Seth Cheeseman, a second-year Football and Education student, has recently been training with the Chesterfield FC first-team and has warmed up with the squad at the SMH Group Stadium prior to games against Notts County and Cambridge United.
Speaking about the experience, Seth said: “You never know what can happen. If you work hard, have that dedication, determination and get a bit of luck on your side, opportunities can come for you, and that’s what I’ve found on the programme.
“I’ve worked my way up, managed to be training with the first team for the last two months, and done two matchday warm-ups. If you don’t work hard or you don’t give something a shot or try something, it’ll never come around for you.
“It’s very different, I’m training with players my age and one year below when I’m here at the Trust, but when you go into the first team, you’re playing with seasoned pros that have got 10, 15 years of experience. You can learn a lot from them.
“As a goalkeeper, I’ve learnt a lot from experienced goalkeepers in Zach Hemming and Ryan Boot, and then Ashton Rinaldo there as well, who’s had two years as a professional. Dave O’Hare is absolutely fantastic with me. In a short period of time, I’ve learnt a lot, and I feel like my game’s developed a lot.”
Seth also spoke about his time on the Football and Education programme so far, saying: “At the end of under 16s, I didn’t get offered a scholarship with Chesterfield, I was weighing up my options of what I could do.
“I didn’t really want to go to college, I wanted to carry on playing football, so I came on the Football and Education programme, which allowed me to play football full-time whilst doing my education.
“You do a BTEC course, which allows you to get a qualification equivalent to three A-levels. The balance between football and education is perfect for someone who’s looking to carry on playing football whilst getting good grades for possibly going to university or getting an apprenticeship after the two years.”
