The former Benalla man has instead carved a niche talking about the world game — soccer — for close to a decade; and for those doubting the round ball sport’s moniker as the “world game”, Maxwell has found his alcove all the way over in Japan.
As the host of J-Talk, a podcast dedicated to Japan’s top-flight, Maxwell has seen his passion for the J.League burgeon exponentially since first touching down in the Honshu capital at the turn of the decade.
But as for his love of football — that’s been apparent well before he touched down on foreign soil.
“I've been a Liverpool supporter ever since Mum let me stay up to watch Craig Johnston in the 1986 FA Cup final, and my passion for the game grew during two English summers playing cricket,” Maxwell said.
“Then after arriving in Japan in 2000 I knew I needed to find a team to support, and once I got weekends off I decided to get a season ticket for FC Tokyo and really immersed myself in the fan culture over here.
“The atmosphere at stadiums is very unique and once I was going regularly, I was hooked.”
Drinking in the atmosphere and thriving within the cut and thrust of Japanese football led Maxwell to start J-Talk, which first hit airwaves in 2012.
Releasing a weekly recap of the league’s ins and outs soon opened doors aplenty for the former Benalla native, to the point where he was then asked to appear on a football chat show alongside four other foreign media colleagues in 2013.
A year later the opportunity arose to narrate a J.League highlights show on a semi-regular basis.
The next chapter in Maxwell’s journey was one he had been building up to his entire life however — the chance to commentate a live game.
“The first couple of times I was very nervous as it was uncharted territory and is certainly more difficult than professional commentators make it seem, but I've enjoyed each and every game,” Maxwell said.
“Now I've done an Emperor's Cup final and the last two league cup finals among about 10-12 games in total.
“The only slightly unfortunate thing about my commentaries to this point is that they have all been done on a screen in a studio so I haven't had an in-stadium experience calling a game, but I enjoy preparing facts and stats to use during the game, and I guess once it kicks off you just go with the flow and react to the action while trying not to mess up a player's name.”
Throughout his tenure operating within the Japanese football landscape, Maxwell’s cup has overflowed with champagne experiences.
When referencing the J-Talk podcast, he placed hosting Sapporo striker and former England international Jay Bothroyd as a guest not once but twice as his crowning achievement.
Commentary-wise, Maxwell said calling the Emperor's Cup final on New Year's Day in 2017 took the cake.
However, when reflecting on his best memory on Asian soil, there was but one moment reserved for the proverbial pool room.
“Above all, being there in November 2009 when FC Tokyo won the league cup wins hands down.”
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