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Kaiyne Woolery has revealed how a helping hand from Emile Heskey has pushed him towards the senior ranks at Wanderers.
Alongside defender Rob Holding, the jet-heeled winger has been a breakout find for Neil Lennon in a season with few highlights.
A self-confessed latecomer to football, Woolery had learned the ropes at non-league Maidstone and Tamworth before turning down a move to Burnley to sign with the Whites a year-and-a-half ago.
His raw talent has been honed in the development squad by Iain Brunskill and his new assistant Heskey, who recently took his first steps into coaching with the Under-21s.
“I’ve had an opportunity to work with some real legends of the game,” Woolery said. “Emile in particular has taken me under his wing. He’s taken me to the video room to talk through stuff with me and show me what I’m doing right and wrong.
“He’s been a real help for me and I’m really grateful to him for what he’s done for me so far.
“Having played at the top level, I don’t see any reason why he would not make a good coach. He’s already been getting involved with the Under-21s and working with Brunny (Iain Brunskill) and been on the touchline for a couple of our games. He’s such a great guy to learn from, it can only help us all.”
After a handful of late cameos from the bench, fans are anxious to get a longer look at Woolery – the last Wanderers player to arrive for a cash fee before the current financial problems hit.
His £10,000 move from Tamworth was engineered by Dougie Freedman but Woolery explained he could easily have been plying his trade across Lancashire in a claret shirt.
“I’d actually been scouted by Burnley and at the time Bolton showed an interest, I was on trial with them,” he said.
“They offered me a contract, but at the same time Bolton got in touch with my agent and said they’d like to offer me one too.
“Even though Burnley had just won promotion to the Premier League and it would have been a great opportunity for me, I felt as though I had a better chance of progression at Bolton.
“At the time they had a lot of attacking options like Sam Vokes and Danny Ings but I feel as though I made the right decision for my development. Even the facilities are much better here, and that’s a bonus.”
Woolery was sent out on loan at Notts County last season and was rewarded for his progress with a brief debut at Bournemouth.
After impressing in pre-season he has gathered more momentum and is knocking on the door for his first senior start under Lennon.
But the Hackney-born youngster did not take a regular route to the Championship and just five years ago was playing on the parks pitches of Ebbsfleet in the Sunday leagues.
“I guess I was a later starter in terms of making tracks in the professional game – it wasn’t until I was 16 that I got involved in a company called Soccer Elite who gave me the opportunity to do a scholarship, which involved playing football and also studying on the side,” he explained to the club’s match-day programme.
“You train every day but also have classes too, which is important. You don’t want to be putting all your eggs in one basket, especially in a career like football where it is so unpredictable. It’s a good thing for players to do at that age.
“Prior to all that I used to play Sunday league for Ebbsfleet but once I got to 16 I started playing men’s football and ended up at Redhill whilst I was doing my scholarship.
“I was only a teenager but I was playing alongside men and that was helping me develop my game. I’m still only 21 but I feel a lot older than that in terms of my maturity on and off the pitch.”
Wanderers host Leeds United this weekend looking to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup and Woolery admits he would love to sample the action.
“It’s a really exciting competition and one you watch as a kid and want to be involved in because absolutely anything can happen and that’s a great incentive for any team that plays in it,” he said.
“Knowing that we have got a home draw is a big boost, although playing Leeds will be a tough test for us as we know having played them in the league earlier in the season.
“It’s a game both sets of fans will be up for and if we can get through it, maybe we can go on a little cup run?”
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Alongside defender Rob Holding, the jet-heeled winger has been a breakout find for Neil Lennon in a season with few highlights.
A self-confessed latecomer to football, Woolery had learned the ropes at non-league Maidstone and Tamworth before turning down a move to Burnley to sign with the Whites a year-and-a-half ago.
His raw talent has been honed in the development squad by Iain Brunskill and his new assistant Heskey, who recently took his first steps into coaching with the Under-21s.
“I’ve had an opportunity to work with some real legends of the game,” Woolery said. “Emile in particular has taken me under his wing. He’s taken me to the video room to talk through stuff with me and show me what I’m doing right and wrong.
“He’s been a real help for me and I’m really grateful to him for what he’s done for me so far.
“Having played at the top level, I don’t see any reason why he would not make a good coach. He’s already been getting involved with the Under-21s and working with Brunny (Iain Brunskill) and been on the touchline for a couple of our games. He’s such a great guy to learn from, it can only help us all.”
After a handful of late cameos from the bench, fans are anxious to get a longer look at Woolery – the last Wanderers player to arrive for a cash fee before the current financial problems hit.
His £10,000 move from Tamworth was engineered by Dougie Freedman but Woolery explained he could easily have been plying his trade across Lancashire in a claret shirt.
“I’d actually been scouted by Burnley and at the time Bolton showed an interest, I was on trial with them,” he said.
“They offered me a contract, but at the same time Bolton got in touch with my agent and said they’d like to offer me one too.
“Even though Burnley had just won promotion to the Premier League and it would have been a great opportunity for me, I felt as though I had a better chance of progression at Bolton.
“At the time they had a lot of attacking options like Sam Vokes and Danny Ings but I feel as though I made the right decision for my development. Even the facilities are much better here, and that’s a bonus.”
Woolery was sent out on loan at Notts County last season and was rewarded for his progress with a brief debut at Bournemouth.
After impressing in pre-season he has gathered more momentum and is knocking on the door for his first senior start under Lennon.
But the Hackney-born youngster did not take a regular route to the Championship and just five years ago was playing on the parks pitches of Ebbsfleet in the Sunday leagues.
“I guess I was a later starter in terms of making tracks in the professional game – it wasn’t until I was 16 that I got involved in a company called Soccer Elite who gave me the opportunity to do a scholarship, which involved playing football and also studying on the side,” he explained to the club’s match-day programme.
“You train every day but also have classes too, which is important. You don’t want to be putting all your eggs in one basket, especially in a career like football where it is so unpredictable. It’s a good thing for players to do at that age.
“Prior to all that I used to play Sunday league for Ebbsfleet but once I got to 16 I started playing men’s football and ended up at Redhill whilst I was doing my scholarship.
“I was only a teenager but I was playing alongside men and that was helping me develop my game. I’m still only 21 but I feel a lot older than that in terms of my maturity on and off the pitch.”
Wanderers host Leeds United this weekend looking to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup and Woolery admits he would love to sample the action.
“It’s a really exciting competition and one you watch as a kid and want to be involved in because absolutely anything can happen and that’s a great incentive for any team that plays in it,” he said.
“Knowing that we have got a home draw is a big boost, although playing Leeds will be a tough test for us as we know having played them in the league earlier in the season.
“It’s a game both sets of fans will be up for and if we can get through it, maybe we can go on a little cup run?”
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