WHEN 16-year-old schoolboy Jason Dozzell scored on his Ipswich debut way back in 1984, he probably thought it was a one-off.
Little did he realise that, 32 years later, that remarkable achievement would be matched by his own son.
Andre Dozzell's goal against Sheffield Wednesday last weekend came 15 days before his 17th birthday – and left his proud dad wishing he'd been to the bookies!
“Can you imagine putting money on that?” said the 48-year-old, whose goal against Coventry in 1984 aged 16 years and 57 days means he is still the youngest player ever to score in the top flight of English football. “I can't even imagine what the odds would be.
“Mind you, it's a little bit different for Andre. I was a year younger so I was back in school on the Monday morning. And there was no social media in those days so nobody even knew what I'd done!”
Watching his son – a half-time substitute – nod the Ipswich leveller, it's tempting to imagine the memories came flooding back. For Dozzell, though, they never left.
“I remember it all,” says the former midfielder, now a youth coach at Ipswich. “Every kick, every second. My goal a couple of minutes from the end that made it 2-0.
“It all happened in the space of a few weeks. I played a youth team game, scored in that. Then I went straight into the reserves. We played Chelsea away and I was up against Mickey Droy and Doug Rougvie, two good pros at Stamford Bridge. I managed to score again.
“The next week, Ipswich called my school and asked if I could take the day off. They wanted me to go and train with the first team.
“Bear in mind that I was an Ipswich fan anyway. I'd stood on the terraces and the players in that dressing room were my heroes. I'll never forget the moment I was told.
“After a morning's training the manager, Bobby Ferguson said ‘You're on the bench'. In those days there was only one sub, so it was absolutely crazy. Did I think I'd get on? Did I heck! I thought I was there for the experience. But someone got injured after 29 minutes.
“After the game, the manager said there were cameras everywhere so to make sure I got out quick. I remember sneaking out and getting bundled into Russell Osman's car.
“The next day, I went to play for my Sunday League team but they just assumed I wouldn't be playing and picked someone else. The photographers were there and there's a picture of me standing on the sidelines holding a pair of boots.
“Funnily enough, though, I've never been able to track a picture of the goal down. I've scoured the internet, tried every avenue. It's nowhere to be found.”
Dozzell would go on to play over 400 games for the Tractor Boys, winning promotion to the Premier League in 1992 and joining Spurs for £1.9m a year later.
But persistent injuries ruined his time at White Hart Lane and by the age of 30 time had been called on his days as a top-flight player.
“Starting early did play a part,” he admits. “Andre will be managed and rested. He's got a long way to go and he'll have to build up his strength to be a regular.
“Me, I got in and stayed in. The season following my debut I played pretty much every match. I'd done something like 250 games by the time I was 20.
“And that was on heavy pitches with old fashioned balls. It was too much. In terms of wear and tear, I was basically four or five years ahead of everybody else. My legs started to go at 27.
“These days, with the pace and the physicality, it would be completely impossible to be a regular at 16. That's why Andre has to be managed properly – and he will be.”
And that management also extends to ignoring the advances of Premier League poachers, with Dozzell Jnr already a hot target before his explosive debut.
“Andre is 16, he's playing for his hometown club,” added Dozzell. “That's where his future should be. You go to a big club, you get swallowed up, you disappear at 21.
“Here, he's around the first team and he's developing in his own time. He's on the right path and, at this rate, he's capable of achieving a lot more than me.”
