AS THE saying goes, ‘you make your own luck’.
It is fair to say, when Scott Parker first took charge at Cherries last summer, Mark Travers was not the undisputed number one goalkeeper in his mind, and perhaps with fair reasoning.
One year on and fresh off winning a host of individual trophies, a new five-year contract for the talented stopper highlights the life of a goalkeeper.
Goalkeeper was instantly an area Parker needed to address. With Cherries keen to move player of the season Asmir Begovic on, down in part to help ease the wage budget, a signing was needed.
Unless you had watched the talented stopper closely, both during his rare opportunities at Cherries, or during his brief but impressive loan stint at Swindon Town, to an outsider, relying on Travers to be a key figure in the club’s pursuit of promotion could have been seen as risky.
Freddie Woodman finally joined Cherries in January
And, had the club’s well-documented pursuit of Freddie Woodman last summer been successful, this story may well have had a different ending.
Everything was lined up. Following two fine seasons in the Championship with Swansea City, a deal had been agreed to bring Woodman on loan to Cherries from Newcastle United, with the former England under-21 international set to head out to Marbella to join the club’s pre-season training camp.
Where would that have left Travers? We will never fully know.
But, it never happened. An injury to Newcastle stopper Martin Dubravka, combined with back-up Karl Darlow testing positive for COVID-19, meant Woodman was required to stay put.
He started the first four Premier League games of the season for the Magpies, his only four English top-flight appearances to date, but after a shaky display in defeat at Manchester United, combined with a hip injury, Woodman would never play for Newcastle again.
Travers had to patiently wait for his chances
In the meantime, Travers was part of a youthful Cherries side beginning the Championship season.
But getting that opportunity is only half the battle. Being ready to take it is the key.
Many footballers wait months to get that opportunity in the team, only to falter when it comes around.
In truth, there were question marks after the first league game of the season against West Brom. Just 22 at the time, Travers was making a 13th professional league appearance of his career and struggled at times with the Baggies’ physical approach.
But he, and Cherries grew from that experience, with the Maynooth-born talent rarely looking back, especially after the transfer window closed and he was the main man between the sticks, with new recruit Orjan Nyland very much a number two option.
It may have taken three years, but Travers finally had that opportunity he craved, and he was more than ready for it.
Travers shone against Tottenham in May 2019
His Premier League debut was an occasion which will live long in the memory. In the modern era of social media, it is rare for a team sheet to throw up a complete bolt out the blue, especially in a starting XI.
Travers had not even been part of a top-flight matchday squad, when Eddie Howe thrust him into the spotlight against Tottenham Hotspur in May 2019.
Cue surprise, intrigue and excitement around the press lounge at a fresh face being thrown in.
It proved to be an inspired choice as Travers, the first teenage goalkeeper to start in the Premier League for 13 years, kept a clean sheet, produced a string of saves and was named man-of-the-match in the 1-0 victory.
In any interview with Travers since, he always made he clear he just wanted to go and play games. Ideally at Cherries, but if not, on loan.
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The summer of 2019 would prove to be another sliding doors moment in the Irishman’s fledgling career.
Howe laid down a unique challenge to the club’s four goalkeepers during pre-season. Experienced duo Artur Boruc and Asmir Begovic were challenging both Travers and returning loanee Aaron Ramsdale for the starting berth on the opening day of the season.
It was a bizarre situation, to have four goalkeepers sharing the minutes around with nobody knowing for sure who would get the nod until the team sheet dropped ahead of the Sheffield United clash.
In the end, it was Ramsdale, with Boruc on the bench. Begovic headed out on loan, and Travers stayed to play cup games, but aside from that, travel around with team to warm-up and then watch from the stands.
Howe, cautiously, would not allow Travers to leave on loan, despite reported interest from the likes of Norwich City and Leeds United in the Championship.
The Irishman celebrates with Ramsdale after his penalty shootout heroics
But, while injury issues elsewhere may have aided Travers last year, in 2019, they proved his downfall.
After Travers became the hero during a penalty shootout win over Forest Green Rovers in the EFL Cup, boss Howe said: “I love to see the supporters attached to the players and that support was great to see and fully deserved for Mark. He’s an outstanding goalkeeper.”
Asked how close he was to naming Travers ahead of Ramsdale in the Premier League opener, Howe added: “Of course, he was in my mind.
“I think the difficulty for him is he picked up the thumb injury for Ireland, missed a lot of pre-season, so I think we only saw him for the last two weeks and I think that then made it difficult.
“I feel I hadn’t seen enough of him, he hadn’t trained enough for me to pick him ahead of Aaron.”
Like Travers last season, Ramsdale became impossible to drop, winning the club’s player of the season. After relegation, he moved back to the top flight with Sheffield United.
A new manager, but the same story followed the next summer, with Travers this time playing second fiddle to Begovic under Jason Tindall.
He was at least this time granted permission to head out on loan in January, to get some game-time in League One with Swindon.
But another change saw that move swiftly cut short, with new boss Jonathan Woodgate insisting he needed Travers to return to play back-up to Begovic.
The summer of 2021, after some misfortune for others, finally proved to be the opening Travers needed. While Woodman did eventually join Cherries on loan, in January, by that time the Irishman had cemented his spot.
Golden Glove winner Mark Travers
He went on to win the Championship’s Golden Glove, something Woodman had won the previous season, as well as the supporters’ player of the season, vice president’s player of the season and Daily Echo-Micky Cave player of the year award.
It was quite ironic Travers penned a five-year deal at Cherries a few days on from Woodman leaving Newcastle permanently to join mid-table Championship outfit Preston North End.
It is not inconceivable to think the reverse could well have happened, this time last year.
But it was far from just fortune which has led Travers to this point. He knew he could shine if given the opportunity. He was ready and he took it.
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