HARVEY Boddy is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Solly March and play for Brighton in the Premier League.
The Seagulls, who have one of the most highly regarded recruitment departments in modern football, have snapped up the 15-year-old on Academy day release forms and now he is battling to prove he has what it takes to make it to the top.
Boddy, whose mother Laura owns two shops in Bexhill, is studying at St Bede’s, where Seagulls winger March was also a schoolboy.
But he is also spending three days a week with Brighton after earning a spot after impressing in an eight-week trial which involved a number of games and training twice a week.
The central midfielder won the opportunity after former Albion defender Adam Hinshelwood, the father of current Seagulls rising homegrown talent Jack, thrust him into the limelight.
Boddy revealed: “I played for Worthing and manager Adam Hinshelwood gave me the opportunity to play for the first team against Brighton Under-21s, I performed well and Brighton gave me the opportunity to go on trial. And I was successful.
“I was thrilled as I’ve always wanted to play for them pretty much since the day I first started playing football. It was amazing.”
Boddy is not getting carried away though, as he knows there is a long way to go if he is to realise his ambitions.
He told the Hailsham News: “It would be my dream to play for Brighton – it is the one achievement I’d like to get.
“Of course, it is a case of taking it step by step. The goal is to get a scholarship then a professional contract. I will get that scholarship decision next year when I go into Year 11.”
Hailsham’s March, who is recovering from a serious knee injury, dropped into non-league before Brighton picked him up from Lewes but keeps close links with his old school.
Boddy said: “He comes down to our school sometimes and does a training session but I haven’t had one with him yet – but I do see him every now and then.”
Boddy is enjoying testing himself against some of the best young, hungry talent around.
He said: “We are coming up against any type of team. It could be Tottenham, Watford or teams like Wimbledon or Gillingham – pretty much any team from the Premier League to League One.
“It’s definitely different from playing at Worthing, the pace of the game is a lot quicker. Also, you are playing around kids who are of similar ability but have the potential to go somewhere so there is a lot of competitiveness between one and another. It’s also a good standard of football so it’s great.”
Boddy admits he has to pinch himself sometimes when he is at Albion’s state-of-the-art training base in Lancing, where the youngsters rub shoulders with some of the hottest stars in Roberto De Zerbi’s squad.
He added: “With it coming up to Christmas they will give us things we need to do to keep fit for when we come back. It’s a very professional environment and when we’re on day release we will be eating lunch and see all the first team players in and around us, which is what most kids would love to see. It’s great.
“The other day Roberto Di Zerbi came over to our table and tweaked one of my team-mates’ ears as a laugh and a joke. It was quite funny as it was such a surprise to us.”
And Boddy knows even if does not work out at Albion, the experience will stand him in good stead to pursue a career in football.
He added: “The goal at the end of the day is to play football as my job. Wake up, playing football every day – that’s the dream!”
