Kris Doolan is the all-time top goalscorer in the 140+ year history of Partick Thistle. With a Scottish Championship title, a Scottish Premiership top six finish and 124 career goals to his name so far, rather surprisingly, the best way to look at the strength of both Kris as a person and a footballer is by looking at his attitude towards boiled eggs.
‘Pre-match I would always have boiled eggs on toast even though I absolutely hate it. I would have all the windows opened in the house, force it down as quickly as possible and not enjoy it a single bit. I knew it was good for me though and my routine would put me in the best position to perform and have no excuses if I didn’t.’
It is that exact attitude that shows why Kris carved out a career at the highest level of Scottish football despite entering the professional game through junior or non-league football instead of the well-trodden path of a professional academy set-up. Other than an ability to scoff down an egg when his taste buds and nose are telling him to do the complete opposite, what are the other secrets to Kris’s ability to stay coolly composed in front of goal and mentally strong? What is Kris really like as a person?
‘I’ve always been a sociable person but I wouldn’t say that I am too mad or out there. I don’t have a need to be the centre of attention all the time. I’m quite happy just doing my thing and going about my business. I’ve got an older brother and an older sister but I am the youngest. So it wasn’t like all of my parents time was dedicated just to me and football. They had a full family to look after. From that point of view you get to understand and realise that you’re not the centre of attention 24 hours a day.’
Having the security in himself to not constantly need or demand the limelight, you feel, is a subtle but key aspect of the personality that has helped him rise through the Scottish football leagues. Whilst others he knew had been developing at nearby professional academies like Kilmarnock, Ayr United or even playing first team football, Kris had the self-confidence to realise that comparing himself to others and their journey is not a productive mindset. Instead, he realised that everybody has their own pathway and timeline.
‘For me playing in the juniors for Auchinleck Talbot was all about a stepping stone for professional football. I couldn’t tell you when, where or what club, but I knew that if I performed well enough I could go somewhere in pro football.
‘It’s important to remember that there’s no one size fits all journey. If you don’t make it in a youth academy it doesn’t mean it’s over for you. In fact, it’s probably less frequent that someone comes through a specific youth academy and then into that particular first team. It is tough to look around and see people who you possibly have played with or know who are playing at a lot higher level than you and it can feel almost like they are accelerating away from you. Having the right attitude and working hard will determine how high of a level you play at.’
Eventually though, via Kello Rovers and Auchinleck Talbot, at 22 years of age the opportunity for full-time football came in the shape of a call from Partick Thistle.
‘It was amazing when I turned up at Thistle. At that point the club was a shadow of what it turned out to be. When I turned up anyway they had no money. It was a team that was on the rise though, just going through a bit of financial difficulty off the pitch. It didn’t matter what team had made me an offer because I would have taken it at that point and went ahead and tried to turn it into a career. Thankfully for me it was Thistle. I went on and had a long career and achieved a lot at the club.’
Achieve a lot he certainly did. After a relatively tough start to life at the Maryhill club and a goalless loan spell at Clyde, Kris spent over ten years at the club, became a legend and, in the eyes of the fans, someone who reflected everything those in the stand wanted in a Thistle player.
‘I had an amazing relationship with the fans. I loved them as much as they showed their appreciation towards me. All fans ask is you try your best and from my point of view, when I arrived at the club I just felt at home straight away and that showed in the way I played. I know in myself that I play better when I am happy and relaxed, which is why I’ve got such a stringent pre-game routine. I felt relaxed at Thistle, any time I pulled on the jersey I felt relaxed. I didn’t feel under massive pressure even though at that level of football you are under massive pressure. I just enjoyed that pressure so much that it overrided it.’
The suggestion of Kris not feeling too under pressure is an interesting one to think about. After all, he was playing full-time football, live on TV, in the top leagues of Scotland with a mortgage, car and family to look after which were all heavily dependent on his performances. Of course there was pressure. Pressure though, similarly to emotions like confidence, anger and happiness are determined by our own minds and our attitudes towards certain situations or environments. At Thistle though, Kris found the perfect environment to bring out his confidence and composure. This tended to be at its most noticeable when in front of goal, but what is his secret?
‘Being composed in front of goal comes with being able to separate the pressure from outside and focus simply on the thing in front of you. Block out all the outside noise. It allows you to almost slow things down in your head. You feel as if the only two things that matter in your brain is the football and that goal. With that slowing down though, you need to find a way to put it in the net without losing your speed of thought, touch and movement.’
Mental rehearsal, too, Kris says is absolutely vital for regularly firing the ball into the back of the net. Your mind should not be thinking of the magnitude of the moment or the enormity of the occasion, it should be fully focused on the aim of scoring and drawing from previous positive experiences.
‘It comes with experience and seeing these pictures before. Every time a ball gets finished in the box, I have seen that picture a million times. When you’ve seen the picture before you know how it should look. As your experience grows you get a feel for naturally recalling past experiences. You remember that you’ve seen this scenario before, the type of run you made, the correct speed it was and the way you finished it. People say that strikers are naturally instinctive and I agree with that, but they also develop that natural instinct and the ability to see pictures and scenarios.’
With 120 goals in 400 appearances, this technique certainly appeared to be effective throughout his career but especially during his time at Thistle. However, that almost mirror imaged progression for Kris and Thistle soon came to a halt when he was told by the club his services were no longer required.
‘I was heartbroken. I don’t think there’s any way of me hiding that. It was so difficult to hear. It’s one of those moments where your heart just sinks. I didn’t actually find out until the Thursday after the last game of the season. I was called into a meeting and had no idea and hadn’t heard a thing. We were lucky enough to stay up that year on the final day, but I had no idea what was coming. You feel as if you spent ten and a half years at a club and the fans didn’t know, I didn’t know, nobody had an inclination so it was a bit of a hammer blow.’
‘I think it was important for me to understand that I needed to look after myself and pick myself back up. That’s where your experiences in the past can help. Playing in the juniors I was resillent and was able to rely on myself to end up getting a move. You can’t let these things drag you down and then onto the next chapter.’
That next chapter? Greenock Morton following a spell at Ayr United. Now though, playing for part-time Arbroath in the Scottish Championship, Kris has the time to fully focus on the Kris Doolan Football Academy.
‘I set up the academy to help young players. I came through a different path to professional football. I want to show young players the correct attitudes, the way to go about things and approach to training and games. We can make it fun but we also want to make them learn. Myself, the guys that coach for me are all professional footballers. These are people who understand the pressures of football and have a story to tell because we’ve all came from different routes, which I encourage them to tell the kids. I want them to share whatever adventure they’ve been, help guide them and inspire them to know that everybody has their own wee football journey.’
Quick-Fire Q’s
How would you describe yourself in three words?Dedicated, caring and regimental but not like some kind of army major! I just like structure in my life, like to know where I am going. I don’t like just drifting about my day.
How would your family and friends describe you in three words? Sociable, supportive and family-orientated.
Are you more introverted or extroverted?
A bit of both. Whatever the situation dictates. If there’s a karaoke I’ll happily go up and sing because I like a laugh and a carry on, but like I said I don’t feel the need to be the centre of attention. I’m quite comfortable and happy with who I am.
Best piece of advice you have ever been given?
Probably the advice Ian McCall gave me when I signed for Thistle, “talent will only take you so far. A football club can give you a platform but you have to go out and show everyone what you can achieve and bring to this football club.” I’ve played with loads and loads of very talented players but they just couldn’t sustain it for long enough. There needs to be a desire, willingness and very specific education. You’ve got to be educated in a way that isn’t just having intelligence with a football.
