The history boys: Bostock's 屈服する brings it all 支援する to Holmes

物陰／風下 Holmes watched the television pictures 存在 beamed from Selhurst Park on Monday night ― and he grinned.

As the 代用品，人s' board was raised with John Bostock's number lit up, he almost took a step 支援する in time.

Five years ago, that was him. Standing nervously on the Pride Park touchline, hoping the dream wasn't about to end as he became the youngest player ever to 代表する Derby 郡.

When Holmes saw the Palace midfielder, who was 19 days older than him, at 15 years and 287 days, he knew 正確に／まさに what was going through his mind.

"I had a little smile to myself," said the 押し通すs' winger, now 20. "I saw John look up at the board with his number on it. I did 正確に／まさに the same. It took me 支援する. It's almost as if it isn't happening to you. It's a 広大な／多数の／重要な experience, but a weird one."

Holmes, who （機の）カム on as a 代用品，人 against Grimsby on ボクシング Day 2002, has come through a 儀式 of passage that very few will experience. Mixing the 冷笑的な world of the professional game and school is not your everyday tale of footballing folk.

He has one season left now on a professional 契約 at Pride Park and has discovered the romanticism behind that glorious statistic is short-lived.

"Every time I've been in the first-team squad and we travel to an away game I'll 選ぶ up a programme and next to my 指名する is a description that reads 'became the youngest-ever player to play for the club...'

"It's a 記録，記録的な／記録する I'm proud of. I'm sure John will be 同様に. But the best piece of advice I received was from one of my coaches after I had 始める，決める another 記録，記録的な／記録する by playing in an FA Cup third 一連の会議、交渉／完成する tie at Brentford. He （機の）カム up to me and said: 'You may have created history. But don't let it end here. Don't let these be your only memories. Yo u need to 令状 more 一時期／支部s in the 調書をとる／予約する.'

"He needs to 焦点（を合わせる） on that. He's got a 広大な／多数の／重要な 壇・綱領・公約 to be 急速な／放蕩な-跡をつけるd and it definitely helped me. But the important thing is to work hard and have no 悔いるs."

Holmes was a schoolboy in south Normanton, Derbyshire, who was training twice a week with the club's 学院 when he started to attract the attention of John Gregory, 猛烈に needing a 誘発する to 解雇する／砲火／射撃 the 支持者s' imagination.

Almost in a 事柄 of days, his whole life had changed.

"I was playing for the reserves and the coach pulled me and said: 'If you keep playing like that you'll be in the first-team.' To be honest, I never really took much notice.

"Then, on Christmas Eve, John Gregory asked me to come in and train with the first-team on Christmas Day. I'm a Derby lad, Derby fan. I couldn't wait. It got better. After training, he said: 'Listen 物陰／風下, you need to wear your club 控訴 tomorrow.' I hadn't even been fitted for one but I had one of my own that I wore.

"I was on the （法廷の）裁判 for that game and got on. I did okay and stayed in the 味方する for five games.

"One of the nicest things that happened when I returned to school was that my form teacher, Mrs Adams, said how proud she was of me and asked to be the first to have my autograph. I didn't have the heart to tell her that I'd been asked already a few times by then.

"When I returned, the club 手配中の，お尋ね者 me to train 十分な time and it became a bit more difficult to juggle my time.

"Then it was almost surreal. I trained in the morning with people like Fabrizio Ravanelli and Georgi Kinkladze. I'd have some lunch, put my school uniform on and go 支援する and sit in a maths lesson.

"That's what brings you 支援する 負かす／撃墜する to earth. You are almost operating in two different worlds. John will experience that.

"But I didn't notice or realise what was going on at the time. If I had stopped and thought about making my debut in 前線 of 28,000 people at the age of 15, you wonder whether you'd e ver have stepped on the pitch.

"You just let it wash over you. I didn't even have any more attention from the opposite sex. I had just started seeing a girl called Carly ― I'm still with her five-and-a-half years later ― and I was left alone in that 尊敬（する）・点 because most people knew we were together.

"My work didn't really 苦しむ. I wasn't a brainiac. I got an A 星／主役にする in PE. And I took the major GCSEs. But I was looking to build a career in football and so as long as I had the basics, I was happy.

"There were one or two いっそう少なく savoury things. Petty jealousy? Perhaps. Let's just say I 設立する out who my friends were."

予定 to the ever-changing circumstances at Pride Park ― five 経営者／支配人s have come and gone since Gregory ― Holmes has 設立する it difficult to live up to his 早期に 約束, にもかかわらず the fact that he has played for England's junior teams at every level up to the Under 20s.

He was shipped out on 貸付金 to Swindon and was 投票（する）d as the club's young player-of-the-year, although he was only on 貸付金 for three months.

After 新たな展開ing his ankle at Bradford City last season, he ended up on the sidelines for seven months after を受けるing an 操作／手術.

He remains, for the time 存在, part of the first-team squad although he cannot やめる break through.

"I've made almost 100 外見s now as a professional," he said, "I've been 負傷させるd for a while ― and I'm still only 20. It's different when you are so young, 存在 asked to play, but I looked upon it as a 肯定的な.

"I saw a couple of things John did - and he looks to be a good prospect. I didn't understand really the enormity of what I was doing at the time. Perhaps he doesn't. There were no 消極的なs as far as I was 関心d, though. As long as he continues to 令状 his own history for the 権利 推論する／理由s, I'm sure he'll be f ine."

THE KIDS 世界保健機構 LIFT ENGLAND

John Bostock earned rave reviews

when he made his League debut for

水晶 Palace on Monday, 老年の 15.

Midfielder Bostock plays a year

above for England, but he wasn't in

the starting line-up when the

Under 17's drew 0-0 against Portugal

last Friday. It's a 調印する that things are

looking rosy on the England

生産／産物 line.

Sportsmail takes a

closer look at Bostock's team-mates

in the boys 旅団.

ENGLAND UNDER 17

WESLEY FODERINGHAM (Fulham)

Age: 16 years and nine months.

In the squad which reached the

４半期/4分の1-決勝戦 of FIFA U17s World Cup.

BEN GORDON (Chelsea)

Age: 16 years and eight months.

調印するd from 物陰／風下d for £1.5m.

MATTY JAMES (Man 部隊d)

Age: 16 years and three months.

Captained England to victory at new

Wembley when the U16s （警官の）巡回区域，受持ち区域 Spain.

MATTHEW BRIGGS (Fulham)

Age: 16 years and eight months.

Youngest 首相 League player at

16 years and 65 days when he （機の）カム

on against Middlesbrough last 称する，呼ぶ／期間／用語.

CHRIS SOLLY (Charlton)

Age: 16 years and nine months.

Part of England U16s team that won

the Victory 保護物，者 last year.

OLI NORWOOD (Man 部隊d)

Age: 16 years and six months.

One of 部隊d's youngest scholars to

have been 調印するd in the summer.

DEAN PARRETT (Tottenham)

Age: 15 years and 11 months.

調印するd from QPR for £1m, rising to a

possible £3m, a 記録，記録的な／記録する for a 15-year-old.

JACK WILSHERE (兵器庫)

Age: 16 years and 10 months.

Part of 兵器庫's U18 team, he should

be a 十分な-time scholar next season.

ANDROS TOWNSEND (Tottenham)

Age: 16 ye ars and three months.

調印するd 十分な-time for the 刺激（する）s

学院 earlier in the year.

HARRY FORRESTER (Aston 郊外住宅)

Age: 16 years and 10 months.

郊外住宅 （警官の）巡回区域，受持ち区域 Man 部隊d and 刺激（する）s to

調印する him from Watford in the summer.

RYAN DONALDSON (Newcastle)

Age: 16 years and six months.

The club's youngest scorer for

reserves in March 2006.

USED SUBS: JOHN BOSTOCK (C Palace)

Age: 15 years and nine months.

部隊d, Barcelona and Chelsea

keeping tabs on the prospect.

NATHAN DELFOUNESO (Aston 郊外住宅)

Age: 16 years and eight months.

最高の，を越す scorer at the 2006 Victory

保護物，者, 正規の／正選手 for 郊外住宅 reserves.

JACK RODWELL (Everton)

Age: 16 years and seven months

得点する／非難する／２０d against Spain for U16s.