Dream time continues for new Northern Ireland star after signing Blackburn Rovers contract
Northern Ireland defender Tom Atcheson has signed a new long-term contract at Blackburn Rovers – less than 24 hours after making his senior international debut.
After Dan Ballard was ruled out of Northern Ireland’s two March matches through injury, Atcheson was drafted into Michael O’Neill’s panel from the U21s.
The 19-year-old was an unused substitute during Thursday’s World Cup play-off semi-final defeat to Italy, but registered a first cap after featuring off the bench against Wales in Cardiff on Tuesday night.
Playing his club football at Blackburn, Atcheson has worked closely with O’Neill over recent weeks – he started in a Championship draw against Middlesbrough before the international break.
Atcheson has only made seven league appearances for Rovers, but O’Neill felt he impressed in the final 15 minutes at the Cardiff City Stadium as Northern Ireland secured a 1-1 draw.
His progression has been recognised by Rovers with a new contract extension, continuing a dream week for Atcheson, who is a player O’Neill feels has a bright future.
"He’s very composed and he’s blessed with the natural attributes you want in a centre-back,” O’Neill told RoversTV after last month’s stalemate with Middlesbrough. “He has size, but also speed and he’s a good user of the ball as well.
"I thought he played with great composure and handled the threat of the opposition extremely well.
"Early on in the game, I think they thought with a young centre-back they’d try and exploit that area, but he handled that well, grew into the game and he’s a big player with a huge future.”
Atcheson has progressed through the ranks at Ewood Park, initially joining Rovers’ academy at U12 level, and could now be set to play a crucial role in their remaining seven matches with Hayden Carter ruled out for a number of weeks through injury.
He has featured in Northern Ireland’s U21s European Championship qualifying campaign and O’Neill felt he showed composure on senior debut.
"I thought he was really good,” said O’Neill. “He defended his box well, he had two or three good headers.
"He's a very young player, I think he's maybe got five or six first team appearances now at Blackburn Rovers, but I think he's shown up well in the camp all week."