Work experience reporter makes history at FA Cup draw

A University of Northampton student followed in the footsteps of footballing icons such as Pele, Edgar Davids and Glenn Hoddle when he was selected to draw the teams for the official Emirate’s FA Cup draw.

Samuel Ogunleye, who is studying Multimedia Journalism, became one of the first ever students to be selected by the FA to draw teams for the third round qualifying draw, held at Wembley, following a stint of work experience as a match reporter.

“It was unbelievable,” said Samuel, 22 from London. “I mean, who gets to say they took part in an FA Cup draw and had that power to determine which teams will play who in whatever part of the country. They explained to me that usually one person does the draw or they’ll have an ex footballer come in, so for us to get this chance is unreal.”

Samuel and his fellow students are members of the FA Young Reporter Club and have reported on matches in the qualifying stages of this year’s FA Cup. As an added benefit of the scheme, Samuel was entered into an electronic draw to take part in the official FA Cup draw and won.

He added: “It was brilliant being able to be at a game and know that I’ll be writing for such a huge organisation. Just to see my name on the FA website makes all my hard work worthwhile and gives me the confidence and experience I need for this industry.”

As Samuel explains, the opportunity to report on matches for the FA Cup qualifying rounds arose through his Lecturer.

He said: “The work experience came about through Marc Webber our Lecturer, who introduced me and a few other students to a company called Seven League. They created a scheme to give young people opportunities to write match reports for The FA Cup, FA Youth Cup, Women’s FA Cup and Women’s Super League.

“My lecturers have really helped me in getting work outside of University as they always present opportunities to us, but it’s up to us to apply and take it to the next level. Marc especially has helped a lot and without his sharp eye looking out for opportunities I would not have done a lot of the work I’ve been involved in.”

You can see Samuel in action during the draw on the Emirate’s FA Cup official Twitter account.

For more information on Multimedia Journalism, visit the course page.