He’s swapped scissor kicks for barber’s shears – but still hopes to cut up the opposition on the football field.
Former Huddersfield Town player Danny Racchi’s footballing career looked to be finished following a series of serious injuries.
The creative midfielder, who joined Town as a seven-year-old and rose through the ranks to play for the first team, is now working as a hairdresser at Gary Pearce Men’s Hair at Wakefield Road, Waterloo, having completed an intensive eight-week barbering course.
And having worked hard on his fitness, he is hoping to combine his new career with playing soccer part-time in the Northern Conference next season.
Danny, who made his Town first team debut 10 years ago, went on to play for Bury and York City before a two-year spell with Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premier League.
A motorway car crash three years ago put him out of the game with a serious back injury.
The PFA players’ union helped Danny adapt to life off the field and helped meet his medical bills – while Danny trained for is new career.
”I was always a little bit vain and took care of my appearance,” he said. “So I thought I’d go into barbering. I took an eight-week intensive private course, but my tutor let me finish after six weeks.
“I worked for a barber’s shop in Oldham, but it wasn’t really challenging enough. I saw the opportunity to join Gary Pearce, who has been named Hairdresser of the Year twice, and got a job with him. He was pleasantly surprised at the level I was at – although I’m still learning new things all the time.”
Danny, 29, who lives at Greetland, said: “It was very frustrating – from playing for Kilmarnock against the likes of Celtic and Rangers in front of 60,000 fans to not being able to play at all.”
Danny worked hard on his fitness and re-started his footballing career part-time with Halifax Town and Torquay United, until injuries to both knees knocked him out of the game again.
Now he and girlfriend Sarah are expecting their first child in June and Danny is determined to put family first. Hairdressing will provide him with a steady income – while playing part-time in the game he loves.
Meanwhile, Danny’s rooting for Town to get promotion. “I played against Aaron Mooy at St Mirren,” he said. “It’s nice to see Town doing so well.
I’ve got a few Huddersfield Town fans among my clients and new customers who are new season ticket holders. Hopefully, I can get some of the players down as well!”
