Trai Hume: 'The sky's the limit' for model student after Sunderland move from Linfield
- Published
Hume has been one of Linfield's stand-out performers this season
"He really was the talk of the academy - it was 'Trai this and Trai that'."
That Trai Hume was on the verge of a move from Linfield to England or Scotland has been one of the worst-kept secrets in Irish League football for some months.
Stoke City and Celtic were two of a number of clubs linked with the 19-year-old before he sealed a move to League One title candidates Sunderland on Tuesday.
For former Linfield captain Michael Gault, however, such a move was always on the cards for the Northern Ireland Under-21 international long before he became an Irish Premiership regular over the last 18 months.
Gault saw Hume's development up-close as a coach at the NIFL Academy Player Scholarship Programme, where Hume was a student for two years until 2020.
A two-year course that combines training and education in a bid to mirror that of a full-time club academy, it was while observing Hume's work-rate on a daily basis that Gault and his fellow coaches realised he was destined for a much higher stage than the Irish League's top flight.
"I taught Trai in class and saw him in training a lot. The players, coaches and teachers all loved him and thought he was brilliant," Gault reflected.
"You could see his talents on the pitch and I've kept a keen eye on him since. I knew everyone at Linfield raved about him too and, of course, he captained a very young Linfield Swifts side to Steel and Sons cup success.
"One of our teachers would often comment on how hard Trai worked in the gym on things like strength and conditioning - and I know he still works on those areas a lot now.
"Trai trained so hard, he was the exception. You could see how willing he was to learn and was just so dedicated to his football, first on the training pitch every day. When you see that from a kid every single day it makes a big impression on you."
Remodelled full-back with top schooling at Linfield
Hume enjoyed Steel and Sons Cup success with Linfield alongside Northern Ireland international Dale Taylor
When recently-appointed Linfield Swifts manager Gault casts his mind back to working with the 16 and 17-year-old Hume, it is a ball-playing centre-half or central midfielder that he conjures memories of.
However, it is as an aggressive, technically-gifted, attacking right-back with Premiership champions Linfield that Hume has been one of the league's stand-out performers this season - something Gault believes both the player and club boss David Healy deserve enormous credit for.
"I know myself how difficult it is to break into the first team at Linfield as a young lad, no matter how good you are, because they always have a great squad," he continued.
"For Trai to go on loan to Ballymena United last season and get experience of playing regular Irish League football was fantastic, and he went on to win the Young Player of the Year award.
"He then returned to Linfield with no regard for reputation at all. His thought process was 'I'm playing here and that's it'. That type of attitude has made him a massive player this season.
"I always saw Trai as a central midfielder but full credit to David Healy and Linfield for seeing his qualities as a right-back. He has just got it all - an eye for goal, fit, strong in the tackle and brilliant in the air for the size of him. He could play anywhere."
As someone who himself came through the Linfield youth ranks to establish himself in the first team, Gault believes that having to deal with the demands of being a Blues player will stand Hume in good stead.
"You have to win at Linfield, no matter what, and that will do his development no harm at all. He is going to Sunderland as a winner.
"He has only been at Linfield for a relatively short period of time, but he will have learned that there is no point in coming second or third - you have to win things or you will be out the door."
'The sky's the limit - he'll want to push on'
Hume's season on loan at Ballymena United was an important part of his development
Having become an ever-present for Linfield this season and won nine Northern Ireland U21 caps, Hume has signed a four-and-a-half-year contract on Wearside with a club option of a further year.
The Black Cats are currently second in England's third tier and challenging for promotion. While recognising the immediate step up in standard that Hume will have to make, Gault is convinced he can go as far in the game as he wants to.
"I think the sky's the limit with Trai. It's obviously a big step up to go and play in League One in England but he is the sort of person who will not be afraid, he will go and embrace it.
"He will keep training hard and he will keep doing all his extra work. He will thrive on playing with better players at club level and he will also be a Northern Ireland regular in years to come.
"There is no chance of him sitting back and thinking he has made it - he will want to push on and play in the league above that and become a Northern Ireland international.
"It's a lesson to any young players that if you work hard and have a bit of luck then you can achieve your goals."
A lesson that Hume clearly took on board as a teenager under Gault.