Promotion to the Premier League for Sports Journalism graduate

THE PREMIER League is beckoning for a sports journalism graduate from Staffordshire University – after his football club was promoted following a nail biting end to the season.

Steve Garland, who graduated with a BA(Hons) Sports Journalism degree in July last year, joined Norwich City as a Media Officer at the start of the season.

The club had just been promoted from League One and was set on consolidating their new status in the Championship – but their success has seen them launch into England’s top flight.

Steve, 21, from Cardiff, said: “It has been a really tough two years at the club so everyone – the players and staff – are delighted to be going into the Premiership.

“The hope at the start of the season was to stay up in the Championship so it hasn’t quite sunk in yet that we’re going up again. It’s very special and to think we’ll be playing against Man United and Arsenal is incredible.”

Norwich City’s one nil victory over Portsmouth earlier this week was enough to secure their promotion – with one game remaining – after Steve’s home team Cardiff City lost three nil to Middlesbrough earlier in the evening.

He said: “It was quite a roller coaster ride of emotions because I’m a Cardiff City fan and they lost their chance of promotion. I was disappointed they lost but on a professional level I was very pleased for Norwich.”

Steve has been working in football clubs since the second year of his course at Staffordshire University, when he did some work experience at Cardiff City.

After impressing the bosses, he was offered freelance work writing for the club’s website, contributing to the match day programme and putting together reports on the players.

He said: “In my second year it became apparent that the way into sports journalism was through football clubs’ press offices so, as part of the course, I got work experience at Cardiff, which was a fantastic opportunity.

“There are quite a few students from Staffs Uni working for clubs in the Championship now.”

He added: “The course has taught me a lot because it covers a wide aspect of journalism – writing, photography, broadcasting, editing and other technical aspects – and that stood me in good stead for getting a job. And my lecturers, Mitch Pryce and Peter Brooks, were very helpful – I learnt so much from them.”

Mitch Pryce, Award Leader for Sports Journalism at Staffordshire University, said: “I’m delighted for Steve who is demonstrating the full range of multi-media skills we teach at Staffordshire. With Norwich’s promotion we now have alumni working at more than half the Premier League clubs. Not bad for a course that only started producing graduates in 2007.”