Source: Bournemouth_Echo
Cherries: Full Nelson is over the Tottenham test
NEW recruit Mitchell Nelson believes he is quickly adjusting to life in the full-time ranks following his rise from non-league. Nelson has responded in positive fashion following his baptism of fire against mighty Tottenham. The 20-year-old was thrown in at the deep end in Cherries' opening friendly and endured a tough debut against the Premier League big guns. Defender Nelson took his bow against a star-studded Spurs line-up just days after Eddie Howe's squad had returned for the start of pre-season. And having since worked diligently at his game in training, signs of his rich potential have been in evidence during assured displays against Fulham and Derby. Nelson, though, is unlikely to feature in a friendly against former club Tooting & Mitcham tonight (7.30pm) after picking up an ankle knock. The clash was arranged as part of the deal that saw the defender join Cherries on a three-year contract earlier this summer. The Londoner told the Daily Echo: I'm enjoying every minute of it here and everybody has made me feel very welcome. I have been training hard and just getting used to training every day. It was only two days a week at Tooting so I'm reaping the benefits and feeling sharper. It has been a learning curve for me and playing against world class players has been a great experience. Coming up against the likes of Modric and Pavlyuchenko can only stand you in good stead for a season in League One. It is something to get used to and you can't fail to learn from these players. Nelson, a former Colchester trainee, last season lined up in the Premier Division of the Ryman League for Tooting and Mitcham where he honed a mule-like long throw. I've just got long arms! laughed Nelson when asked about his secret weapon. I used it at Tooting and it was a threat because a lot of our goals came from it. I would launch it into the box and was like a non-league Rory Delap. I've got some good memories of my time there, especially reaching the first round of the FA Cup. Howe is expected to name a team largely made up of fringe players, first and second year apprentices and trialists at Imperial Fields.