A PLAY RANGER is swapping the recreation grounds of East Lancashire for the basketball courts of Vietnam to coach players at the top level.

Following his passion for the sport, Neal Hopkins will be looking to establish a national team in the Asian country.

He said: “I’ve been working in professional basketball over the last year and have run academies for four years so it’s really the work that I have done and the contacts that I have made and I just got asked to go out and do it.

“It will be a completely life-changing experience and I’m going out there not really knowing what to expect, but with an open mind.

“It’s for a year initially, but that depends on how I do.”

Neal, who lives in Buckshaw Village, and has worked at Chorley Council for three years, has worked with professional club Mersey Tigers as well as coaching with the England national team.

“This is the first professional team in Vietnam and it’s an up and coming sport in the area. Volleyball is one of the most popular sports, particularly for the taller athletes, so the challenge will be to get more people to play basketball,” said the 24-year-old.

“It is huge in China and the Philippines and it’s expected to go that way in Vietnam and I hope to play my part in that.”

Neal took the long-haul flight to Vietnam yesterday, and starts his new job at the Saigon Sports Academy, in Ho Chi Minh today.

Neal said: “It’s a real life-changer for me, but my ambition is to become one of the top basketball coaches and if I want to get into professional sport this is one way of doing that.

“The worst case scenario is that I come back after a year with this fantastic experience behind me. I’ve heard the streets are meant to be pretty wild, so it will be a complete culture shock, but I’m really looking forward to it.”

The matches will take Neal across south east Asia, travelling to countries such as Thailand, Cambodia and the Philippines.