Former Cliftonville striker 'owes a lot' to Northern Ireland legend after record-breaking transfer
Former Cliftonville striker Ben Wilson admits he “owes a lot” to Jim Magilton for the role he played in his career after sealing a record-breaking transfer to Welsh champions The New Saints.
Wilson first worked with Magilton during his time coming through the Northern Ireland youth ranks while the former Ipswich Town boss served as elite performance director at the Irish FA.
When Wilson departed Premier League outfit Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer of 2023, it was Magilton that handed him his first chance in senior football – and he certainly repaid the faith shown in him.
The 23-year-old, who also previously spent time on the books of Coleraine, scored 18 goals in 33 Premiership appearances – a number only bettered by Larne striker Andy Ryan (24) – during his debut season and helped the Reds end their 45-year wait for Irish Cup glory.
That successful Solitude stint has proven to be the perfect platform for Wilson, netting 17 times across competitions for Scottish Championship side Airdrie last season before sealing a switch to TNS earlier this week for a club record fee, rumoured to be around £200,000.
Wilson has already found the net for his new club, scoring in Thursday’s friendly win over Linfield, and he won’t forget the role played by Magilton at a crucial time.
"Jim gave me that freedom to play and had confidence and trust in me,” Wilson told the News Letter. “Hopefully I repaid him.
"Jim was the head of the youth programme when I was coming through (with Northern Ireland) and I've always known about him. It worked well for both parties.
"He was the main factor why I went to Cliftonville - he reached out to me when I had nobody and nothing. I owe a lot to Jim.
"I needed to play and Jim gave me that platform to play and enjoy my football. I wanted to play for that year and see where it could take me.
"It gave me a lot of confidence and it was a great season both personally and collectively with winning the Irish Cup and finishing third in the league. It was a really successful season for everybody."
The Irish League continues to be an ideal platform for emerging stars with the likes of Wilson, former Cliftonville team-mate Ronan Hale and Lee Bonis going on to shine after spells in the Premiership across recent years.
Both Hale and Bonis have went on to earn senior international honours with Northern Ireland after impressive club form and Wilson feels it’s the perfect place for young players to prove themselves.
"They are great players (Hale and Bonis) and the Irish League is a great platform,” added Wilson. “It's growing every year and getting a lot of traction for being a good, strong and competitive league.
"I was impressed when I arrived in the Irish League.
"I didn't know what I was going into really when I was coming out of Brighton because I hadn't experienced any first team football.
"I didn't have much to compare it to but it was very competitive, physical and it's only going to keep getting better."