The centre-half owes a debt of gratitude to ESFA, which picked him for England Under-18 duty, an important showcase as his alma mater, Chatham Grammar School for Boys, mainly played rugby union, cricket and athletics. “I started off second row and then went on to the wing and centre because I was quite quick. I was glad to get out of the scrums and score some tries! At cricket, I was mainly a bowler and tried to bat. I hit the odd four or six and then got out! In athletics, I was mainly triple jump and 200m.”