WHENEVER Fleetwood Town are mentioned, you cannot help but think of Jamie Vardy.

It was the Lancashire club who famously put the striker on the road to Premier League and England stardom when they sold him to Leicester after his goals fired them into the Football League.

But the League One team are developing a new generation of talent they hope can follow in his illustrious footsteps and put a few extra quid into the coffers.

When home-grown defender James Hill completed his £1million move to Bournemouth this month, he became the latest player the Cod Army have nurtured and moved on to bigger things.

And there is no sign of their conveyor belt of talent ending – with an incredible SEVEN internationals currently among their ranks.

It was eight until Saturday when Northern Ireland right-back Conor McLaughlin decided to leave the club after his contract expired.

One of the internationals is playmaking midfielder Paddy Lane, who Fleetwood only signed last summer from non-league club Hyde United.

The 20-year-old has been one of the finds of the season and is joint top of the division’s assists table with eight and broken into the Northern Ireland Under-21 team.

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And as Vardy did after Sheffield Wednesday rejected him as a 16-year-old, Lane took the non-league route following his own release by Blackburn in his mid-teens.

Lane said: “Maybe Blackburn thought I was too small or not good enough.

“But I joined Hyde, who were operating under Rochdale’s Elite Development Squad scheme.

“And in my second year, I got brought into the Hyde first team and ended up playing 50 to 60 games for them.

“Then, luckily in the summer, Fleetwood took a punt on me.”

Vardy played for Stocksbirdge Park Steels and Halifax before Fleetwood snapped him up – while Lane played for Hyde and had two loan spells with Farsley Celtic.

And the Cod Army ace said: “I’ve a lot of time for the non-league route.

“When I was growing up Vardy was one of my idols and he took that path as did players like West Ham’s Michail Antonio and Aston Villa’s Tyrone Mings.

“There are lots of good youngsters coming through nowadays that way because it toughens you up for men’s football.

“I needed to get kicked a few times to put me into the right direction.

“Hyde gave me a great platform and I was performing, scoring goals and getting assists, which got me my move here.

“I couldn’t recommend it more highly because it gets you more equipped for professional football

“It was very apparent I had to get stronger to compete physically so had to work hard in the gym.

“And it helped me with my speed work because being able to get away from men is a lot different to playing against 17 or 18-year-olds.

“You must also be ready to compete for tackles because you’re going to get hit – that’s just the nature of the game.”

Lane’s arrival at Fleetwood came through word of mouth after Stoke, Barnsley, Harrogate and Stockport had shown interest but ultimately failed to snap him up.

So his boss while at Farsley Celtic, Adam Lakeland, recommended him to friend and Fleetwood academy manager Jack Higgins.

Lane said: “Fleetwood came in for me around last February. I came for a trial and absolutely loved the place.

“Everyone was brilliant with me – the lads, the coaches and it got sorted out in May where I found out I was going to be offered something here. 

“That was a very high day for me. I had been working so hard for so long to get that chance and a professional contract.

“When I signed that, I then thought what else can I achieve?

Fleetwood’s seven internationals

BILLY CRELLIN: England U17, U18, U20 (9 caps)

CARL JOHNSTON: Northern Ireland U17, U19, U21 (19 caps)

BARRY BAGGLEY: Northern Ireland U17, U19, U21 (16 caps, 1 goal)

DYLAN BOYLE: Northern Ireland U17, U21 (8 caps)

CHRIS CONN-CLARKE: Northern Ireland U21 (6 caps, 1 goal)

PADDY LANE: Northern Ireland – U21 (6 caps, 1 goal) 

CIAN HAYES: Republic of Ireland – U19 (2 caps)

“What attracted me to Fleetwood was the non-league aspect and the fact Fleetwood were part of Vardy’s story by developing him. 

“I thought, ‘Why can I not do that?’ It’s inspiring to see what he did and it was a big pulling point.

“And there are so many talented lads here that the club are nurturing. There is a clear pathway.”

Lane says the biggest thing he has learned in his first half a season in professional football is composure.

He added: “When you play non-league, it can get erratic. You need the composure to pick out the right pass at the right time and realise you have more time on the ball than you think.”

Lane, though, is keeping his feet on the ground and has already been working on a back-up plan if his career does not go according to plan – or is curtailed through injury.

He said: “I’m two years through a degree in sports performance analysis through the University of Derby so I’ve done the foundation part.

“I’ve put the last year on hold for the time being to focus on professional football as right now I just want to work hard and repay Fleetwood for all the faith they’ve put in me.” 

WHAT'S THE SCORE?

THINK whoever was operating the scoreboard at Kenilworth Road was showing a sense of humour when the score was left at 2-1 to Luton for a couple of minutes after Bournemouth had levelled for 2-2.

You can’t blame them as ref Leigh Doherty had disallowed what would’ve been Luton’s second TWO MINUTES after he awarded Cameron Jerome’s goal. 

CALL HIM ROO-DINI

EVEN the king of escapes Houdini himself would not be able to conjure what Wayne Rooney is doing at Derby.

Whatever is thrown at them, they keep responding.

The EFL placing yet another transfer embargo on them was effectively saying, “You’re getting relegated whatever.”

But despite the 21-point deduction, the Rams are incredibly off the bottom and now just eight points adrift of safety with 20 games left. 

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