Leonard Nienhuis, a former goalkeeper who once played against Erik ten Hag, has traded his crossbars for jail bars by taking up a new career as a prison warden. Having played 98 games in the Eredivisie for SC Cambuur in the Dutch top-flight, Nienhuis faced Ten Hag during the latter’s tenure as the coach of Go Ahead Eagles.
After retiring from professional football five years ago, the 33-year-old made a surprising career move and joined the tough Veenhuizen prison in Holland. Interestingly, if Quincy Promes, Nienhuis’s former opponent, returns to Holland, he might find himself locked up by the ex-goalkeeper.
Promes, who currently plays for Spartak Moscow, has been sentenced to six years in prison for drug smuggling, as well as an additional 18 months for wounding his cousin. Dutch authorities are actively working on extraditing the troubled winger from Russia to serve his sentences.
Nienhuis, in an interview with De Telegraaf, stated that if Promes lands in Veenhuizen, he will be treated like any other prisoner, without having to wear an orange jumpsuit. Nienhuis also mentioned facing Promes during his time at Cambuur when Ten Hag was coaching Go Ahead Eagles, asserting that he won’t be easy to get past.
Reflecting on his decision to become a prison warden, Nienhuis shared that while he was still playing football, he thought about his future. Inspired by his father-in-law, who worked in a prison, Nienhuis underwent training and ultimately secured a permanent position there. He expressed his desire to reintegrate into society and spend more time with his family.
Nienhuis’s football career post-Cambuur saw him serve as the second-choice goalkeeper for Sparta Rotterdam before receiving an offer from NEC Nijmegen that didn’t materialize due to a failure to agree on terms.
It’s remarkable to see how athletes can transition into entirely different fields after hanging up their boots. Leonard Nienhuis serves as a prime example, going from stopping goals to overseeing prisoners. And who knows, he might just have a face-off with Quincy Promes once again, albeit in a much different setting.
Images: Getty
Source: F5 Magazine