Aylesbury footballer Ellen White speaks about her life in football on and off the pitch

Aylesbury-born England and Manchester City star Ellen White recently took part in a panel discussion where she discussed life on and off the football pitch.
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The discussion entitled 'Up Close and Personal' was organised by Manchester City Women in partnership with DYLON colour catcher at the club’s Academy Stadium.

The panel was moderated by sports presenter Jacqui Oatley, who spoke to Ellen White and her Man City team-mates Janine Beckie and Aoife Mannion about their lives on and off the pitch.

One of the main themes running through the discussion was 'the importance of having a passion away from a profession' with the aim being to encourage people to get out of their comfort zone and try something new.

Aylesbury born footballer Ellen White takes part in a panel discussion with some of her Manchester City team-mates about life on and off the football pitchAylesbury born footballer Ellen White takes part in a panel discussion with some of her Manchester City team-mates about life on and off the football pitch
Aylesbury born footballer Ellen White takes part in a panel discussion with some of her Manchester City team-mates about life on and off the football pitch

The video clip shows Ellen discussing her love of German football, showcasing how people can intertwine their profession with their passion.

German football was the inspiration for Ellen's infamous celebration that was one of the highlights of England's World Cup campaign earlier this summer when they reached the semi-finals of the tournament in France.

In the video Aoife discusses how she recently attempted open water swimming – an activity she says “was harder than most football sessions” while Janine spoke about her passion for interior design, revealing she spends her time off the pitch watching house renovation shows.

When looking at the nation’s hobbies, a survey commissioned by DYLON Colour Catcher, one of the UK’s top laundry sheets, revealed that we are a bunch of book worms with reading named as the UK’s number one hobby [57%], followed by travelling [41%] and gardening [37%].

Respondents admitted the key reasons they enjoy their hobby is because it doubles up as a stress reliever [45%], helps with mental health [39%] and provides a break from technology [21%].

In fact, the most popular time people do their hobby is at 12:45pm on a Monday, followed by Wednesday at 1:15pm, which the authors conclude could be a way to maximise their lunch break and escape the nine to five routine.

Although hobbies provide numerous health and wellbeing benefits and can assist with professional growth respondents cited lack of time [40%], finances [27%] and motivation [24%] as the primary reasons for quitting.

DYLON Colour Catcher’s marketing director Nikki Vadera said: “We are thrilled to have partnered with Manchester City Women to bring you this panel discussion.

"Hobbies are a brilliant way to get away from the hustle-and-bustle and do something that you really love.

"It’s encouraging to see that people in the UK are mixing up their lifestyles with their passions.”

Gavin Makel, head of women’s football at Manchester City said: “The panel discussion has been an engaging way to kick off our partnership with Colour Catcher.

"Like our players, we can see that the nation has a plethora of passions including football, which for us, is the biggest of them all.”