A 13-year-old schoolboy has become one of the youngest players to feature in a senior football match.
Christopher Atherton, who is 13 years and 329 days old, became on as a second-half substitute in the Northern Ireland League Cup for Glenavon against Dollingstown.
In doing so, he broke the UK record for the youngest player to play a senior football match. That record was held by another Irish teenager, Eamon Collins, who came on as a substitute for Blackpool FC in September 1980. At the time, he was 14 years and 323 days, almost a year older than Atherton.
The world record for the youngest professional player was set by 11-year-old Eric Godpower Marshal when he played for Gar’ou against Haifa FC in a Fourth Division Liberian league match in April this year.
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Atherton’s first touch was an assist to lay on Glenavon’s sixth goal, and in his 15-minute cameo, he never gave the ball away.
Glenavon manager Gary Hamilton said afterwards that he has been watching Atherton for the last seven years as he plays on the same team as his son Calum.
“He’s a great kid. He’s a joy to watch. The work he does away from Glenavon and the dedication he has to be a professional is unbelievable, and that’s what separates him from a lot of the kids at the academy,” he said.
“He eats the right food, he goes to bed at the right time, he does everything he can to become a better footballer and give himself the best opportunity to become a professional footballer.
“I have been watching him for years, and he is the best player I have seen at his age ... he has a long way to go, but if he keeps going the way he is and he keeps humble, he has a chance.
“He has good parents. He is a credit to himself and his family. A lot of us at that age think the first team is a million miles away, but I had no doubt I could bring him on,” Hamilton said.
His debut almost ended with a goal but for the Dollingstown goalkeeper “He caught his chance well to be fair, and to be fair to the goalkeeper he made a great double save. That would have been the icing on the cake because with his first touch of the ball, he gets an assist,” Hamilton said.
There is a lot of interest in Atherton from clubs in Scotland and England, the manager added.
