Winchester in senior call

Carl Winchester: national call

ATHLETIC youngster Carl Winchester has capped a memorable season by earning his first call-up to the senior Northern Ireland squad.

The 18-year-old — a first-year scholar at Boundary Park — has caught the eye this term after making seven appearances for Paul Dickov’s side.

He also scored a 25-yard piledriver against MK Dons on the final day of the season.

The full-back has been selected for the televised Carling Nations Cup matches against Republic of Ireland tomorrow and Wales on Friday.

Winchester’s rise has been rapid, having started the campaign playing for Athletic’s youth team in front of just dozens, before his elevation to the first team picture at the turn of the year.

Now he can look forward to two international fixtures to be played at the 51,700-capacity Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Winchester, who has also been named in the under-21s squad to face the Faroe Islands in August, is joined in the senior set-up by Athletic striker Warren Feeney.