Currumbin-based Andrew Raines has been kicking goals his entire life, now he’s playing a business blinder.

The One on One Football CEO, an ex-Richmond Football Club, Brisbane Lions and Gold Coast Suns Player, launched the online business in 2018 after 12 years of playing and a few years coaching.

This year, One on One won the Sport Technology/Innovation Award at the Gold Coast Sports Awards.

“It’s about connecting players with a good high-level coach in your local area for one-on-one sessions,” Raines said.

“We have grown into what is now a pure coaching platform and a lot of online education and resources as well as coach mentoring and development of young coaches.

“We’re also in schools where we have provided high performance consulting.”

One on One CEO and founder Andrew Raines

Raines said he had an “incredible team” of coaches, with more than 200 Australia-wide working with the business in the past five years.

“Kids go to team training and coaching which is great but there was nothing out there that could really hone in on their individual skills,” he said.

“I was lucky, I had a famous father – Geoff Raines – who played the game – he was a premier player for Richmond in 1980 and a Hall of Fame winner and he played over 250 games.

“We get a lot of our business where I’ll be coaching the kid and the parents will give me feedback that they will listen to me.

“We’re also offering a scouting service, but not in the traditional sense. This is where a coach will go and watch you play and give you feedback on your game.”

Raines said the current split of male to females being coached was about 80/20.

“We’d love to work with more women players. When the incredible AFL women finish their careers in 10 to 15 years we’ll have a lot more female coaches,” he said.

“The girls are developing a bit of a passion for the game.”

The top three states for the business were currently Victoria, South Australia and south-east Queensland.

“South-east Queensland is really a growing market with the influence of the Gold Coast Suns here, it’s a great market to be in,” he said.

“I was born in Melbourne, but we moved up here in the Brisbane Bears days in the late 80s. My parents fell in love with the lifestyle.

“All I wanted to do as a kid was go to Melbourne to play at the MCG but now I’m an adult I want to live on the Gold Coast.

“Post COVID all of the southerners are moving up and driving the passion for the game here.”

Raines said a name to watch was Jed Walter, who was currently in the Gold Coast Suns Academy.

“He should be a really good player,” he said.

“If you don’t have grit and determination and want to be the best you won’t go too far. It’s probably killer instinct.

“With skill set, kicking and clean hands (handling the ball with one touch) are fundamental.

“I love what I do. To make a difference in a young person’s life, it is not just about footy. Maybe one percent of payers will get drafted and play and carve out a career.

“It’s more about community and training with your team and keeping kids on the right path.”

As for the future of the business?

“We’ve had a few chats recently about growing the business,” he said.

“People in their 20s and 30s want to do things quickly but I’m learning it’s more steady as she goes.

“Everyone is watching their spend post COVID and we are in uncertain times. A lot of parents spend money on their kids which is important.

“We want to build a strong foundation for what we do. The bigger picture would be moving into other sports and we’ve got the tech there to do that.

“We just want to nail what we are doing well, first.”