Kacper Trelowski is a goalkeeper of RKS Raków Częstochowa, as well as a JDU student of physical education. In this year's competition, he and his team have won the Polish championship, just three rounds before the end of the 2022/23 season. For Kacper it has been a very successful season, in which, apart from playing for Raków on domestic and foreign pitches, he has made his debut in the colors of the youth football team of Poland. In the interview, he talks about how to become a professional footballer, how he prepares for next meetings, and reveals how the knowledge of the studies affects his sporting career.
Adrian Kleć: Your football adventure began at Ajax Częstochowa, and soon after you moved to APN. How do you recollect that period?
Kacper Trelowski: When it comes to the beginnings, it was certainly the most pleasant period of my football adventure. We enjoyed the fact that we were running after the ball. It was such a childlike joy of the game. This joy is still there, but then we did not bear any consequences for the mistakes we made. My adventure in Ajax lasted for about three years, while in APN, which was later transformed into the academy of Raków Częstochowa, I stayed until the end. There I started to play more seriously, I started to have some hopes related to football. That is what it all was like back then.
Did you know from the very beginning that you wanted to be a goalkeeper? Didn’t you try playing in the field, for example?
I started in attack as a striker, but the coach said it would be better if I were a goalie. There was no one willing to take this position. And I liked the idea.
David de Gea also took a very similar path. He started as a striker and only later switched to goal. I think that is typical. It is probably rare for someone who starts playing football to want to defend shots and not score goals.
Do you remember the moment you felt football could be more than just entertainment, but a professional sport?
That is a good question. To be honest, I do not remember such a moment myself. It was not until I was 15 when I played for my first team that I started to think about it more seriously. Then I joined a serious team with high potential. They still have it and they are striving for more every season. I think it was that period at the age of 15 when I started to believe I could achieve something.
How did you get to the senior team of Raków Częstochowa? Do you remember how you felt?
The goalkeeper coach asked the academy coach Karol Kuczera which player was worth recommending to the first team. Coach Kuczera appointed me. That is when I got into the first team. We went on camps and I think it was such a breakthrough moment. The beginnings were not easy, but I certainly gained a lot of experience, not only in terms of the pitch, but also life off it.
How do you prepare for the match? Do you have a workout schedule, a personalised diet, or habits that you follow?
I do not have any personalised diet. However, I try to eat healthy. As for habits, I do not think I have them either. I prepare normally for matches and eat according to certain rules. The day before the game or on the day of the match, I definitely do not overeat.
No fast food, no sugary drinks?
On a match day, certainly not. I take it professionally when it comes to the match day and the period approaching the match. You know, the moment when I can afford something less healthy, for example, is a day off.
During this season, you have played several league, cup and foreign matches, but you have also played in two matches of the youth team of Poland: against Latvia and the Czech Republic. How do you remember those matches?
If you play for a national team, it probably does not matter in which discipline, whether it is handball, volleyball or football, it is always pride. That is what you train for, to play for the national team and hear the anthem. The game with the eagle on the chest forever remains in the memory. It is definitely one of those dreams when you start playing football.
Is there a difference between going to a match with an eagle on your chest than with your club crest? Do you then approach it with a greater sense of responsibility, or do you prepare like for any other match?
No, in every match I feel practically the same emotions, the same positive stress that drives rather than beats you down. I do not think there is such a thing as one match being more important to me than the other. I prepare for each one as if it was the most important game of the season and I think this kind of approach can only do me good.
Apart from playing for Raków, you are a student of Jan Dlugosz University in Czestochowa. What is your field of study?
Physical education.
Why did you choose this field? Was it a choice more from a sporting point of view, or did you just want your education to continue?
I wanted to continue my education at university and get a higher degree. I chose the field in which I feel the most confident and safest, because since I was a child I have had experience and contact with sport, not only when it comes to football, but all other disciplines as well. As for the university, I chose full-time studies. I wanted to study in Czestochowa so that I could attend classes before or after training. Therefore, this choice was the safest, most convenient and most comfortable for me.
How does your university knowledge affect your preparation for matches and your sporting career in general?
I think that all the classes are very useful and serve to ensure that the graduate of physical education is well prepared for the future work. As for me as an athlete, it is known that there are individual classes and lectures that are more useful to me. Among them, there is anatomy with dr Janusz Wojtyna, a class from which you can get a lot. The lecturer is passionate and 100% dedicated to his work. When it comes to anatomy, I learned a lot about my own physique. Being an athlete, you are constantly working on your body and it is worth knowing such things. I also had some problems with swimming, but I have brushed up on it a bit. So there are classes that help me a lot. A lecturer also has a big impact on how one approaches a given subject, a given lecture, a given class.
After seven years, Marek Papszun has announced his departure from the position of coach of Raków Częstochowa. How will you remember him? How much did he mean to the whole team?
I will remember him very well. He is the coach who introduced me to senior football and gave me a chance to make my debut in the Ekstraklasa. As for the whole team, I think that he certainly meant more than a lot, because he is a very demanding person who, if setting a goal, wants to achieve it. I believe that you cannot say goodbye to a coach in any other way than just positive.
Thank you for the interview
Thank you.
Author of the text: Adrian Kleć, a JDU student of journalism and media culture (II cycle) and administration (II cycle)
Photo: Jakub Ziemianin