From being a factory worker to scouting the current Nottingham Forest captain and spending over 400 games as kitman for Lincoln City, Terry Bourne has had a wild journey through football,
The 56-year-old’s job involves way more than just putting out shirts and socks.
Terry is the kit and equipment manager for Lincoln City, a club he’s supported since the 1970s. He said: “I can remember my dad taking me to games from a young age, I grew up through Graham Taylor’s period at the club. I just watched football and as a kid you get drawn to it.”
Nicknamed ‘Bourney’, the Kitman was made redundant in 2011 from his full-time factory job and stumbled into the football world.
After a period volunteering as a scout at Nottingham Forest, he became assistant first team kitman. During this time, he highlighted the potential of a certain Ryan Yates, who is the current Forest captain.
“I discovered him when I was a scout, he was playing down the road as a seven-year-old boy; to see him playing now is a massive thing for me,” he said.
Terry made the move to Lincoln City in 2017, as the Imps returned to the English Football League. This followed a phone call from his friend and club legend Danny Cowley.
He explained: “I knew him through player recruitment, and he said we want you. I have a very good relationship with Danny and Nick, we stay in contact. Every manager, member of staff and player you work with needs to be a good relationship and I’ve always had that.
“I like to think that former players would come back and shake my hand and that’s something that I really value when it happens.”
His role as kitman extends far further than most would expect, with a number of responsibilities throughout midweek and matchdays.
“I get in in the morning and get training kit ready, get the balls all pumped up. After training, I wash and launder all the kit ready for the next day.
“Matchdays are all about the preparation, for an away game I pack everything in number order and get to the ground four hours early. Some changing rooms like Stockport’s are tiny which makes it more challenging.
“People don’t recognise but I have to sort the boots, the studs, the shinpads. There’s lots of hidden extras, like pre-season camps we pack up 15 bags of kit and equipment and I have to make sure everything gets on and off the plane.”
Lincoln City have been on quite a journey since 2017, with the Imps winning League Two and coming heartbreakingly close to a playoff victory and promotion to the Championship at Wembley Stadium.
These are some of the highlights of the job, Terry said: “Wembley was a highlight even though we lost. The semi-final of the playoffs, the win at Sunderland during COVID had 10,000 fans but it felt like over 40,000. Beating Sunderland was very high but losing to Blackpool in the final was horrible.
“The League Two winning side was a really good relationship and the win at MK Dons, 2-0 away from home, is one that sticks out as a really good day.”
That win on the April 6, 2019, secured the Imps promotion to League One, a day that Terry cherishes.
He said that he is proud of players he’s worked with achieving success on the biggest stages of football, adding: “Brennan [Johnson] you could see was going to the top, and Morgan [Rogers] came in in January, only 18, but you could see the professionalism.
“Another I worked with was Harry Toffolo, we keep in contact a lot and to see where he is now, I’m absolutely buzzing for him.”
His role inside the changing room has come with a number of stories of the mishaps of professional football, he recalled one time he was particularly worried.
“I can remember Michael Appleton losing a game during COVID and hitting the tactics board so hard it flew across the room, smashing into the wall and narrowly missing the goalkeeper. It hit the wall and broke, it just fell. Everyone stood in silence and I just thought, how the hell am I going to get a new tactics board by Saturday?”
“I see all sorts of funny stories, managers having 12 players on a line-up, players slipping in showers. Things do go wrong but fortunately I haven’t dyed any shirts yet. I’ve spelt a few names wrong but no one noticed thankfully, touch wood I haven’t forgot anything yet,” he chuckled.
Terry recently completed his 400th game for the club, something he said made him proud.
His pet hate though is players swapping shirts without telling him, he added: “I have to be on the ball and make sure everything is right. Every Sunday morning, I hang the shirts up and make sure if they are ripped and if I need new shirts.”
With the latest season concluded, Terry Bourne remains a beloved figure at the Imps.