BAGS OF experience, and not yet 22.
Mark Travers has the CV of a keeper who has been playing in English football for around 10 years.
But he, somehow, is still only 21 years of age, and we would be doing well to remember this when discussing him.
2021 hasn't been too kind to the young Maynooth man.
He has been sat on the bench for Bournemouth for a good chunk of the season, and his start in goal for Ireland against Serbia certainly didn't go according to plan.
But since then, things have been on the up for him, to an extent.
He came for a corner in a cup final for Bournemouth's underage side, and scored a bullet header, before going on to save a couple of penalties in the shootout.
Plus, before that, he was one of the most highly rated youngsters in Ireland, and for good reason too.
Back in 2019, he started in an incredible 1-0 victory over Spurs, where his performance was genuinely outstanding. He was given the man-of-the-match award, on the same day he became the first teenage goalkeeper to start a Premier League match since Joe Hart in 2006.
An old interview from 2017 sums up his attitude with regards to setbacks, and it could be the reason why we see him become a successful keeper.
He said: "You’ve got to work really hard to get to this position. Just don’t let bad situations beat you up. Keep focused on football. Stay dedicated off the pitch as well."
Spot on.
He was so young signing for Bournemouth that he didn't even sit his Leaving Cert, which is a bold move that you could say has already paid off for him.
Bournemouth are in action in the Championship playoffs over the next couple of days, which could see the club return to the Premier League.
And while this might mean that Travers will be a Premier League player (again), a loan move to a Championship side where he will start every game might be the wisest move for him.
Either way, at just 21, we certainly should not be ruling anything out from him just yet.
