Hampton Captains Series: Conrad Knight
By Harry Morris and Theo Payne
We interviewed outstanding keeper and captain for Hampton’s 1st XI, Conrad Knight. He has been playing in the first team since the Fourth Year and has not looked back since. He has won two county cups and most importantly, was part of the team that won the prestigious English Schools’ Football Association (ESFA) cup of 2023 – when he even got his own chant from the Hampton supporters!
He is now joint captain of the 1st XI with Jamie Wilson as they look to lead their team to more glory and, hopefully, another trophy or two.
ESFA is the biggest trophy in school football, with around 370 teams entering this knockout competition, meaning you need to win eight games in a row to become champions. We talked first about his ESFA final win against Shrewsbury School, which was only the second time Hampton have won this title in their history and which Conrad understandably described as “one of my best experiences ever.”
He found walking out was a bit intimidating as it was his first time playing in a professional stadium, especially one that large, but those butterflies soon floated away as the crowd surged behind him and his teammates when they stepped onto Stoke City’s pitch. Him and his teammates were given an extra boost of confidence given that they had already beaten Shrewsbury twice that season, both times 2-1, and he loved playing in front of a big crowd including his family and friends.
He especially loved hearing his own name in a chant that was made for him, with the final result giving the Hampton faithful due reward for their tireless support, making the victory ever sweeter. Despite some nerves, he said that before the match he was confident that “if we played our football, we knew we would win” and it must have been a very special moment to lift such a prestigious trophy.
It also compensated for what he described as one of the lowest moments in a Hampton shirt, losing 3-1 at home in the ISFA semi-final to a strong Royal Russell School not long before.
Unfortunately, this season hasn’t gone as well as he would have hoped so far, with the 1st XI sadly finding themselves out of both the ESFA and ISFA competitions earlier than anticipated. Nonetheless, in the Hudl league, Knight’s side have recently hit a rich vein of form, climbing to 1st in the table following a slow start. Conrad thought that the 1st XI could have possibly done even better but have been unlucky in some matches.
We also talked about how he feels about being captain this year and what it means to him. Knight is really honoured to be captain as only a small selection of boys gets to do it and it is something he has always wanted to do growing up at the school.
Knight believes that leadership is the most important quality for a captain to have, being able to talk to your teammates and bringing the team together, while also being there for others. He also thinks that you need to help the younger first team members, as they are the ones that look up to you, just as he once did when he was the youngest player back in Fourth Year, looking up to previous captains.
So, has Conrad always been so successful at football? Conrad tells us he has always been in the As except for the first match in First Year, where he was in the B team, but he was swiftly moved up straight after that. He has been the captain since Third Year, although he now he shares it with Jamie, who had also captained the side in the First and Second Year.
His team have always been strong, although they were unfortunately slowed by COVID, which Conrad reckons was a time where they could have won a few more trophies for Hampton.
Despite being a goalkeeper, Conrad has actually scored in the past, scoring a goal at the end of a penalty shootout which they eventually won a few years ago, he told us fondly. Football has always been the sport for him though he has dabbled in other sports such as rugby or tennis and in the summer, he tells us he likes to play in Hampton’s Social League with his friends as it’s a bit of fun as it takes his mind off upcoming exams and revision.
Conrad was quick to praise his coaches, above all the Director of Football at Hampton, Mr David Burke, as the most helpful coach he has had: “he knows what’s he’s doing and has got a lot of experience in this field” and it helps that they started Hampton in the same year and have been together throughout. He also praises Mr Hurst, who is also coaching the 1st XI this year, saying that “everyone likes him and he is a great presence to have around.”
Finally, we went on to talk about Josh King who has been a rare talent for Hampton, Fulham and England; indeed, he captained England U16s and has played for Fulham U18s and U21s, as well as starring for Hampton’s first team in the ESFA final when he was just in Fifth Year. Conrad says that “you would definitely want him on your team” rather than against you as he is impossible to tackle and “he glides across the pitch.” Conrad tips him to go on to do great things and he is proud to say he’s played alongside him.
Hopefully Conrad’s captaincy and performances will continue its outstanding heights for the rest of the season and beyond. He’s got a busy footballing schedule for the next term, with at least 12 more matches including the London IS Cup Round of 16 and the potential of Hudl league glory. It was great talking to someone who has achieved so much in Hampton football.
