'Education is paramount'

Paul Tisdale can do no wrong in the eyes of Exeter City fans. After taking them to the Conference Play-Off Final in 2007, he then masterminded back-to-back promotions which leaves the Grecians preparing for life in the third tier of English football for only the fourth time in their 105-year history.

But, not one to rest on his laurels, Tisdale has just started to study for his UEFA Pro Licence as he looks to continue his Exeter adventure.

At the end of June, Tisdale joined the likes of Gus Poyet, Paul Hart and Roberto Di Matteo at the University of Warwick for their first residential week on the Pro Licence and he is already looking forward to the year ahead.

"This course will be very beneficial because it’s a step away from the coaching side of the game and it’s more about business and management, which is vital," he said.

"I’ve found it very informative and thought-provoking so far and we’ve had some terrific speakers on the course and I think I’ll get a lot from it.

"I particularly liked the ‘Business, Management and Finance’ presentation by Chris Brady. It confirmed some things that I’d already believed. It was very interesting to see how your job’s perceived in terms of how successful you are - it’s not always the league table, it should be a correlation between points gained and money spent."

A back injury forced Tisdale to bring his playing career to an end at just 26; a career which included an appearance in the quarter final of the Champions League with Greek side, Panionios. He also played for Southampton, Bristol City, Huddersfield and Finnish side, Finnpa.

This injury might have closed the door on one career but it allowed Tisdale to broaden his knowledge of the game.

"When I stopped playing I took up coaching and I had a wonderful opportunity at the University of Bath," he explained. "I would have coached anywhere though, because you never know where it could lead. It’s still the game of football, it was still my knowledge base. Coaching is definitely a separate career from playing and education is paramount. I'd definitely recommend coaching badges to anyone interested in the game."

Tisdale guided Team Bath to four promotions in seven seasons and was rewarded by being named Team Coach of the England Universities side, who he led to the British Universities Championship in 2006.

Soon after, he replaced Alex Inglethorpe in the Exeter hot seat and he hasn’t looked back since. But now he wants to improve himself and the club by studying for football’s elite qualification.

"It will be tricky fitting the Pro Licence in alongside my work with Exeter, but it’s all relevant and I’ll be able to apply it to what I'm doing, it’s just a matter of whether I can enhance my efficiency by some of the things I have seen during the first week on the course. But the Pro Licence is structured really well, so I can’t envisage a problem.

"Management is full-on. You have a weight of responsibility all year round, but we all want to progress and in management, pushing yourself is a necessity and you should always be looking for ways to improve."

With the full support of the St James’ Park faithful Tisdale is looking forward to his first League One fixture against Leeds United on 8 August, but he refuses to get carried away with Exeter’s remarkable rise.

"My hopes for the coming season are the same as they are at the start of every season – to improve the individual players in my team so, by definition, the team should also improve. I aim to do that while keeping within my budget and hopefully I’ll get some successful results along the way."