How did the trial with Rochdale go?

Three weeks ago Billy went down for a training session with the u15’s that lasted about two hours. They did a few small games, worked on distribution and things and he really enjoyed it, it was great to get some designated goalkeeper training. But the whole experience really opened his eyes to professional football.

And how did Billy get this opportunity?

He got scouted at a UK Football Trial a while ago and it was actually Bolton that was interested, but they said we lived too far away. So they put us in touch with Rochdale and it went from there, but it was a few months after our UK Football Trial until we actually got the trial, so it can take a bit of time.

Was this his first time in that kind of environment?

Yes it was, before that he’s been playing for Scarborough District and his local side on the weekends, so it’s a big step up for him going into training with a pro club.

How much training does Billy do in a normal week?

Every Monday he does some goalkeeper training with a specialist coach and he also trains once a week for his local team. So with games as well he’s getting about three or four sessions a week at the moment.

What would you say are Billy’s best attributes?

Well he’s very tall for his age, he’s only 14 and he’s 6 foot 1’ already and quite athletic, so that always helps in a ‘keeper. But apart from that he’s got great handling and distribution and he reads the game well.

And what things does he need to improve on?

Everything, there’s no one area I’d say is especially weak but you can always improve. What he needs is regular, professional training.

What was your main reason for bringing Billy to UK Football Trials?

There are not a lot of scouts where we live, so we came to these trials to get seen and get in front of scouts. Thankfully it worked and he got picked up.

And how did he find the trial with us?

He actually came to two events, one in February and another in April and they were great. We had a coach from Man City who took one of the sessions and he really put Billy through his paces, you can't get training like that every day.

Finally, would you have any advice for players coming to our trials?

It might sound silly but you’ve got to be aware that it’s a trial and not another training session, you need to be ready for it and give it everything. And be patient, it took a while for Billy to get his trial after he got his decision, and now we’ve just got to wait to hear back from the club with their decision.