BEN Fox hopes that he can use pre-season friendlies to get on Nigel Clough’s radar.
Fox was one of three Academy players handed professional contracts by Nigel Clough for this year, alongside, Marcus Dinanga and Charlie Gatter.
They are now training with the first time squad and looking to impress the Gaffer, having all got game time at Leek in the first pre-season fixture.
Fox, who was named Scholar of the Year at the annual Players’ Awards, says: “It’s about trying to catch the Gaffer’s eye and show what we can do.
“Training has been tough. I did a little bit of work in the off season to try and get my fitness levels higher. Everyone’s come back raring to go and trying to get ready for the new season.”
A pre-season boost for the trio was a chance to gain experience after being invited to train with the England under 19s at St George’s Park.
They were able to experience training with the best ’97 born players in the country under the guidance of head coach Aidy Boothroyd.
Fox says: “The Academy got a call saying that England wanted three extra players to help fill out training and we jumped at the opportunity. It was a fantastic experience for us - very valuable. The players there are the future of English football so they have a lot of talent and it was all quite quick. The players had all the attributes you would expect from high quality players. Hopefully, I have learned from them and can now bring it back to Burton.
“I think I held my own and hopefully gave a good impression of myself and the club. It was a massive experience.”