Harry Boorman

Harry Boorman is at the start of his footballing career but is hoping that he can help England’s Deaf men’s team achieve a medal at the World Cup in South Korea in 2023. The young defender sat down with me during a training camp at St George’s Park to discuss his England career so far.

Harry has been to St George’s Park to train with his squad mates multiple times but claims that pulling on the famous England shirt is a feeling that he will never get tired of. He said “every time I come to St George’s park I get excited more and more. It’s something that I’m very proud of. No-one is guaranteed a place in this squad so you have to work hard every single camp. You give your all and leave everything you have on the pitch here and every time it happens is a dream come true.”

Harry has benefitted from influential dressing room leaders such as Jamie Clarke since making his debut in 2019 and perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise to see that the confidence Jamie possesses has helped set high standards and expectations in the three lions’ camp. Speaking about his hopes ahead of the trip to Korea, Harry said “I’m confident. We have a great bunch of lads. The starting 11, the bench; everything you need in a squad, we have. The backroom staff and the manager are amazing. We would be the underdogs should we win it but whatever happens we win together, and we lose together. I’m hoping that it will be a successful trip though.”

The funding that has been provided in recent years has proven crucial to the deaf footballing community as deaf children now know they could have a future playing professional football when before that option may not have been available. Harry confessed just how much his own experience has changed from the funding by saying: “it has been so good for our mental health to now be able to play at the top level with no restrictions. Before we were funded, we were training in public parks, schools or wherever we possibly could. We would have to pay for everything ourselves and stay at premier inns and spend lots on fuel to travel everywhere. To be able to come here and be given a room and food and anything else is fantastic. We appreciate absolutely everything that we are given. It has helped us develop hugely. It has allowed us to become ten times the players we were before.”

Being able to play live on air and share their journey through the media has been a great experience for Harry but he hopes that even more can be done to help promote the sport. Harry explained “when we went to Greece to compete in the European championships, it was livestreamed on YouTube. It didn’t cost a lot to do but it meant so much to everyone who played and our family and friends. It allowed us to be watched by people who couldn’t travel to Greece. We also had one of the first big media days we have ever had at St George’s Park with lots of pictures and interviews and it’s the first time a lot of people have been involved in a media day with us. It’s good to see that coverage and I would like to see more.”