Harry Arter grasping his second opportunity with both hands

When he left Charlton Athletic for non-league Woking in 2009, after loan spells at Staines Town and Welling United, thoughts of a senior international call-up were far from Harry Arter's mind.

By then the London-born midfielder, who had been capped at underage level for the Republic of Ireland, was simply left wondering if he'd have any form of professional career at all.

It had started so promisingly too, Arter making his debut for the club as a 17-year-old, but those four minutes as a substitute proved to be his last in a Charlton first team shirt.

Chronic tendonitis in his Achilles, followed by a ruptured Achilles, kept him out of football for almost a year. By the time he returned the club was in freefall and Alan Pardew, the manager who had given him a two-year professional contract, had left.

“So I ended up dropping in to non-League,” he said yesterday after training with his new colleagues in Malahide, the now 25-year-old reflecting on a career that is finally moving in the right direction.

After one season with Woking, Bournemouth gave him his ticket back to the league in 2010 – for a fee of £4,000 – and now they sit top of the Championship with seven games to go, the Premier League within touching distance. And Arter’s form is one of the reasons they’re where they are.

Work hard

“There are probably loads of players who end up going to non-league and end up staying there,” he said.

“It’s easy when you’re at that level to blame other things and point the finger at other people for why you are there – but you are there for a reason. You failed at the level you were at and you have to prove yourself again. One thing I felt I had to do was work hard and I’m doing that now to try and achieve my goals. And hard work is the recipe for success.”

Advising him along the way, and encouraging that work ethic, has been his brother-in-law and former Charlton team-mate Scott Parker, the ex-England international on the phone to Arter after his first training session with the squad on Monday to check how he’d fared.

“It’s daunting the first time you come in, but once you find your feet and introduce yourself to everyone, it’s just like normal. I wouldn’t have known the lads. I played against Wes [Hoolahan] earlier in the season and he is one of those players who you can’t get the ball off – so I prefer playing with him rather than against him,” he smiled.

“They’re top, top players and it will be a good experience playing with them. I’m here for whatever the manager wants me to be here for. If that’s just to have a look at me or be a part of the game, then I’ll try to be a positive influence.”

While he might have to bide his time for a senior international debut, should he get his chance at some stage on Sunday then he’ll hope to extend an impressive tally of goals from midfield this season – eight in all, including two gems in his last two games.

But if he is to do so, he may have to find a way past his club colleague Artur Boruc, the former Glasgow Celtic goalkeeper hopeful of a recall in light of Wojciech Szczesny's struggles at Arsenal.

Late tackle

“If the other Polish players are like him, then they’re mad,” he laughed. “That’s what we call him at work, ‘The Madman’ – but he’s a top keeper. He is passionate about

Poland

, I know this game means a lot to him because it would be his 60th cap.

“It’s been keeping him going, and it’s probably why we’ve seen the best of him at Bournemouth. I’d be surprised if we keep hold of him if we don’t go up, we just try to enjoy him while we’ve got him.”

The last time Arter pulled on an Irish shirt was in an under-19 game against Portugal in 2007 when he was sent off for a late tackle. Not the happiest of memories, then, but being given the chance at that level persuaded him to commit to Ireland, even after efforts to turn his head.

“When I was under-17 I had the chance to play for England, but I chose to stay with Ireland. They gave me the opportunity to play at international level at 15. I was really thankful for that, I learned a lot from it and from then on I’ve always wanted to stick with Ireland.”

His roots are in Sligo – “the Rooneys and Gallaghers” – where he spent summers as a child visiting his grandparents with his mother.

Good memories

“I’ve heard Sligo has changed a bit since then,” he smiled.

“I haven’t been there for a few years, but I have good memories of the place.”

He hasn’t had to sing his ‘initiation song’ for the squad yet, but he fears the moment is imminent.

What'll be? My Old Sligo Home? No. "Mario – Let Me Love You."

A clip from the chorus: "Let me be the one to give you everything you want and need . . . make me your selection."

An appropriate choice. He should croon it in the gaffer’s direction.