Bournemouth’s Mark Travers, 19, becomes youngest Premier League keeper since Joe Hart after starting against Tottenham
The Irishman made his Bournemouth debut in Saturday's lunchtime kick-off , but where does he rank on the all-time list of young stoppers?
BOURNEMOUTH handed a debut to 19-year-old goalkeeper Mark Travers, making him the Premier League's youngest stopper since Joe Hart.
The Cherries named Irishman Travers in the starting line-up for their match against Tottenham on Saturday lunchtime.
Aged just 19 years and 351 days, Travers is the youngest keeper to start a Premier League game since Joe Hart made his debut for Man City aged 19 years and 178 days in October 2006.
Speaking ahead of the Spurs match, Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe said: “We rate Mark very highly, he has great character, great attitude and huge potential.
“This is a chance for him to show what he can do.”
Travers might be the youngest Premier League keeper in 13 years, but he is only the 15th youngest ever to have played in the top flight since it was founded in 1992.
Oldham's Paul Gerrard, Man United's Paul Rachubka, Norwich's Andy Marshall, and Middlesbrough's Andy Collett keep Travers out of the Top 10 youngest to have made a Premier League appearance.
The youngest ever was Neil Finn, who started for West Ham against Man City on New Year’s Day in 1996 aged just 17 years and 3 days.
Travers himself joined Bournemouth as a 17-year-old following a successful trial in July 2016.
The youngster has already done enough to impress Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy.
Travers got the call up to the national team in March for the Euro 2020 qualfiers against Gibraltar and Georgia, although he didn’t feature in either match.
He did not play in either of the Euro 2020 qualifiers Gibraltar and Georgia, but it is a measure of his potential that he was called up before making a senior appearance.
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Travers has made a name for himself with impressive debuts after making his bow while on loan at Weymouth last season.
He managed to score with a freekick from inside his own half to seal a 3-2 win for the Southern Premier League side over Bishop’s Stortford.
The keeper signed a long-term contract with Bournemouth in July 2018 and last month kept a clean sheet to help their reserves win the Central League Cup 2-0 against Notts County.