Young forward to be involved in Northern Ireland setup
Teenage striker Jamie Reid has been called up to a training camp with the Northern Ireland under-21 squad ahead of the country’s international fixture against Cyprus later this month.
Reidy will attend a three-day training camp in County Antrim between Monday 13th and Wednesday 15th May, and an 18-man squad will eventually be selected from the attendees for the trip to the Makario Stadium. Northern Ireland will begin their qualifying campaign for the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship on May 30th in Nicosia against the Cypriots – their group is particularly tough with Belgium, Serbia and Italy completing the roster and with a prize at the finals in the Czech Republic at stake.
“I’ve never been involved internationally before,” said Reid. “Steve [Perryman] and Robbo called me in during the season and mentioned it, but I didn’t think anything of it – but now to have been called up to the training camp is great.
“I’m not too sure exactly how many people are going to be involved at the training camp, and only 18 get picked to play in the European Championship qualifiers in Cyprus, but it’d be exciting if I got there. I’ve just got to train hard.
“It’ll be a good experience to go and train and it won’t do me any harm to go back to Exeter fit as well.”
Involvement on an international level caps a fine first season for Jamie – the first-year pro only made his City debut on Boxing Day of 2012, and went onto be involved during the final weeks of the season including netting a brace on his first senior start against AFC Wimbledon. And now the 18-year-old is delighted to have been selected amongst an elite few of his age group, and feels he will benefit from the experience regardless of whether or not he makes the cut for the 18-man squad.
“When I first signed my pro contract, I didn’t expect to play for Exeter, didn’t expect to score, and I would never have thought I’d be training with the under-21s,” he continued. “I’m still only 18 and I know I’ve got loads of hard work in front of me – but this will help me during my summer and my time off by keeping me busy.”