NSR soccer prospect Josh Vogrinec (VIC) has a life long passion for soccer. Coming from a long family line of soccer lovers and players, it was only natural that he was born with a love for the game. From birth, Josh was introduced to the game when his father bought him a soccer ball and a full supporters kit for Real Madrid. He first started playing soccer at the age of 4 and finished at the age of 6 to take up basketball for a short lived time before returning to the pitch just a year later.
At the age of 11, Josh suffered a severe tare in his hip muscle, which put him on the bench for a year and a half. Upon returning to the Monbulk Under 13s team, Josh struggled to keep up with the athletic level of his soccer teammates. Despite the challenge that Josh faced when bringing his athletic ability back to meet that of his fellow players, giving up was never an option for this young player “…soccer has always been in my blood and I will never stop playing…”
With the help of his father, Josh started to partake in sprint training to increase his endurance on the field along with intense skill sessions to improve his game. Gradually, Josh returned to making his mark on the field; starting back as goal keeper, Josh was able to moderate his running until he returned to his full potential. Years later, Josh has moved forward to take on a defence position on the field, finding that his strength lies within defence rather than an offence position. Josh is a testimony to those athletes who refuse to give up on the sport they love even faced with an injury.
It was November 2014 when Josh received a letter to trial for NSR Australia. Once Josh learnt a bit about what NSR stood for, he was excited to further the opportunity “…with NSR I am going to get an education and it allows me to grow as a player … it makes it easy for athletes to take their football career as far as needs be and once your sporting career has finished you retire and have a degree to fall back on…”
In preparation for his departure to the US in 3 years, Josh has a full training schedule. Partaking in a number of clubs within his area, Josh trains for countless hours each week to ensure that he will reach his peek fitness and athletic ability by the time he leaves for the US.
This week, NSR has had the pleasure of hosting Josh as a work experience student here at NSR HQ. Josh gained an insight into what goes on behind the scenes of the programme that is sending him to college. A great learning curve for this young prospect, we were curious as to what he personally learnt about his experience. Josh had this to share with us “…a lot of time and effort goes into the placement programme process, it has opened my eyes to the fact that NSR has great experience within the process of sending athletes to college. I was initially sceptical about the programme; however, after seeing the countless hours of work that the staff at NSR do to simply place athletes, I feel as though I’m in good hands…”
NSR wishes Josh the best of luck with his upcoming training leading up to his departure to the US in 3 years. Keep your eyes open for a check in with this promising athlete in the near future!
