Odeluga Offiah is the latest player to make his debut in the English Premier League after coming off the bench in the 88th minute of Brighton & Hove’s 3-1 defeat suffered at the hands of Nottingham Forest last month.
Both Odel and Martin Offiah owe a lot of thanks to the same man, according to the rugby league legend.
Martin was known as Chariots Offiah as his explosive pace brought him 500 tries and an array of honours.
Martin told The Argus: “My brother is the main person.
“I give him credit for my own sporting career, if I am honest. He was incredible.
“I only met him when he was seven years old.
“He couldn’t speak English at the age of seven but he went on to pass his 11-plus which got him into a boarding school.
“I wouldn’t have been a rugby player if it had not been for my brother.
“He supported me throughout my career.”
It was quickly obvious Odel also had a love of sport.
Martin said: “Odel was playing rugby and football as a kid.
“I said to Chike, ‘What is he going to do, be a rugby player or a footballer?’.
“He said he liked football and I said, ‘You need to get him into an academy’.
“I knew he was talented and played with adults at the park but he needed to get some coaching and people needed to see him.
“They took him to Bromley and Odel was quite a late starter.
“He tried to get into Crystal Palace and Charlton so Brighton was his third club.
“Then everything has looked up.
“It’s kind of similar with my son Phoenix (who is at Brentford).
“He was playing rugby and has now transitioned into football.
“I’m very much into you should do what you love.”
Odel on making his Premier League debut:
The defender couldn’t quite believe he got the shout down the touchline at the City Ground to come on from Andrew Crofts, but was keen to ensure he made the right impact.
“I had to relax myself as you get nervous, but I wanted to concentrate so I could take on the instructions they were giving me, so I could make a good impression and try and have the impact they want you to have.
“It’s a moment nobody can ever take away from me. It would have been great to have won, but it’s something that I will cherish regardless of the result.”
Jason Robinson son signs with Manchester City:
England legend Jason Robinson recently took to social media, to share the news that his son Noah has signed for Premier League football giants Manchester City. The 2003 Rugby World Cup winner said how he was “super proud” of his son.
Manchester City published an announcement video, confirming that the young Robinson had signed with the Citizens. Jason Robinson’s tweet garnered the attention of some of rugby’s well-known names, who shared their support for the new City star.
Sale Sharks legend Mark Cueto commented: “If he’s that good at football – I dread to think how good he is at rugger r kid.” Former Scotland international Jim Hamilton kept it simple with “So cool.”
Congratulations to Noah, Jason and the rest of the Robinson family. If the youngster has anything close to the speed of his Dad, then he will certainly be a threat in the Premier League for years to come.
An incredible XI of rugby players who played for football academies
More rugby stars than you think almost had a career in football, including the current England Captain Owen Farrell. Check out who else makes our stunning XI.
GOALKEEPER:
Owen Farrell (Manchester United): The England captain trained with the Manchester United youth team as a goalkeeper. Modestly, he insists he would never have made the grade and that his passion was always rugby league. But Farrell’s trial was cut short when his family moved south – and he left both sports behind for rugby union.
CENTRE-BACKS:
Ben & Tom Curry (Manchester City): It is true that they had a trial at Manchester City, who the twins support, but that was scuppered by Tom scoring an own goal. Probably for the best in the end.
Toby Flood (Newcastle United): After two years at the club he was released by academy director John Carver in the 90s. They were reunited almost 15 years later when Flood was playing at St James park with the Falcons and Carver was manager of the toon army.