keep flourishing and being able to give the best possible experiences and opportunities to girls who want to play the game.
"I wish I had that when I was younger. I never really had a character as a role model to bounce off of, or to be emotional with, and to be open and honest with.
"That’s my personality. As a coach, I want to develop the football side of things and blend it with my personality and who I am as a person."
How has Glasgow City been able to facilitate that? And how has the club helped your own development as a coach?
"I used to play at the club when I was younger, so I know the club through and through. I know the identity. I know what it means to be at the club.
"To be working here as a coach at the club and to have gone full circle is brilliant.
"The development of the club since I was a player here is great; the facilities, the gym, the analysis, the standards of coaching. It is amazing to see, and the club are still championing women’s and girl’s football.
"The club know themselves there is still more that can be done because the game is always growing and improving.
"Keiron McAneny (former Head of Player Development) brought me in as a coach, took me under his wing and really gave me a platform.
"He gave me an opportunity to be myself and to be me as a coach. That made me feel valued, my opinions were heard, and it felt like my ability was shining through.
"I do feel like in this environment I can be completely myself and be authentic. That’s the beauty of being at this club.
"I love the values the club have because they are all about championing women and girls in the game. We’re not a side quest or an afterthought, we are the primary focus, and I love that.
"The players, even at a young age, already have so much pride in wearing the kit and they are proud to play for Glasgow City and a lot of that is down to our values. We are caring, we are kind, we are team players and we’re authentic."
We have our Easter Camps starting next week. Why are these important and why would you encourage girls to come along?
"They are so important because City is giving girls the platform to come in and get that first positive exposure to football.
"All we want is for these young girls to come in and have fun and play in a safe environment. If this is the first time they are kicking a ball and we’re responsible for that, it’s something I take great pride in.
"The coaches taking the camps love being able to give this opportunity."
In generations gone by, it was a rarity to be coached by a woman. How important is it for you being that figure to look up to for the girls you coach?
"I don’t think I relish it enough.
"As female coaches, we are really valuable to the Scottish women’s game. We can be trailblazers, and if we’re trailblazing and younger kids can see us and decide they’re also interested in coaching then my work is done.
"If I can be one of the first female role models a young player has then that’s great. But, that’s why I push myself and why I thrive for success all the time. I want to develop and want to change the attitudes towards female coaches."
What is it like coaching a generation whose opportunities are endless? These young girls could be the future of our game in Scotland and have the chance to do so as professionals...
"Especially with the young ones and those in pre-academy, it’s so valuable that the best coaches are in that environment because they are the future.
"If we can teach them the best skills, the correct techniques, make them the best decision-makers, and develop them as people then they absolutely will be the future of Glasgow City.
"Going back to the Easter Camps, they are so valuable because when the kids come along, we see their ability. We have signed up a lot of our pre-academy kids from camps like these."
You are the only woman on the first cohort of the SFA’s Elite Coaches Development Programme, what has that been like for you?
"I got the call saying I had got a place, and it was me and nine other men. I was a bit shocked, but I was told I had got my place out of merit, and I take a lot of pride in that.
"It has made me feel very valued and very confident to see the SFA invest and value a female coach like me.
"It’s been a fantastic experience. I’ve learned so much from it. It’s been such an educational journey and something that I have taken in my stride.
"I’ve really tried to implement it into my coaching identity. The course is still going on, but it really has been a great networking experience and a great confidence builder."
You mention coaching identity; how would you describe your approach to coaching and your philosophy?
"I think I have the right personality to be a coach in terms of being emphatic, caring, and having a great balance of being firm but fair.
"In terms of my coaching identity, it is being someone who is incredibly knowledgeable, someone who the players can respect and listen to but also someone they can have a joke and a laugh with and can be emotional and vulnerable with. It’s about having a balanced approach.
"I’m always learning. That’s the thing with coaching; you’re constantly evolving and I’m very open minded with that.
"I’m a tactical coach. I like to know the why’s and the how’s, and the ifs and what ifs. I like to be very intricate and to know the small details.
"That is important for youth football because if you can try to fine tune those details when they are young, then they grow up and have that in the bag already and have experience of it."
What is the big picture aim for you here at City and in the future? What are your big aspirations in coaching?
"I want to work in the Scottish game. I have a real passion to improve the Scottish game, and I want to play my part in that.
"For me, teaching the pre-academy kids the best elementary techniques and skills, so that when they go up the pathway, they have been working on all the correct actions from an early age.
"My skillset is working with people, so I think that is my bigger picture. I don’t know what that might look like, but hopefully it is still working in Scotland."
There are still places on our Tomorrow's Trailblazers (ages 11-15) Easter Camp which begins on Monday 7th April and runs until Wednesday 9th. You can book a place here.