Sixteen-year-old Stern Irvine, the son of T&T's top goalscorer Stern John is currently on a path to following in the footsteps of his father of being a professional footballer in the United Kingdom.
Earlier this year, Irvine was selected as a young scholar in English club Notts County and is currently playing for the club Under-16 and 18 teams as a right-back or centre-half.
“As a young scholar, he has been signed for two years during which time he will aim to break into the Notts County first team or sign a contract with another club as a first team player. He really is a junior scholar at this time,” John said.
“It’s something he’s really worked hard towards and sacrificed for. He was at Nottingham Forest before but there were some health matters that forced him to be sidelined for a bit, but he came back really well, maybe even stronger than before and now he’s into the Notts County set up which is really good for him at his age.”
The English-born Irvine took about two months to prove himself before he was signed as a scholar or a semi-professional on a two-year deal. He’s hoping to push on and break into the first team.
“I am happy to have been offered a scholarship at Notts County and thankful for the support of the people around me, my dad and the rest of my family. I’m looking forward to the upcoming year and hopefully being able to break into the first team and pursuing a career in professional football,” Irvine said.
“I know it requires a lot of hard work and discipline but I’ve gotten a good feel of it and I will continue to develop as a player and a person through football,” he added.