WILL FULLER
A BIT ABOUT ME
My Story...
I grew up in a small village in Suffolk and was educated locally. I have always been an active person and my parents and grandparents played a big part in my early years as they continue to do so now. Through my playground friendships I developed a keen interest in sport from an early age and began playing football competitively from the age of 7. I completed my GCSE's in 2009, around the same time as I was offered a 2 year youth scholarship with Salisbury City which led to me leaving Suffolk just before my 16th birthday.
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I lived and studied at Sparsholt College, Hampshire whilst completing my scholarship and learnt a lot about myself from moving away from the comforts of home at that age. I enjoyed my two years in Hampshire but due to the clubs ongoing financial troubles that eventually led to the club being dissolved, no youth team players were offered contracts. As a result of this, I decided to continue heading West towards Cardiff to study Sport and Exercise Science at UWIC (now Cardiff Metropolitan University).
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After a 3 year undergraduate degree and, I began an MSc in Applied Sports. Undertaking a masters degree gave me a lot more contact time with lecturers which I enjoyed, culminating in a dissertation thesis entitled 'Stress mindset in elite football; the impact on coping and well-being'.
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Throughout my university experience, I looked to immerse myself in as many opportunities as possible, several of which came via the Students' Union. Through connections made, I was made aware of a bar job in my second year before being offered a Santander backed internship for 3 months in my 4th year. This led to being offered a one year contract as the UMAX Intern whilst I wrote up my MSc dissertation during my 5th year. In March 2016, I ran in the student elections and was voted in as Student Union Vice President for the 2016/17 academic year.
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Since the age of 7, I have been heavilly involved in football, playing for local clubs, County representative sides and the elite development sides of Ipswich Town, Norwich City, Cambridge City and Southend United before signing with Ipswich Academy. Football has played a huge role in my upbringing, teaching me many lessons about myself and others and giving me some unforgettable experiences. With the recent success of Cardiff Met FC winning 3 league titles and promotions in 4 season we now compete in the top division of Welsh Football, the Dafabet Welsh Premier League.
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I am always looking for ways to develop myself in all areas whether that be attending coaching courses and conferences, CPD events or reading articles and I am an ambitious individual. When I'm not playing, training, coaching or working, I like to spend my down time relaxing with friends and if possible, getting home to catch up with my family. I enjoy watching all sports, cooking and socialising.
TESTIMONIALS
Will presents a mature and caring demeanour almost beyond his years. This translates into thoughtful and considered contributions and questioning. He is quite able to see the bigger picture and, if unsure, confident to question to seek clarity. It is evident that he is a team player but also his own man. When he speaks at Board meetings he is listened to and his contributions are appreciated by even the most challenging of Governors and I particularly appreciate his thirst to learn about corporate and governance issues.
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Will is an excellent ambassador for the University and has represented us on many external occasions, not least travelling to our overseas partners to ensure they feel included in the Student Union and checking that their experiences are mirroring those on our UK campuses. The ability to talk to all people from all walks of life is a competence everyone should have but it eludes many. I have witnessed Will fit into all manner of environments recently as a member of our master estate plan dealing with property developers, architects and financiers. His social skills are mature beyond age, a great asset.
Barbara Wilding CBE QPM- Cardiff Metropolitan University Chancellor and Chair of the Board of Governors.
William has overseen and supported a number of changes in the area of Internationalisation that seek to better support international students as well as enhancing cultural integration between home and international students in the local community. This includes undertaking overseas trips to partner institutions, the establishment of two scholarships for students seeking asylum, and managing the annual International Partner Conference.
I have found William to be a positive contributor to the University’s and SU’s international goals and have been impressed by his focused attitude, his skills and performance.
Professor Mohamed Loutfi- Pro Vice-Chancellor International, Cardiff Metropolitan University
I've known Will for a number of years as he has coached my son on a weekly one to one basis since he was 9. I was delighted that he took on the role of coach at Lisvane Panthers. He is highly professional and clearly has a fantastic knowledge of football which is evident in the structured learning sessions he puts together.
He has an eye for detail and can identify both the strengths and weaknesses of players and teams and can adapt his delivery accordingly. Most importantly he makes sessions fun and engaging for children so that they learn in an entertaining and enjoyable manner.If you are looking for a coach, Will comes highly recommended.
Matt Millard- Founder and Director, Boardroom Golf.
MY CV
My journey so far...
As I progressed through college and into University, I was keen to gain experience of the working world. As such, I have had many typical student jobs. These positions have taught me many important skills and lessons both about the sectors they are in and about myself as a person. I am a very ambitious individual and I'm always looking for ways to further develop myself in all areas. My most recent positions are listed below.
PRESIDENT & VICE PRESIDENT
August 2016 - Present
Cardiff Met Students' Union Vice President. Voted in as Vice President I have been the voice of the students at Cardiff Met University for the 2016/17 academic year. Focussing on academic representation, capturing the student voice and student societies I have been involved in making student centred University wide changes. In August 2017 I was elected as President and have gone on to represent the Students' Union on a national and international stage.
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UMAX INTERN
April 2015Â - Â August 2016
Working to promote the UMAX training and development initiatives to students and staff to raise the profile of UMAX and the Students' Union. I used a range of marketing strategies within a budget and timescale, demonstrating the results through student numbers signed up to services and workshops. Some examples of the projects I worked on during this role can be seen on the 'My Work' section of this website.
STREET TEAM- GLAM NIGHTCLUB
June 2013Â - September 2015
Promoting club nights through both physical and social media, liaising with the city's partygoers to organise physical ticket sales and operating on the streets around the club as part of a team in order to inform passers by of the club nights and drinks deals.
Research and Projects
ACADEMIA
I have been at Cardiff Metropolitan University (formerly UWIC) since 2011 and have enjoyed my journey as a developing academic. I originally enrolled on my undergraduate degree, BSc Sport and Exercise Science with a view to becoming a backroom staff member within the sports science department at a professional football club.
As I began to learn more, it became clear that my main interest was in psychology which led to the dissertaion project 'How might reflective practice help athletes to develop more accurate perceptions of performance as a way of improving future development?'. I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to present my work in poster format at the 2014 BASES Undergraduate Conference at Portsmouth University. On completing my undergraduate course, I enrolled on the MSc Applied Sports Psychology course.
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Undertaking a masters degree gave me a lot more contact time with lecturers as well as independant study time in my particular area rather than having to look at several disciplines to complete modules. I particularly enjoyed the counselling module and lifespan development modules and my MSc has made me think of athletes as people and consider them as a whole rather than just a sports perofrmer.
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Despite not having much experience in the area, I have an interest in autoethnographic research, through reading and talking to friends working in the area of sociology. This is a type of research I am keen to explore in the future.
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MSc Thesis: Stress mindset in elite football; the impact on coping and well-being
Using an elite group of female footballers at a European football tournament qualifying group stage, I observed the players to see the demands and responses to stress they experienced whilst at the tournament. The Stress Mindset Measure (SMM) was used before the departing but not analysed until after in order to give no pre-conceived perceptions as to how the different players would respond. Upon analsying the SMM and observations, selected players will be interviewed to clarify their feelings regarding the demands placed upon them and their responses to these stressors.
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BSc Thesis: How might reflective practice help athletes to develop more accurate perceptions of performance as a way of improving future development?
This study aimed, therefore, to investigate the effects of reflective practice on perceptions of performance of an athlete in a team sport setting. The study explored: (a) factors influencing perceptions; (b) the impact of reflective practice on self-awareness and changes in perceptions; and (c) the effect of such changes on training regimes. Using a case study approach, an elite, female football player was purposively selected to participate in a six week (six match) data collection period. Specifically, player perceptions were assessed at full-time and at 48 hours post-match, following a period of reflective practise, using a modified version of the EASDQ. During the 48 hour post-match collection period a brief interview was also conducted to explore changes in perceptions of performance. Finally, a social validation interview was conducted following the final game to examine the participant’s experience over the entire study. Findings indicated that reflection facilitated a change in perceptions of performance, from negative interpretations to more positive ones. The participant placed high importance on critical match incident and the opinions of significant others when reflecting. The participant noted that reflecting improved her awareness of strengths and weaknesses of each performance as well as her overall ability, leading to changes in her training regime. Consequently, reflection could be a useful tool in analysing and tracking performances as well as highlighting specific attributes that are vital to performance. Findings of the study give an indication as to the usefulness of reflection to in a team sport setting and have the potential to guide applied sports practitioners in their delivery of reflection to team sport performers.
FOOTBALL
I have been involved in football since the age of 7 and have always played in goal. Football has taught me a lot about myself and others, allowed me to visit some fantastic places and make life long friends. The recent success at Cardiff Met FC means we now play in the top teir of Welsh football, the Welsh Premier League. In the last few years I have begun coaching both 1 to 1 and group sessions as well as a local youth team for one season before time commitments became an issue. I plan to continue playing for as many years as possible and continue my coach education.
PLAYING
Cardiff Met Football Club
​2011 - Present
BUCS Premier National Winners- 2016/17
Welsh League Division 1 Champions- 2015/16
BUCS Premier Play-Off Winners- 2014/15
BUCS Conference Cup Champions- 2013/14
BUCS Western 2B Champions- 2013/14
Welsh League Division 2 Champions- 2013/14
Welsh League Division 3 Champions- 2012/13
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Salisbury City Football Club
​2009 - 2011
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Two year youth scholarship with the club who were in the Blue Square Premier (Conference) at the time. I made a handful of reserve appearances. Released after my scholarship and had unsuccesful trials with Cambridge United, Burnley, St Mirren and Newport County.
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Ipswich Town Football Club
​2009
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Signed during the under 16's season, played a couple of Under 18's Youth Premier League games and was listed on the bench several more times. Trained with the first team on day release every Tuesday.
COACHING
First Team Goalkeeper Coach, Cardiff Met LFC
​October 2014 - August 2017
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First team women's goalkeeper coach at Cardiff Met LFC. 2014/15 and 2015/16 back to back Welsh Premier League champions, 2016/17 FAW Welsh Cup and League Cup winners. Winning the league means qualification to the UEFA Women's Champions League qualifying group stages which I have been to now twice as a coach.
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Key responsibilities included designing and delivering sessions twice a week to the first team and being involved in match analysis using Studiocode software. I also ran video analysis sessions with the goalkeepers and used TPE and TPA for feedback and reflections from the goalkeepers.
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Lisvane Panthers Community Coach
​August 2013 - July 2015
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Volunteer community coach delivering to the under 13's youth side at their weekly training session. Planning and delivering football sessions in a safe and fun environment in which every child can develop both technically, tactically and socially.
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Private Goalkeeper Coach
​July 2009- Present
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I have coached goalkeepers on an individual basis since 2009, working with children between the ages of 8 and 14.
MY WORK
Projects, skills and attributes...
PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
Through my work with the University and from football I have a lot of experience with external engagement and the media. I have lead many public events and given presentations at academic conferences, have dealt with the press in newspapers, on websites, on radio and television and have been involved in events such as Show Racism The Red Card community engagement days.
VIDEO CREATION
I have been involved in several video projects including this Carpool Karaoke to promote the 2016 student elections. I am experienced in both filming and editing videos and more examples of my work can be seen on the Cardiff Met SU YouTube page.
TEAM LEADERSHIP
As Vice President, I am responsible for overseeing a team of more than 400 students who are involved in the representation structure at Cardiff Met. The structure involves four levels including School Reps, Lead Reps and Course Reps.
GOVERNANCE AND BOARD MEMBERSHIP
I have experience of high level board and committee membership from my time at Cardiff Met. I am Student Chair of Welsh Student Sport and sit on the BUCS Advisory Boards. I am also a member of the WhatUni student advisory board. I have prepared and presented papers and delivered reports to multiple boards and the University governors. I have chaired meetings and can contribute positively to decision making process within an organisation.
I hope this site has helped to show a snapshot of my work and life, please don't hesitate to get in touch to discuss future opportunities or collaborations!
