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Fierce footwork has earned a young boy an overseas sporting invitation.
Nese Su’a, 7, recently impressed international football talent spotters at an Australian event and has been invited to play in the United Kingdom in October.
His parents have launched a community fitness competition to help pay for the trip.
His mother, Kelly Dickson, said the journey began when she told him about her childhood dream to be an Olympic sprinter and advised him to try new things.
“I said also if you ever have anyone tell you that you’ll never ever achieve it, you need to listen to what’s in your heart and your gut,’’ Ms Dickson said.
Shortly after, Nese asked to attend a football showcase coinciding with a family trip to Brisbane.
Despite being the youngest of more than 200 children and facing older competition in the heat, he played well.
His father, Andrew Su’a, was initially apprehensive about the high-pressure environment, but both parents were proud when Nese was awarded high marks.
“At the end we were both crying. We were really happy with the scorecard and the results,” Mr Su’a said.
He said despite playing in “blazing hot” weather of more than 30˚C, his son enjoyed the event.
“He was just like, just having the time of his life.”
The impressive scores led to Nese being invited by the Global Football Network to participate in a trial event in Manchester.
While not guaranteeing a professional contract, the trip offers a rare chance to train against Manchester City and Manchester United youth academies.
To help pay for the tour, the couple, who are both personal trainers, created The Body Architects Hybrid Games.
The indoor competition is at South Dunedin's King’s High School gymnasium on September 19 and 20.
The event blends running with strength and bodyweight exercises across three divisions.
The aim is to give locals a competition experience without the expense of travelling north.
All registrations help fund Nese’s travel and a Givealittle page has also been established to support his international goals.
Nese remains focused on his ultimate dream of playing for a professional team such as his favourite club Real Madrid and copying the moves of Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I like his bicycle kick that he did,’’ Nese said.
