LOCAL lad David Dunn hit the big time at Newcastle last night, when he put Blackburn Rovers through to the quarter finals of the Worthington Cup for the first time in five years.

The 18-year-old midfielder from Great Harwood scored the crucial penalty in a shootout decider to send the travelling Rovers fans into an orgy of excitement.

And no-one enjoyed it more than the teenager himself, who might well have been among them if he hadn't made the grade as a player.

"It was brilliant," said Dunn, who joined Rovers as a schoolboy and was taken on the YTS when he left St Augustine's School, Billington, which is just down the road from the club's Brockhall training ground.

Last season, he was a star of the youth team which reached the final of the FA Youth Cup before losing to Everton over two legs and was also called up by England under-18s.

He played at international level in summer and was promoted to the first team squad by manager Roy Hodgson, making his Premiership bow as a substitute at Everton in September.

Dunn was given another run out as sub at Middlesbrough last month but nothing compared to last night for the boy who has followed the likes of Irish teenagers Damien Duff and Damien Johnson on the glory trail.

Match report - see Sport section

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