AFC Bournemouth
Mark Travers revealed that he feels Bournemouth is a “second home” for the goalkeeper after penning a new five-year deal with the Cherries.
After a stellar season for the 23-year-old stopper, Travers’ new deal will keep him at Vitality Stadium at least until 2027.
Having been with the club since a teenager after moving over from his family in Ireland, he feels as though he has a new home on the south coast.
“I was 17 years old when I came here,” Travers explained to afcb.co.uk. “So, it’s definitely a second home for me in a way.
“It’s a great place to live and there are great people as well, so it’s a no-brainer for me to stay here and continue the journey with this club.
“Hopefully we’ll be very successful over the next five years.”
Following the signing of his new contract, the goalkeeper spoke about his love of playing for the Cherries, as well as feeling at home.
He said: “It’s brilliant. I’ve been here for a good few years now and to extend that even longer is great; I love playing at this football club.
“It’s a great honour to sign a new deal and to try and kick on next season in the Premier League.
“We worked so hard last season, it was such a long and hard one that to get rewarded with the promotion means everyone is hungry to get stuck into pre-season.”
Travers proved to be a pivotal figure in Scott Parker’s team last season on route to a second-place finish in the Championship.
Starting 45 of the 46 league outings, the goalkeeper kept 20 clean sheets meaning he picked up the league’s golden glove award, amongst a host of other end-of-season club accolades.
“Last season was brilliant,” he shared. “It was my first real run of games in a full season and that was great to do to get the games under my belt.
“I grew in confidence every game and tried to repay the manager for trusting me and showing faith in me at the start of the season.
“I kept learning every week and tried to push myself as hard as I could, along with the goalkeeping coaches as well.”
Along the way, the Irishman’s impressive performances earned Travers the admiration of supporters, which in turn led to a chant being made about him.
While unexpected, it is something which offers as motivation for the stopper, saying on it: “I didn’t really expect it, to be honest. I just tried to do my bit every game, try and make saves and do everything that I could.
“For the fans to start chanting that is great and I really feel the support when I’m playing and I hear it.
“It pushes me on to do even better, so it’s great to have that.”
