Former Arsenal Vice-Chairman David Dein was in town this week and stopped off at ARK William Parker where he delivered an inspirational speech to the school’s Year ten pupils.

were invited by Speakers for Schools to attend the motivational talk at the academy.

Mr Dein is a businessman and football entrepreneur, he was Vice-Chairman of Arsenal, Vice-Chairman of the Football Association (FA) and has served on numerous UEFA and FIFA committees. He was also President of the Arsenal Ladies team, which has consistently been one of the best performing teams in the UK. And it was Mr Dein who had the foresight to bring Arsene Wenger to join Arsenal and under their leadership the team won a total of 18 trophies – including the League Cup five times and the FA Cup five times too.

Teacher Mrs Iglinski who organised the event said: “David talked to our students about Arsenal and the founding of the Premier League; he explained how the team wanted to be one of the best, playing in one of the best leagues. He outlined how through television rights the league has, in 26 years, become one of the most watched in the world.

“He explained what a manager might look for in his players and team, and what a manager must be like for the team to be successful. Pride, reputation, hard work, originality and remembering you are part team, are just some of topics he used to motivate and encourage our students ‘to be the best.’”

There were simple examples of how a team can be stronger than an individual, Mrs Iglionski says: “David asked a student to break a single pencil in half, which he did, and then asked him to break 11 pencils which were bundled together – he tried really hard but could’nt do it. This task showed our students the importance of working as a team.

“David has been at the forefront of many important changes including the use and introduction of Goal Line Technology,  Video Assistant Referees (VAR) and referee’s magic spray. During the talk he demonstrated from, a number of clips, how this technology is used, then, to the amusement of the boys, went on to spray lines all over the hall floor!

“It was a great privilege to have David, who has had such an influence at one of the world’s top football clubs, come in and talk to our students. The variety of topics discussed and the way in which they were presented totally engaged our students.”