Emley AFC’s newest signing forward Bailey Thompson, has already made an impression on the pitch and as he settles into life at the Fantastic Media Welfare Ground. The 24 year old has opened up about his journey through academy football, the setbacks that shaped him, and his ambitions for the season ahead.

Thompson began by discussing his early footballing life: “My dad used to take me to Rossendale United where I’m from. I actually started off as a centre mid. I played locally for them and then went on trial at a couple of teams. I was at Man United for about a year. Ever since then I played academy football at Bury, Tranmere. I was at Tranmere for four years and signed as a pro there.”

But as is the case for many promising young players, football threw a painful challenge his way: “I had a bad injury to my knee whilst i was playing at Guiseley, i'd gone out on loan to Atherton and that's where the injury occurred. I didn’t play for about a year. It was horrible at the time, a depressing moment really. It’s a main injury in football. You’ve just got to keep at it. I kept my head, did the rehab, and you look forward to getting back because you miss being around the lads and playing.”

Thompson recalled exactly how the devastating moment happened during a loan spell: “I’d gone on loan to Atherton Collieries and did it in my first training session. The ball came in from the right, I went to shoot, my leg got stuck in the ground, twisted, and my knee just snapped. It blew up like a balloon. The physio knew straight away, he said it was definitely a ligament. I got home and I was in tears.”

After a long recovery, Atherton stuck by him, and upon returning to fitness he chose to repay that faith: “They were good with me through my rehab, so I signed there after my contract at Guiseley ended.”

From there, Thompson’s non-league journey gathered pace. He enjoyed spells at Atherton Collieries, Hyde United, Pontefract Collieries and Bamber Bridge, but a common theme pushed him to seek a new home.

“I did well but I wasn’t playing enough. I’m not an in-and-out player, I need to be playing. I need to keep going.”

That move finally came when Emley boss Richard Tracey renewed his interest.

Thompson commented: “Richard’s always had me in his plans. When I signed for Bamber Bridge he wanted me that season. So coming here was a no-brainer.”

Thompson says he already had a strong sense of the club’s reputation before signing: “I knew a fair bit about Emley. I’d played with Hayden Lindley at Ponte and he told me it’s a good club with good fans and good managers. I’d also played at Emley before and loved playing on the pitch.”

He also highlighted the facilities and ambition behind the scenes: “The club as a whole is on the up. They’ve been around the play-offs and I think they can easily go up this year or in the coming years. They should be higher than they are. With good players and a great following.”

At 6ft 4in, many expect Thompson to be a traditional target man, but he believes his game brings much more: “I’m a target man because I’m six foot four, but I’m a mobile striker for my height. I work hard up front, that’s the main thing for me. As a striker you need to work your socks off. I’m a mobile number nine that can score goals and finish.”

My work ethic caught the manager’s attention on day one: “In the first game Richard said the first thing he wants is work rate, that’s me to a tee. If you work your socks off in football you get rewards. Get in the box, get on the end of things, and you’ll score goals.”

Although he admits he doesn’t set personal goal targets, his priorities are clear: “I take it game by game. I want as many goals as possible but I just want to help the team. As long as we’re winning, that’s all that matters.”

Thompson has already made an impact with a debut goal away at Heaton Stannington: “I enjoy playing at home, it was good to play in front of the fans. Shame I didn’t score on my home debut, but I got one on my actual debut so I was happy with that. My dad has said that the football Emley play is exciting. That’s what I like. I need to be around good players, and there’s plenty of competition here. You can’t have an easy ride, competition brings the best out of everyone.”

And he’s already felt the power of the club’s growing fanbase: “The fans make football clubs. They make you play for the shirt more. It makes you want to win games, home and away.”

Looking ahead, Thompson is firm about what he wants to achieve with the Pewits: “We want to be in and around the play offs. I want to do my bit to get us up there and hopefully get promotion this season. I’ll work hard and score goals, that’s all I can do.”

Emley supporters have already welcomed him warmly, and if his early performances are anything to go by, the towering, hard working, mobile number nine may well become a crucial figure in the club’s push for success.