My other life: Steve McPherson, Ignition Connect, football chairman

By day Steve McPherson is a director of non-standard insurance specialist Ignition Select. Weeknights and weekends though, he is chairman of National League South football club Hampton & Richmond.

How did you get interested in Hampton & Richmond FC?
I am an ex-Hampton and Richmond Borough FC player. They signed me in the late 1990s and I had a few seasons with them. They are also my local club and the only semi-professional club in the Richmond borough.

What is a match day like in the lower leagues for a chairman?
The life of a non-league chairman never really stops. They say it’s a labour of love, and it truly is. A typical Saturday match day at home starts for me at 9am. I’ll have meetings with the groundsman and health and safety officer, head steward, hospitality manager, kit man and spend half an hour with the manager. I tend to walk around during the game, mixing with the sponsors and the supporters.

What could the Premier League do to reconnect with grassroots football?
Well, apart from more money being filtered down, wouldn’t it be wonderful if every non-League club got a visit from a local Premier League side once a year? A huge gate, great publicity and a helping hand where it matters the most.

How did you get [Sky Sports commentator] Martin Tyler interested in coaching the team?
Alan Dowson, our manager, and Martin Tyler come as a team. They have worked together for more than seven years. They make a great team, as it showed last year when we won the Ryman Premier. A lot of our success was down to Martin. We have an excellent management team.

Are there any insurance-related rivalries in lower level football we should know about?
Stewart Donald at Bridle Insurance is chairman of Eastleigh; they are not in our league. And Ian Donaldson from Autonet runs a team. Ian was a good player in his day.