James Bannatyne has never been one to shy away from a challenge. The former All Whites goalkeeper is now preparing to jump from 15,000 feet in Tauranga to raise funds for the Graeme Dingle Foundation. The tandem skydive, scheduled for Saturday, December 14 (rescheduled from November 30^th due to bad weather), is raising funds to support youth development programmes across Aotearoa.

“I wanted to do something to help young people in the community, and this seemed to be a good way to do it,” says Bannatyne, who has lived in Tauranga since 2016. He discovered the foundation through a networking event and was impressed by its work with tamariki and rangatahi.

The Graeme Dingle Foundation builds resilience and life skills, helping young people overcome challenges—something Bannatyne deeply relates to.

James Bannatyne and Isaac Tetteh at Olé Football Academy

Helping Others on and off the Pitch

Bannatyne’s commitment to others is well-known in football circles. Just ask Isaac Tetteh, the Ghanaian coach Bannatyne helped bring to New Zealand in 2016.

Bannatyne and Tetteh met in 2013 at the Red Bull Soccer Academy in Ghana, where Bannatyne was coaching, and Tetteh was the first team goalkeeper. When the academy was closed, Tetteh asked Bannatyne for help to emigrate to New Zealand for new opportunities.

“Isaac wanted to play professional football. I was honest about the opportunities in New Zealand – he could play football, but he would need to make a living as a goal keeping coach. While making a living would not be easy, with perseverance he could provide a better life for himself and his family” Bannatyne says.

Bannatyne helped facilitate the visa process, which took two years. 24 hours after his first plane trip, he took to the pitch with Ngāruawāhia United.

Tetteh has thrived in New Zealand, playing and coaching in the Waikato, at Olé Academy in Wellington, and now coaching at Auckland United.  He has contributed to international campaigns, including Fiji’s U-19 Men’s team World Cup qualification, the New Zealand OFC U-16 girls team, and the Football Ferns Olympic Qualifiers. 

Two years after Tetteh arrived, his wife and son Joseph (middle name Bannatyne) arrived. Bannatyne, his partner Claire, and baby Liam then invited Tetteh and his family to live with them in Auckland for a year, to keep living costs down and help the transition from Ghana.

“James has been the backbone of my life in this country,” says Tetteh. “Without his support, I don’t know where I’d be.”

James Bannatyne and Phillip Mango in the Solomon Islands

Life-Changing Support

Bannatyne is a Goalkeeping Consultant for OFC, and regularly delivers programmes throughout the region for goalkeepers and Goalkeeper coaches.

In the Solomon Islands, Bannatyne met goalkeeper Phillip Mango, a young Goalkeeper who attended an OFC Goalkeeping Course in 2012. At the time, there were no goalkeeper coaches in the Solomon Islands, and Mango was keen to learn more.

“We didn’t have any goalkeeper coaches, so it was a bit challenging for us to train the basics. What we’d do is just look and learn from clips that we’d seen on YouTube or that we watched from any film.”

Mango has gone on to achieve quite the resume, representing the Solomon Islands at U-17, U-20, then the senior national team 33 times.

After the birth of their daughter Leonar, Mango and his wife lost two children during childbirth complications.  Bannatyne, in New Zealand with children very similar ages, wanted to do something to help the family. He organised a fundraiser in New Zealand, through his football connections. The funds raised were given to the family, who put this towards her education at Woodford International School in Honiara, Solomon Islands. Phillip and his wife Rosie welcomed a baby boy this year in April, Jayven Mango Bannatyne.

From the 2010 World Cup to Coaching Future Stars

Bannatyne was part of the All Whites squad at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Over a 20-year career, he played for the Football Kingz, Miramar Rangers, Auckland City, Wellington Olympic, Petone, and Canterbury United, collecting National League titles along the way.

Since retiring, he’s become one of New Zealand’s most active goalkeeper coaches. He is a consultant for OFC, and serves as a FIFA goalkeeper instructor.

He worked for FIFA as the Sales and Marketing Manager in Hamilton for the FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015, at WaiBOP Football as Commercial Partnerships Manager and Goalkeeper Development Officer from 2015 to 2020.

Through his coaching service INGOAL, which he’s run for 12 years, Bannatyne continues to nurture young talented players and coaches.

For Bannatyne, whether it’s mentoring coaches like Tetteh, supporting players like Mango, or jumping from an aircraft for charity, the goal remains the same: helping others overcome obstacles and realise their potential.

How to donate

James Bannatyne has raised more than $7,000 towards his fundraising goal of $10,000.

You can donate through his Givealittle page: https://givealittle.co.nz/fundraiser/james-bannatyne-drop-for-youth-wbop-2024

Learn more

You can find out more about the Graeme Dingle Foundation here: https://dinglefoundation.org.nz/

Article added: Wednesday 11 December 2024