As a goalkeeper, Nathan Coe thought he still had years left to play when his professional career came crashing to an end in 2015.
Coe was released by Melbourne Victory at the age of 32 with a persistent injury forcing him to find a new passion to pursue and way to pay the bills.
Just four years earlier, Coe had made his Socceroos debut after a club career spent largely in Europe where he was on the books of Inter Milan and PSV.
Forced to hang up the gloves all too soon, the Aussie opted to chase his love of coffee with his business Coe & Coe now boasting three cafes in Port Melbourne, Cremorne and Yarraville.
"We started with a small hole in the wall in Port Melbourne. I think that was eight years last week," told the PFA's Footballer's Voice podcast.
"I remember playing in Denmark and thinking, these guys aren't giving their all, what's wrong with them? Then I came back to Australia with Victory and I never thought about what I'd do after football. I always thought I'd just keep going and going and going.
"I had Mark Schwarzer going into a few camps with him seeing how professional and amazing he was and how good he was doing at such an old age, I thought I had ages to go.
"But then boom, one day it changes, and I'm so thankful that I came back and I started to think about and have those chats with the PFA.
"It was a dream to always own my own cafe. I thought I'd just open one and sit in it all day drinking coffee. I used get my haircut in Port Melbourne and there was just a little hole in the wall.
"We called it Rocoe & Coe and it was just panini juices and coffee, real simple. My brother was also in hospitality...he's amazing and how he treats people in the environment and what he brings to the cafe is something we've built the rest of our business off."
After 15 years of professional football that involved a number of set-backs, Coe is savouring his new career choice as he looks to foster a welcoming environment for his customers.
"We want people to come in and enjoy it. Come have a chat, don't even have to buy anything. Just create something that people can feel a part of," Coe said.
"Everyone has to work, or the majority of us, but if we can make work fun and have a good day while you're doing it, why not?"
With two more cafes in the works, Coe is keeping busy with his family business and admits he's kept some distance from football since retiring.
"When I got injured and stopped, I probably didn't watch football until Archie (Thompson) retired," Coe said.
"It was a massive shift because all I did was football. It was non-stop and probably the wrong way to go about because all that was on my mind was football, football and football.
"I did try to coach. I coached at Bentleigh for one or two seasons but that's not my love.
"I don't know if I've watched a full game since still...I'm enjoying not having to be so deeply involved."
With gloves off and a coffee now likely in hand, Coe is proof the end of a playing career can simply be the start of a whole new chapter in life.