The Arsenal record books were strewn throughout the Emirates, and every ball he collected or passed around elicited loud shouts.
Jack Porter will remember this night for a long time. A 16-year-old custodian was called into the Arsenal first squad to face Bolton in the Carabao Cup third round.
Porter was given this opportunity because to injuries to David Raya and Tommy Setford, as well as the cup-tied status of No. 2 goalie Neto.
He was naturally apprehensive, with some jitters on the ball, but remained focused on the task at hand. His clean grasp of a corner kick at the end, rising above the opposition players with confidence, rounded out a solid night’s effort.
Landing accomplishments come as no surprise to those who know the Chelmsford-born teenager. He’s been doing this since he first put on a pair of goalkeeper gloves.
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Jack Porter (yellow top) made a magical debut for Arsenal’s first-team at just 16-years-old
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The teenager was thrust into the starting position amidst a shortage of available goalkeepers
Arsenal had scouted him only four months after he made his debut in goal at the age of 11. He was at Gidea Park Rangers FC, the same grassroots team where Tony Adams previously played.
That stint changed him from a disgruntled midfielder to a promising shot-stopper. His ability behind the scenes at Arsenal has long been recognised.
Arsenal icon David Seaman is said to visit the Hale End academy on a regular basis and has spoken highly of Porter’s abilities. Though Mail Sport understands it was first-team goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana who endorsed the teenager, telling Mikel Arteta that Porter could play if necessary.
The north London club was waiting for Raya’s fitness examinations after he took a blow against Manchester City, as they wanted to give the Spaniard every chance to play against Bolton. Porter received the go-ahead on Tuesday afternoon during training.
Whatever happens from now on, he has a spate of records that he may easily keep for the remainder of his career. At 16 years and 72 days old, he became Arsenal’s youngest ever first-team starter.
He became the club’s youngest custodian ever, breaking Malcolm Webster’s 55-year-old record of 18 years, 308 days when he made his debut in 1969.
In addition, his appearance on the bench against Atalanta in the Champions League last week earned him the competition’s youngest-ever matchday squad keeper.
Porter became Arsenal’s youngest-ever player to start a first-team match at the age of 16 years and 72 days.
It all began in Romford, Essex. Gidea Park Rangers, formed in 1965, declared bankruptcy in 2014. So young coach Daniel Petherick, together with colleagues Paul Fairey and Dean Smith, raised funds to resurrect the club in 2017.
The trio was motivated in part by the desire to provide a pathway for their boys and other young people to participate in grassroots football.
Porter previously played as a central midfielder for another team, but he had grown tired of playing outfield. Petherick’s Under 11 team had just ended the season and was about to go on to the Under 12s when he received a call from Porter’s mother, Louise; the two had known each other since college.
She asked if Porter could join his team and whether he could be a good custodian.
‘This was July 2019. He (Porter) came over, having never played in goal in his life, and joined in my training session,’ Petherick tells Mail Sport.
‘I already had a goalkeeper which was very awkward! From the first five minutes of the session it was like, “Jesus Christ, this kid has something about him”.
‘He was 5ft 4in when aged 11, so he was a tall lad. His mum is a tall lady. A really nice kid, really confident, knew how to play football and was doing stuff in goal which most 11 year olds were not doing.
‘Me and the other coaches were like, “Oh my God, this lad has got a talent”.’
Petherick signed Porter. Tony Tucker was the team’s dedicated goalkeeping coach, which was unique at the grassroots level. He’d offer Porter one-on-one sessions. His parents then persuaded him to also offer private coaching sessions.
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First-team goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana (left) vouched for the teenager to Mikel Arteta (right)
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Porter had only played six games for the Arsenal Under 18s and just once for the Under 21s before making his first-team debut
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Porter’s journey started in Romford, Essex at local side Gidea Park Rangers
‘The thing that stuck out with Jack was how quick he learnt things and took information on board and then put it into practice,’ Tucker tells Mail Sport.
‘You could always see he had something from the first lesson he had come in. He was very tall, gangly. He just moved like a goalkeeper.
‘He’s always been a confident lad, he believes in his own ability which, as a goalkeeper, you’ve got to have. If he was training with others, he wanted to be the best there and out train everyone.
‘He knew he was good and just wanted to get better and better. He had that attitude of, “Whoever I’m training with, I’m going to be better than them”.
‘(Wednesday night vs Bolton) was one of the proudest moments I’ve had in coaching. I always knew he could do it.’
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Porter has been gaining invaluable experience spending time around Arsenal’s first-team
