This was published 8 years ago
The email that shattered Andrew Redmayne's hopes of playing for Arsenal
By Dominic Bossi
Every time Andrew Redmayne watched Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny play, he couldn't help but wonder what could have been.
It was during a NSW Institute of Sport tour of Europe in 2005 that the then 16-year-old shot stopper impressed one of the biggest clubs in the world. After keeping a clean sheet in the Institute's shock win over Arsenal's youth team, the Gunners extended an offer for Redmayne to return to the club on an official trial.
One that got away: Andrew Redmayne came so close to a dream contract with Arsenal.Credit: Nic Walker
"It was the last year at Highbury so there was a bit of a buzz around. It was just fantastic being among the first team and the facilities," he said.
On the other side of the pitch from the youth team were first-team goalkeepers Jens Lehmann and Manuel Almunia, while in the corner of his eye, glimpses of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Sol Campbell flashed from the opposite field. Redmayne didn't become star-struck and continued to impress.
Unlucky break: Wojciech Szczesny collects the ball from the back of the net against Stoke.Credit: Getty Images
"We went into [Arsenal academy director] Liam Brady's office and he said he was prepared to offer something to me and mum, which made my heart sink. We said we would think about schooling and how it would all work out," Redmayne said.
His family kept in contact with Brady while making arrangements for the move and were invited to join the club at a seven-a-side tournament in Hong Kong, which was to be Redmayne's final trial before being signed. After sending the club an email with their travel arrangements, Redmayne's brimming confidence was dealt a hefty blow days before he was due to travel.
"They replied saying, 'We just signed a young goalkeeper so we can't have nine goalkeepers for three squads so your services are no longer required,' and so on." he said.
That young goalkeeper was a 15-year-old Szczesny – who would go on to play 181 games for the Gunners before going on loan to Roma.
"You wonder what could have been," Redmayne said. "You sometimes think 'what if?', but I guess it's a learning experience."
Such an experience could have been deflating for any footballer but the Wanderers goalkeeper is far from dejected and fondly remembers his time with the Gunners, to the extent that it turned him into a fan of the club.
"I never followed an EPL team but after that experience I became a pretty big Arsenal fan," Redmayne said.
Now 27, he is between the posts for one of Australia's biggest sporting clubs and relishing the prospect of playing Arsenal in a tour at the end of the season. Former Arsenal star Freddie Ljungberg spoke at the ticket-sale launch of Arsenal's upcoming tour during which they play Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers at ANZ Stadium in July. Fairfax Media can reveal Ljungberg was close to moving to the A-League with Perth Glory in 2012 after leaving Japanese club Shimizu S-Pulse, where he was a teammate of Sydney FC captain Alex Brosque and former Wanderers marquee Shinji Ono.
"The quality [of the A-League] is growing, getting better every year. Of course I spoke to Alex about it, who I played with before, so I know it quite well," Ljungberg said.