Conor Bradley's meteoric rise the perfect inspiration for one Northern Ireland starlet

Conor Bradley's meteoric rise for club and country is proving to be the perfect inspiration for Northern Ireland's next generation of stars. After an impression loan spell with Bolton Bradley returned to Liverpool at the start of last season.

An injury to Trent Alexander-Arnold at the start of the year saw Bradley handed his opportunity in the first team by Jurgen Klopp and he never looked back. A string of impressive performances followed as the Tyrone man announced himself on the Premier League stage.

And it carried on into the international scene with the 20-year-old scoring his first goal for Northern Ireland in the friendly win over Scotland before he hit a brace in the win over Andorra last week.

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Bradley's rise has not gone unnoticed by the next generation of stars. Ruairi McConville is currently preparing to lead his country into next month's Under-19 European Championships and dreams of following Bradley's lead.

“Seeing Conor (Bradley) play for Liverpool is amazing," said the Brighton man. "I’m a fan of the club and his progress is unbelievable, but he has worked his way up through the ranks and he’s an inspiration to us.

“Players I played with at under-19 level are now with the senior side and if that doesn’t give you what you need to keep going I don’t know what will."

As well as watching his fellow countryman excel at the highest level McConville has plenty of motivation at his club side. The centreback knows exactly what is required to succeed in the game.

“At Brighton you have to work hard and earn your place in the team. All the players must do that," said McConville. “James (Milner) has been injured but you see him in the gym and you can see what you have to do to stay at that level.

“It’s amazing to have those players who can help you, Adam Lallana before he left was also a big help. They want to see our careers develop. Lewis Dunk is one the best defenders I have seen play and I can learn so much from him. Hopefully one day I can share a pitch with such a great player."

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