It’s great news that Simon’s signed for Colchester, how did it happen?

He was invited in for a trial in June shortly after UK Football Trials and trained for a couple of weeks. They then said they’d like him to stay for the summer so he agreed to stay for another six weeks, but three weeks in they told us they wanted to sign him.

How’s he getting on at the club?

It’s going well. He’s playing regularly for the u12’s but has been called up to the u13’s for a couple of games too. He’s played in games against Ipswich, West Ham, Charlton, Stevenage, Tottenham and others. He’s scored goals or got assists in every game so far, probably Arsenal was the standout performance with 3 goals and 3 assists. And against Chelsea he scored 4 and set up another, so yeah he’s risen to the challenge and doing the job.

Has Simon had any previous academy experience?

He was signed by Norwich and spent a year at their academy before he was released in May. That’s when we opted to go to UK Football Trials and it’s just gone from there really.

How much training does he do in a normal week?

Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays he trains with Colchester at the academy and he plays games on Sundays, so he’s keeping busy and playing a lot at the minute.

What do you think are Simon’s best attributes?

He’s a team player; he’s probably actually too unselfish for a striker, which is why he gets so many assists. He makes good decisions and is strong and quick.

And what areas does he need to work on?

He’s probably a bit quick to point the finger to his teammates if they mess something up, you know if there’s a chance to score and it doesn’t quite happen. But that’s just him getting frustrated and I’m sure he’ll manage it better as he gets older.

Would you have any advice for players coming to our trials?

Simon was training leading up to the trial as he was at Norwich so he was fit and sharp. But really just work hard and stay focussed. It’s a real opportunity; if UK Football Trials didn’t exist then he wouldn’t be where he is now.

And what’s the next step from here?

We’ve signed for Colchester on a 1-year-deal, but we just want him to keep improving and be happy. He’s happy there and enjoying his football and as long as that continues we’re happy to stay there.