Being tutored by two AFC Bournemouth heroes has certainly done the trick for Jack Wadham.
The central midfielder says he has benefited greatly from continuing his footballing education under development squad coaches Shaun Cooper and Tommy Elphick.
Wadham grew up watching the pair, Cooper having skippered the club to the Greatest Escape in 2009, while Elphick led them to promotion to the Championship and Premier League.
Since joining the Cherries academy as a ten-year-old, Wadham has made excellent progress and was rewarded with his first professional contract at the start of pre-season.
The 19-year-old, who skippered the under-18s in the second year of his scholarship, gained valuable experience in the Premier League Cup and during a loan spell with Dorchester Town last season.
Wadham told afcb.co.uk: “Coops and Tommy have helped me massively and I feel I’ve really improved under both of them.
“Everything we do must be to a high standard, both in games and in training, and we know we need to maintain those levels every day.
“I grew up an Arsenal fan but, having joined the club so young, I’ve naturally supported Bournemouth through the years and used to go to a lot of games.
“Coops played in the first game I watched, a 2-0 win against Sheffield Wednesday when there was no stand behind one of the goals!
“We were in League One at the time and it’s crazy to see how quickly the club has progressed, reaching the Premier League.
“When Tommy first came in, it was a bit strange to have someone coach you who you had watched for years. He’s had a really good impact on all the players, especially me.
“I feel I’m getting better every year and I’m excited to see how this season goes. Hopefully, we can do well in the competitions we’re in.
“Going through the academy, every step is a big step. From under-16s to full-time with the under-18s and then from the 18s to the development squad, it feels like the gap is bigger with every step.
“We know it’s even bigger from the development squad to the first team but we will all do our best to get to that level.
“The jump from the under-18s to the development squad is big but I feel I’ve adapted quite well to it.
“The loan at Dorchester last season was a really good experience. I didn’t play too many games because we had a few called off and I got covid but I really enjoyed it when I was involved.
“We were in a relegation battle and stayed up. It was definitely something I took a lot of experience from because we had something to play for every week and there was a lot of pressure on.”
Born in Yorkshire, Wadham moved around with his father who was in the Army and eventually settled in Weymouth after a spell living in Germany.
Having had his first runout against Crystal Palace in a friendly earlier this month, Wadham is expected to feature when the Cherries host West Ham at Canford Park Arena on Tuesday (2pm kick-off).
He said: “Although we lost, it was a good game against Palace and they were strong. We spilt the minutes to get the fitness in and nobody played the full game.
“I’ve played West Ham countless times through all the different age groups and they are always strong so it will be another tough test.
“We’ve done our homework on them and have seen the video analysis. Hopefully, we can build on the Palace and Poole Town games and keep progressing over pre-season.
“We are aiming to see improvements game by game with all the work we’re doing in training and will be ready for when the competitive games start.”
Entry is free to the West Ham game at Canford.
Click through the arrows above to see a selection of pictures of Jack Wadham.
