Mixed Feelings For Bradley Garmston

Bradley Garmston admitted that as great as the experience was of making his Football League debut last weekend, the 3-0 defeat to Sheffield United will always dampen the memories.

The teenage left back arrived on loan from West Bromwich Albion during the week and, due to injury to Brian Wilson, the Republic of Ireland U19s international was thrown straight in at Bramall Lane.

However, he put in a confident, assured performance for the U's and looked solid on what was such a big occasion for him. Speaking to BBC Essex, he reflected upon his first league experience.

'It was fantastic,' he said. 'I was delighted to be named in the team, there's not many stadiums with this sort of capacity and the noise was incredible.

'Overall I'm happy to have made my debutand it was a fantastic experience, albeit the defeat will always dampen that and I am disappointed because, at the end of the day, I'm here to win.

'I'm a sore loser, I'm very competitive and I'm a winner no matter what level you play at, so it's hard to take the defeat.'

Garmston has appeared regularly in the Baggies' U21s squad and, coupled with his international experiences for the Republic of Ireland, he has had plenty of match experience.

But whilst nothing compares to competitive league football, the defender stated that you simply have to go into every game with the same mindset and concentrate on the job at hand.

He continued: 'I felt comfortable but I think belief is key; I believed in my ability and had the confidence that I could do a job for the team, and that's important.

'As soon as the whistle is blown I just focus on my game and, usually, if we win our individual battles then we will come out on top.

'We have to reflect on what we did wrong, but it is important not to dwell on that too much.'

Not only a fellow Irishman, manager Joe Dunne is also a fellow full back and Garmston admitted he was aware of this fact and keen to listen and learn as much as he could.

With Brian Wilson's injury set to subside in time for this weekend's fixture against promotion-chasing Tranmere Rovers, the youngster knows he has a challenge to retain the starting spot, but is mature in his thoughts.

'I'll do what I can in training, work hard and listen to the gaffer,' he suggested. 'If he picks me then that is great but, if he doesn't, I'll keep my head up and focus on how I can get back into the team.'


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