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Football

12th Jul 2019

“He’s always been one of the standout players at the club” – Evan Ferguson’s rapid rise

Jack O'Toole

Bohemian’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Wednesday will largely be remembered as the first time Frank Lampard stepped into the blues dugout as boss and not player, but the game will also be known as the match where Keith Long threw 14-year-old Evan Ferguson into the mix.

Ferguson came off the bench for the Gypsies and did not take long to leave his mark, playing his part in Bohemians equaliser after Michy Batshuayi had given Chelsea an early lead.

Bohs were trailing heading towards the 90th minute when Keith Ward broke from the midfield before laying the ball forward to Eric Molloy who buried the ball into the back of the net to secure the draw.

Ferguson dragged the defence across and let the ball run through his legs allowing Molloy to take the ball in stride and finish.

Bohemians manager Keith Long said that Ferguson has attracted interest from clubs in England and St. Kevin’s Boys’ Director of Football Ken Donohue corroborated the news and confirmed that the teenager has been a standout for the club.

“Evan has been at our club since the age of five and joined us and came through our mini-leagues. His talent would have been fairly obvious to those watching. He’s just a proper footballer. He’s only 14 but he’s six foot tall and can play up front but he can also play in the midfield.

“He’s always been one of the best in his age group and he was with our U14 premier division team this year and they won every trophy that was available to them. He played Kennedy Cup. He played with the Bohemians U15’s, then the 17’s and now the senior team.

“He’s played with the Ireland underage teams and now he’s attracting some interest from English clubs and to be honest I think that’s where he’s going to end up.

“I’ve been with the club 20 years now and we have a great system of producing players but we can always get better.”