By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ONE of the greatest thrills for any junior athlete is to make a senior national team. The biggest thrill once they do is to get a starting nod.

Last week, 16-year-old Mario Johnson got to enjoy the best of the two scenarios when the men's team played their first game of the CONCACAF League of Nations. In his starting role, the six-foot, 2-inch, 160-pound Johnson gave up two goals before he went down with an injury and the Bahamas eventually lost 4-0 to Belize.

Johnson, an 11th grader at St Andrew's School, got started playing soccer about 10 years ago, but because he was considered "too fat," he was sent into the goal post.

The rest, as they say, is history.

"I feel good because I know I work very hard," said Johnson about his progress in his transition. "After they pretty much forced me to play keeper, I just lived up to the role."

Looking back at his initial showing at the senior level last week, Johnson said he was ready for the challenge.

"It was just a different experience, but I had a couple of opportunities to get myself ready," he said. "I think if I hadn't gotten injured, I would have been able to hold them off.

"I don't think the score indicated how well we played. It was a different play, but I felt we were ready.

"We got tired at the end and we were not able to make the substitutions the way we wanted to. I don't think four-nil indicated how well we played that game."

The Bahamas will play their next two games at home when they host Antigua & Barbuda on October 18 in round two of the tournament and round three on November 18 against Anguilla before they close out play on the road against Dominica on March 26.

Johnson is hoping that he will be back in tip-top shape so that he can continue what he started, although he didn't get to finish the first game of the tournament. "We just have to come with a different mindset in these next games," he said. "I think we were nervous at the start of the game, but as the game progressed, we got into it.

"It was something new for a lot of us because this was the first time that a lot of us as junior players got to play at the senior level. I think when we play again, we will be much better."

As for his game, Johnson said he eventually hopes that he can secure an athletic scholarship to go overseas to play college soccer either in the United States or in Canada.

His local coach Paul James, of the Western Warriors soccer club, who has been working on Johnson's skills as a goalie for the past three years, said he has been impressed with his development.

"He has tremendous potential, but he's now realising that just having the potential won't work, you need to put in the hard work," James said.

"So over the last six weeks, we've seen the way he's approached the game.

"He's much better than any of the young goalies that I see around here, but he just needs to step out of his comfortable zone. He's realised that and he's starting to go to the next level. Potential wise, there's no goalie here that comes close to him.

"He just has to put in the hard work."