In the latest of our Coaches Corner series, we spoke to Chichester City’s First Team Coach, and UEFA A License coach, Darin Killpartrick, otherwise better known as ‘Dabba’.

“Go abroad, speak to different coaches, open your mind and put yourself in positions where you're so out of your comfort zone and go for it.”

The fantastic successes Dabba has had as a coach is down to that mentality, not only has he travelled abroad seeing how other coaches operate, he has completed multiple different coaching related courses to fully broaden his horizons.

Coming from Scottish parents, Dabba grew up in Worthing, and after playing for both Worthing United and Worthing, he ended up at Bognor Regis Town with a certain Jack Pearce.

“He’s like a second father to me, a big, big influence,” said Dabba speaking passionately about the influence Jack had on his career as a player and later as a coach.

“He was extremely demanding. He knew exactly what he wanted. I think if you're the wrong type of character, it might have been difficult. It certainly made me stronger as a person and as a player. 

“He told the team at half-time not to pass to me once in the team talk. True story! He said, 'whatever happens in the second half, do not pass to Killpartrick because he is more danger to us than the opposition.'”

“I rolled up my sleeves and went and got man of the match after that! So, he knew the buttons to press with certain players. He knew that would press mine, and it did, he got a great reaction.”

We were fortunate enough to get Jack’s side of the story on this as well who had nothing but praise for his former player.

“Yeah, that’s completely true. The actual quote was, ‘whatever you do don’t give him the ball, because he’s more a danger to us and our supporters, because most of his passes were going out of the ground!’”

“Dabba though has gone on to be one of the top coaches in Sussex, well one of the best coaches in this country really. He was a great lad to manage, and I’m really pleased for how well he’s doing at Chichester, even if it’s affected my own club!”

It was playing under Jack that influenced Dabba’s ideas as a coach which remain to this day.

“From the coaching side, Jack just made me curious about the game from day one and still to this day. 

“We were really the only team to play football in those days. No one really passed out from the back. I caught the end of that wonderful era of playing with some really good players, the twin Pullens, Mick and Paul, Graham Mariner, and Jeff Cooper. Michael Birmingham another.

“Those times were different because Jack made us play in a style that nobody else was doing. It was 30 or 40 years ahead of his time, but Jack was inspired by Dennis Probee, who used to work for Sussex FA, and it goes generationally, it comes down and down and Jack has inspired me and Jamie Howell and a few others.

“Obviously, Dean Wilkins has been inspirational to us all as well. He has been incredible to me throughout my coaching career, alongside Jack one of the most intelligent and thought provoking coaches I have spent time with, I’m extremely lucky to have spent considerable time with them both.”

Dabba started coaching from a young age in the late 80s and developed his skills on FA courses tutored by Mike Yaxley.

“I’ve always known that I enjoy helping people, and the courses just made me open my eyes up to the game. Not just the game but how people understand information and transfer information. That really was it then, that was me in, all in, I knew that's what I wanted to do.

“I worked in America for four summers with Coerver Coaching and my good friend who passed away, Gavin Pugh for Dragon Soccer. He was an incredible man, another inspiration.

“Then when I went to Burgess Hill Town, I went as a player/coach, which was different. But there Gary Croydon gave me some really good opportunities to coach, and I'm always grateful for those moments that he gave me. 

“Somebody gave me a chance and then that led to me giving people chances now. All the clubs that I'm at, I let people come in. It's not an open-door policy, but the university students that come in, I open my arms up and let them come in whenever they can.”

Speaking to Dabba you realise how obsessed he was with furthering his knowledge of the game.

He went on to complete his UEFA B and did it whilst working with Jack at Bognor, he then studied the psychological side of the game, taking levels 1 to 5 of The FA Psychology Course where he states his tutor Dick Bate as a “massive inspiration”.

Dabba continued on, taking his UEFA A License with Dick: “That's when it really captured my imagination on not just the technical and tactical side, but also the psychological side and the physical side of the game. 

“Alongside that journey, obviously the UEFA B goalkeeping as well, I took. I would say that out of all the courses I've done was probably the most daunting. 

“I was the only outfield player in amongst, I think around 26 of us, and they were all like Premier League, EFL goalkeepers. Dean Kieley was one. 

“I turned up with my little goalkeeping mitts with the little bobbles on the end, like the old ping pong ball bats. I can still see it now! They're like, what are they? Give that man a pair of gloves. 

“They looked after me. I was going to come home after the first day, and I had seven days at Lilleshall doing it, but they all really looked after me.”

By this point, Dabba had now completed his UEFA A License in coaching, was up to B License in Goalkeeping and had done all the Youth Modules and Psychology Courses The FA had on offer.

So now it was all about gaining more experiences, and something Dabba swears by is taking yourself to other countries.

“A good friend of mine, Joe Sargison, who's full-time at The FA delivering on the A License now and Pro License, we used to go and take ourselves off to different countries to watch the methodology in coaching.

“I think those trips have been massive eye-openers in my career. Taking ourselves down to Colombia, Athletic National, Millionaros, Vélez-Sarsfield, Argentina, Bilbao when [Marcelo] Bielsa was there.

“There are so many different ones that we went down to and looked at how different people worked and coached. Those are the moments that I had to go and do myself because it was a case of, go and get your experiences now and use what you've learned.”

Dabba states he has always seen himself as a coach rather than a manager, but back at Bognor, he stepped in for an old friend.

“Jack unfortunately was taken ill, so I managed his club for him. I didn't want to do it because I'm not a manager. I don't classify or even talk about myself being a manager.

“I'm a coach, but I did that to help him out. The club was in a tough situation without him. He was severely ill. He had cancer and was getting treatment. So, I looked after his club for him. 

“I manage the national team now, the under-18s with the colleges, but I still prefer the coaching roles. 

“I joint-managed Bognor with Jamie Howell. One thing I've learned is to stay in your lane. My lane is definitely not management and Jamie's is, so that partnership really worked well. That really came together. We just had open and honest chats.

“We were joint managers for a year and then Jamie took over and he managed it, I coached it. We used to have some great conversations going to games, me, him and Dean Wilkins, they'd be talking about playing at Wembley and Francesco Totti and play-off finals, and I'd be talking about, yeah, playing at Bognor!”

Dabba likes to stay modest in that sense when talking about his career but knows the coaching side is where his strengths lie.

“I just like focusing on the coaching side. Dealing with people and phone calls and contracts, it's just not me. I know it's not me.

“On the grass is me. Talking to players about football is me, but not the other side of it. Managing people is not my strength and I've always known that.

Of course, as time progresses with football, coaches have to as well and Dabba details to us how coaching has evolved over the years.

“Back when the courses were at Lilleshall, things were tougher. You'd walk along at like two in the morning, and all the lights would be on in people's rooms, and you'd see tactics boards up, and people moving. It was phenomenal. It was an incredible experience. It really was. 

“You lived it, you breathed it, for a whole month. Then they gave you an exam, and you were told pass or fail. So, it was totally summative. Not anymore, it's all formative, and you can come back, come back, come back. No, then you were told pass or fail. 

“I've had to move and move with the shift. If you don't, if you don't move with it, you can get stuck behind. 

“The younger coaches are tactically aware now, due to modern technology, due to WhatsApp, X, I'm not on social media, but due to social media platforms, there's a lot of tactical good young coaches out there. 

“Whether or not they can apply it to their players is another story but, they're very tactical and if you don't keep sharpening your sword as an older coach, they'll catch you up and they do catch you up and they'll overtake you. 

Dabba says it was “a sad day” to leave Bognor after approximately 1000 games with the club and 20 years’ service.

After a break from the game, he has since taking up the First Team Coach role at Chichester City, a club that has really been on the up since he’s been there.

“Going to Chichester was local for me. It was across the road from where I work, and they just wanted to build the club up slow and steady, and they’ve done that.

“The 3G's gone in, the club worked extremely hard to get that and we went through into Step 4. Main objective is to survive it. We survived it two or three years. Then we had that incredible FA Cup run.

“The luck of The FA Cup people say, but there was no luck getting to the first round that year, I promise you that. That wasn't luck. We did ever so well as a club there. Then obviously to get to the play-offs last year, but there is one main reason for that.

“Graeme Gee, our Assistant Manager, was terminally ill and I'm not too sure we would have made those play-offs if it wasn't for us coming together for him. I'm very open and honest about that. People question me on it, but I think G’s illness really inspired and drove the team up. The stats for running were through the roof. Graeme was a massive part of that promotion, and we all miss him dearly still every day now.”

Away from Chichester, Dabba is also the manager of the England Colleges Under-18s, a role he takes great pride in.

“I got the Under-18s manager's job in 2015, and I've been there ever since. Extremely proud to do that. Had some incredible moments, incredible highs, incredible lows. 

“The only day that I get off is a Sunday and there's been trials, there's going to be games coming up. So, it does take its toll on you. I'm honoured to do it and honoured to have been part of a lot of people's journeys that have gone on to pro football and it is nice to think that I have played just a small, tiny little cog in that.

“Players we’ve had like Iliman [Ndiaye] has gone to Everton, Mickey Demetriou, Omar Bogle, Ben Goodlife to name a few. There's been some great players that have come through there, Sorba Thomas, another one, Jack Nunn as well just got signed by Cagliari.

Dabba has also spent time as an FA Tutor, which he did for 12 years tutoring on the FA Level 1-2 as well as UEFA B, which he says he took “extreme satisfaction” from.

He is now teaching the next generation of coaches at Chichester College and University.

“I don't work for The FA anymore but in my role at the university to see those young coaches coming through and go on to bigger things is wonderful.

“The reason why I do this job is because I love developing coaches, and I love developing people. I have to thank Alex Twitchen and Danny Potter who have both been supportive in this part of my Journey.”

Dabba can reel off many big achievements in his career but emphasises what’s also important.

“The lows are important because they're the big learning parts. The relegations really hurt me and really made me stronger.

“I don't get too high, and I don't get too low anymore, that's for sure. Those lows were extremely low and that built my character. Both the highs and the lows are massive, they're there to be learnt from and they're a real part of it.” 

Lastly, Dabba offered support for aspiring coaches: “Go abroad and watch teams and watch coaches work and don’ just go for that, go for the social side too, go and look at the city, go and eat their food, go and find out.

“Listen carefully and keep your mind open, accept the highs and accept the lows, it’s all part of the journey.” 

“Joe Sargison always said to me, we’re not just going to see the culture of the city. We're going to see the culture of the club. So, all these different moments are so, so important. 

“I was so hungry for information when I was younger that I just threw myself into anything, absolutely anything. As I got older, I'm still hungry, but I don't have that drive or energy that I had then. So, I'm glad I did it then.

“There are not enough hours in the day to take all this new information on. Take the bits that you need and that you find important to your methodology and to your way of playing and your style and use the bits that you need, and that you believe in.”

For more information on coaching in Sussex please contact:

Development
T: 01903 766855
E: Development@SussexFA.com