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Current and former players met for the first in-person PCA Futures Conference in two years, as PCA members took time to focus on their personal development during the off-season. WATCH VIDEO

The two-day Futures Conference returned to the England national football team training centre at St. George’s Park this year, as players were able to gain expertise from guest speakers and discuss career transition with one another in an in-person setting at the impressive facility.

Sixteen players who are currently representing – or have recently represented – 13 different professional teams were in attendance at the event which saw them take part in numerous activities, exercises and discussions designed to give them clarity on their options for a future second career.

The final session of the event saw a careers carousel where PCA members including Will Porterfield, Tom Poynton and Vishal Tripathi shared their own experiences of the property, investment banking and medicine industries with the players.

Representatives from Lodders Solicitors, who are the lead sponsors of the Futures initiatives, also sat on the carousel having earlier presented to the group on how best to pursue a career in law.

Later this year, the PCA Futures Awards will take place at Lodders’ head offices in Cheltenham for the very first time to reward PCA members who have taken steps for their personal development. You can find more information here.

Other speakers at the Futures Conference included former Liverpool striker Neil Mellor, who gave an inspirational talk on his own experiences of career transition. PCA members Harry Gurney, Chris Nash and Adam Rouse, who was featured by the PCA earlier in the week after opening his own F45 gym, also hosted an informal discussion based on their own recent career changes.

The average age of retirement from the professional game remains at 26, and the PCA has now assisted 268 players into their second careers since 2012. The Association is therefore proud to reaffirm its commitment to supporting players in this area which remains a cornerstone of its industry-leading Personal Development and Welfare Programme (PDWP).

The Futures Conference was the headline event of Futures Week 2021, an initiative designed for all PCA members, from those at the outset of their career to those who have retired from the professional game.

Running from Monday 1 – Sunday 7 November, Futures Week encourages cricketers to consider their second careers and start planning ahead as they look towards the future.