Having signed his full-time scholarship with West Ham United earlier this month, Northern Ireland youth international Joel Kerr is ready to make a strong impression in Claret and Blue.
Joining from NIFL Premiership side Glentoran’s Academy, where he played consistently above his age group since joining in 2020, Kerr has also made a name for himself in Gaelic Football, a sport that he has combined with football ever since he started kicking a ball at age six. In fact, the 16-year-old made headlines last season as the standout player for County Tyrone, picking up the Player of the Match award in his side’s victory over Cavan as they claimed the Ulster Crown.
Now committed full-time to football, Kerr has joined up with Lauris Coggin’s U18s for pre-season and is already relishing the new challenge. He travelled with the squad to York earlier this month for a double-header against Leeds United and Salford City, where the young Hammers produced two encouraging performances, beating Leeds 6-2 before coming from two goals down to defeat Salford 4-2.
“I’ve really enjoyed settling into life in east London,” Kerr reflected. “I feel like I’ve settled in quite well with the group, and they’ve been very welcoming. The training’s been hard but enjoyable!
“The trip to York went well. As a team, I thought we performed decently in both games. There’s still plenty we need to work on, of course, but we’re heading in the right direction.”
Next up for Kerr and the new-look U18s squad on the pre-season schedule is a fixture against U18 Premier League Cup semi-finalists Liverpool on Saturday at St. George’s Park, before Coggin’s side turn their attention to the NextGen Cup in Prague, where they will face SK Slavia Prague and FC Midtjylland in Group B.
Looking ahead to the tournament in Czechia and reflecting on his relationship with his new coaching staff, Kerr continued: “It’s been great getting to know them. They're very open to talk to if you need to know any information, and just the detail they give you on a day-to-day basis to try and help you and improve you as a player is very good. They're easy to talk to, so that makes it easier.
“As for the NextGen Cup, as a team, we’re really excited. It's a tournament, so hopefully we can get a bit of silverware and start the year off strong!”
