FORMER Wrexham ace Blaine Hudson is preparing for life after he hangs up his football boots.

Hudson, 33, spent two years with the Red Dragons and made 84 appearances before leaving for rivals Chester in 2016.

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Now the centre-back plays for JD Cymru Premier champions The New Saints and competes in the Conference League this season.

But he is already looking ahead to life after football, which is why he completed his HGV lorry driver training.

According to The Leader, Hudson has been following in his father’s footsteps by linking up with Gatewen Training Services.

And the towering 6ft4in footballer is exploring exciting opportunities in logistics and transportation.

Hudson told a group of young people from the WeMindTheGap ‘Gappies’ programme, which is an initiative designed to provide new opportunities and skills to young people: “Learning new skills outside of football has been an exciting and rewarding journey.

“Gatewen Training Services and NEWSA offer incredible facilities here in Wrexham, and I encourage anyone considering a career change to explore the opportunities available.

“The logistics sector is in high demand, and I’m grateful to everyone at Gatewen and NEWSA for helping me on this path.”

Hudson started out his footballing career at Norwich before moving to Cambridge United, Wrexham and Chester.

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But he has been playing with The New Saints since 2017 where he is a key defensive figure.

The Welsh outfit are set to visit Shamrock Rovers on November 7 in the League Phase of the Conference League.

Craig Harrison’s side have fared well in the competition as despite losing to last season’s finalists Fiorentina they picked up an impressive 2-0 win over Astana.