Melbourne Victory have rewarded young attacker Connor Pain with his first senior contract, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2014/15 season.
Melbourne Victory have rewarded young attacker Connor Pain with his first senior contract, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2014/15 season.
The 19-year-old made his debut in the Round 19 Melbourne derby and has made two starts since then, impressing enough to convince the club to secure his services.
Victory coach Ange Postecoglou said Pain’s performances in the National Youth League had made signing him long-term a priority.
“Connor’s performances in the youth team had been consistently good and you have to reward young players when they’re performing like that,” Postecoglou said.
“He’s played five games now and scored an impressive goal against Western Sydney and probably could’ve had a couple more, so we see him as a player with plenty of upside.
“He’s still got a fair bit to learn but he’s doing all the right things and he’s a player we’ll look to really develop over the next couple of seasons.”
Pain said the speed of his development had taken him by surprise, but was delighted to commit himself to Victory.
“This time last year I was preparing for the start of the VPL (Victorian Premier League) season and now I’m a professional footballer – it’s been a bit of a whirlwind but I’m really excited,” he said.
“When I first joined the youth team I set myself the goal of playing first team football, but I never thought it would happen so quickly.
“Everyone has made me feel really welcome since I’ve been at the club and I hope I can repay their faith in me.”
Pain is the latest in a long line of young additions to Postecoglou’s squad this season, joining Andrew Nabbout (20 years old), Scott Galloway (17), Nick Ansell (19), Jesse Makarounas (18) and Jason Geria (19).
