IT’S fair to say a few eyebrows were raised when I suggested in this column earlier in the year that Jay Rodriguez would not be far away from a call-up to Roy Hodgson’s England squad.

Ex-colleagues, who shall remain nameless, questioned my judgement when I named the former Clarets striker as a possibility for inclusion in end-of-season friendlies against the Republic of Ireland and Brazil.

But anyone who has been around the Burnley-born striker over the last few years – be it at close quarters as a coach, manager or team-mate, or on the periphery – could see that the boy had something a bit special.

I first encountered Jay during my first pre-season as Clarets reporter, on the club’s summer tour of Austria in 2007.

Steve Cotterill had just handed the teenager his first professional contract.

As was customary for any newcomer to the squad there was an initiation process, which involved singing a song of your choice in front of the rest of the squad and staff.

Jay picked a hit from before his generation, bashfully blasting out High by the Lighthouse Family in the broadest Burnley accent you can imagine.

While away, he celebrated his 18th birthday.

He was a boy amongst men.

But he proved ahead of his time the second he crossed the white line.

While quiet and unassuming off the pitch, he was a bold and confident character on it. With the right people around him, he could only grow.

Ade Akinbiyi was one of those, and he championed the striker long before he made the seamless transition into the Premier League with Southampton.

The muscle-bound striker was a mentor to a young Jay, both on and off the pitch, even after Akinbiyi left Turf Moor.

As soon as Jay filled out, he began to fulfil his promise and potential.

Tomorrow night he could realise his dream, and that of almost every young boy, and play for England.

He will be the first from the borough of Burnley to do so since Brian Miller in 1961.

He has become a modern day role model for youngsters in the town and in the club.

They will want to follow in his footsteps.

With Burnley needing to supplement a small budget by progressing their own talent, providing a pathway for locals, it shouldn’t be another 50-plus years before the next.