Liam Grimshaw has opened up on the heartbreak of being released by Dundee United – just weeks before becoming a first-time father.
The versatile Englishman was a key part of the Tangerines side that romped to promotion from the Championship last season, making 42 appearances in all competitions after penning a two-year contract in the summer of 2024.
However, he was deemed surplus to requirements following United’s return to the Premiership – featuring just twice in the opening weeks of the campaign – and was ultimately released on the final day of the transfer window.
It left Grimshaw and pregnant wife, Courtney, weighing up their next step following seven successful years in Scotland.
He discussed that challenging journey in a first-hand piece for Nutmeg Magazine.
Grimshaw wrote: “Rejection is one of football’s many occupational hazards, it waits down carpeted hallways like the grimmest of reapers and no one is safe from its deathly sickle.
“From players and managers to chief execs, each pawn in this ficklest of sports is both disposable and interchangeable. It’s something you become accustomed to over the course of a career, but it never becomes any easier.
“My latest September shunning epitomised this more than any other.
“With Courtney heavily pregnant and myself unemployed, the uncertainty hung heavy. We had spent almost a third of our lives in Scotland, creating memories along the way that would last forever.
“We had also met brilliant friends and Courtney had set up a successful business. On the flip side, we had endured some of our toughest days north of the border, with family members passing away and Courtney suffering two miscarriages.
“Although proud Lancastrians, Scotland had become our life. Now that hung in the balance.”
Grimshaw’s homecoming
Despite interest in Scotland – Partick Thistle were reportedly the most active of his suitors – Grimshaw ultimately made the decision to return to his native Lancashire to be closer to friends and family, and last month welcomed baby Luna into the world.
His is still without a club.
“From a personal point of view, my mind was awash with the pros, cons and various permutations that the next step would inevitably bring,” the former Motherwell and Morton man continued.
“On one hand, I was dealing with the loss of my job, constantly checking my phone for a message from my agent or calls from an unknown number that could belong to a manager.
“On the other, the logistics of moving house, caring for my pregnant wife and becoming a first-time father.
“Having played the game professionally for almost 15 full seasons, the selfish part of me would have dived straight back in at the first opportunity. However, as many parents will know, once there’s a baby on the way life becomes about much more than you.
“Turning down contracts was far from easy, but in the end a decision had to be made. Packing up our life, we left the place we had called “home” and actually returned home.”
Uncertainty
He added: “As I write this, uncertainty still shrouds my footballing career, but uncertainty is life in a nutshell. Tomorrow is never promised, so I’ll enjoy what’s in front of me right now. Luna, Courtney and our closest family. The rest will take care of itself.”
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