AFTER four years playing college soccer in America to crowds of up to 10,000, a Stocksfield resident is looking to forge a football career in his homeland.

Former Prudhoe High School pupil Tomas Coulter is fighting fit and raring to go after playing soccer five, sometimes six, times a week as part of his scholarship Stateside.

With a relocation to London on the cards, the 25-year-old is looking to use the skills picked to playing football, or even futsal, at a high standard.

Growing up playing at local club Stocksfield between the ages of nine and 18, Coulter has been hooked on the sport and was part of the West Tyne Schools representative team.

But after starting a career in finance, he dreamed about continuing to play football rather than be stuck behind a desk.

And that led him to pursue a switch to the United States, aiming to attain a soccer scholarship.

After setback after setback, he had a change of tact and applied to academic courses at colleges with the hope of getting on football teams later. This approach landed him a place at one of the country‘s top universities, Duke University in North Carolina, to study business for a year.

It was then over to Coulter to persuade coaches, former USA players John Kerr and Michael Brady, to allow him a place in the squad, one of only two ’walk-on‘ players in the 30-man team whereas the rest were recruited up to two years in advance of playing.

And the experience of flying to all parts of the US to play in front of large crowds has left a lasting impression on the Tynedale footballer.

He said: “Everything about the experience was absolutely brilliant, travelling to places like Boston, Washington DC and all over to play was great.

”The emphasis over there is about being an athlete and intense training, as well as a focus on playing well.

“It was all so theoretical too as they had a movie room and you would watch videos of the opposition and even set up like they would in training so you could prepare for the game.

”It was quite exhausting really, but I’m in the best shape I‘ve ever been and I loved playing football every day.“

The highlight of his spell in America came when he played in front of 10,000, the atmosphere in the stadium incredible and something he had never experienced before.

Coulter said: ”We had up to 10,000 watching one game and you don’t really get people watching university games in England.

“They treat college soccer like a professional sport and the crowd research all the players and make up chants about them. It was all so surreal!”

Due to strict rules, he could only play at Duke for one year but was accepted to Rollins College in Florida due to good performances in North Carolina.

He has spent the last year studying at the Crummer Graduate School of Business, and his sporting highlight saw him spend time in Peru visiting the country’s top team, Sporting Cristal.