TODAY’S IRELAND SQUAD announcement for the upcoming Euro 2016 qualifier against Poland brought up one new name in Bournemouth midfielder Harry Arter.
Martin O’Neill has been monitoring the 25-year-old for some time and names him in the extended 35-man panel ahead of the crucial game with the Group D leaders on Sunday, 29 March.
“He is having a very good season with Bournemouth, who are themselves having a brilliant season,” O’Neill said at the press conference, held at Bank of Ireland, Grand Canal Square this afternoon.
I’ve seen him a number of times now and I think yeah, why not. It would be nice to have a look at him.
“He has played at underage level and we wanted to, if we could, introduce another new face. I’ve met him twice now and I think he deserves that chance.”
London-born Arter began his career at Charlton Athletic but made just one first team appearance, before joining Conference side Woking in 2009 after loan spells with Staines Town and Welling United and an unsuccessful trial at Ipswich Town.
He would spend just one season with Woking as Bournemouth came calling after their promotion to League One. An FA tribunal was brought in to decided upon the fee as the two clubs couldn’t come to an agreement.
In-and-out of the Cherries team initially, Arter was sent out on a one-month loan deal to Carlisle United but featured more prominently upon his return. He has since played over 30 games in each of the past four seasons as Eddie Howe’s men climbed from mid-table in England’s third tier to top of the Championship table.
With ten games to go, they are in the middle of an incredibly-tight battle for the title and promotion to the Premier League.
Eligible to play for Ireland through the ‘granny-rule’, Arter has represented the Boys in Green at U17 and U19 level.
On his first senior call-up, he told Bournemouth: “I’m feeling really pleased. My main goal is to do well with Bournemouth and I knew in the back of my mind if I do that I’d get a chance to play at international level for Ireland.
“Hopefully that chance has come and if I do get the opportunity to play it will be one I’m looking forward to and one i’ll look at with a lot of pride. And I’m sure the manager will take a lot of pleasure seeing me get into the squad.
“If you look back to when I first signed, especially for the fee and where I came from, you probably wouldn’t have thought we’d be sitting top of the Championship five years later and I’d get my call up.
“So as an individual relationship me and him have, it’s something we can look back on with a lot of pride. He (Howe) has helped me a lot to get to this point and I’m very thankful to him.”
After the disappointment of leaving Charlton, he has worked hard to climb the ladder but remains highly-ambitious despite enjoying the best period of his career.
“When I got released, international level wasn’t something I ever thought about,” he added.
“Getting back into the Football League was my main concern, whether that was League One or Two, albeit I knew that if I did get there, I’d have ambition to get to where I am now.
Ambition isn’t always easy to achieve, it’s hard to achieve your ambitions. I haven’t fully achieved them yet, I still have a lot more I want to achieve.
“I’ve got to a good point in my career at the moment and it’s a place I’m enjoying, but I’m not ready to rest on my laurels yet. I’m looking forward to future challenges.”
Arter has a keen eye for goal and has scored six times for Bournemouth this season.
And watch this belter against Watford from September:
