The Hornets today completed the signing of prolific non-league striker Omari Coleman to a one-year contract.
The former Dulwich Hamlet marksman has been on trial since July after being spotted by chief scout Frank Sibley and recommended to manager Ray Lewington.
"I'm very excited to have signed a contract with Watford,'' he said, minutes after putting pen to paper. "It's been going on for a while now so I'm glad to get it over and done with and now I'm just looking forward to the next chapter.
"I've got so much to prove at the moment, but I believe in myself that I can make it happen at this level. I'm looking forward to getting fitter and getting some games under my belt. The manager has signed me so he must have belief in me, so I've got to prove to him that he has made the right decision.''
The 23-year-old, who was on schoolboy forms with Wimbledon, has had several trials with league clubs over the years but never quite made it. At his age, he could have thought his chance had gone, but he puts his reversal in fortunes all down to old-fashioned hard work.
"I was with Croydon for a year, then I went to Dulwich Hamlet and scored a lot of goals over two seasons and it really took-off for me towards the end of last season. There was a lot of interest from other clubs, but I didn't really read too much into it when the Watford situation came up, but after meeting the manager and the rest of the lads things really started happening for me here, leading up to today's great news.
"I'm getting on a bit in football terms, so I said to myself at the start of last season to give myself one last push and get myself really fit and sharp - then I started scoring for Dulwich so I thought that if I didn't make it after that then I would have missed my chance but given it my best shot.''
This week the roads around Watford are once again clogged up with traffic - so that must mean the kids have gone back to school! That's what Omari would have been doing had he not been given this opportunity by the Hornets.
"I was a teaching assistant working with kids who have learning and behavioural difficulties,'' he explained. "I taught sport and a variety of other subjects to kids who found it hard to concentrate and learn simple things.I should have been going back to school this week, my school said to me because I have been on other trials before, if I went to Watford then I might not be able to come back to work in September, so that was a risk I took and fortunately it paid off.''
Swapping the classroom for a professional football club is a huge step, particularly in the fitness stakes, but it's a career change he is adapting well to, although competition is fierce at Vicarage Road in the very healthy striker department.
"You have got to be professional about everything you do here,'' he said. "You have to rest at every opportunity as the different training patterns take a toll on your body. It has taken me a while to get used to it, at Dulwich Hamlet I trained twice a week and now it's almost every day. It's a mental and physical thing that in time you get used to.
"There are a lot of good strikers here at Watford and it's up to the individuals to fight for the two positions up front. I'm not fazed by it though, I'm just here to do my best and I believe that then things will go well.
"My goal for this season is just to get myself known here, establish myself and earn the respect of the management and players here. I just want to do well, whether it's in the reserves or if I get a sniff of the first team. I just want to make sure I do myself justice.''
The former Dulwich Hamlet marksman has been on trial since July after being spotted by chief scout Frank Sibley and recommended to manager Ray Lewington.
"I'm very excited to have signed a contract with Watford,'' he said, minutes after putting pen to paper. "It's been going on for a while now so I'm glad to get it over and done with and now I'm just looking forward to the next chapter.
"I've got so much to prove at the moment, but I believe in myself that I can make it happen at this level. I'm looking forward to getting fitter and getting some games under my belt. The manager has signed me so he must have belief in me, so I've got to prove to him that he has made the right decision.''
The 23-year-old, who was on schoolboy forms with Wimbledon, has had several trials with league clubs over the years but never quite made it. At his age, he could have thought his chance had gone, but he puts his reversal in fortunes all down to old-fashioned hard work.
"I was with Croydon for a year, then I went to Dulwich Hamlet and scored a lot of goals over two seasons and it really took-off for me towards the end of last season. There was a lot of interest from other clubs, but I didn't really read too much into it when the Watford situation came up, but after meeting the manager and the rest of the lads things really started happening for me here, leading up to today's great news.
"I'm getting on a bit in football terms, so I said to myself at the start of last season to give myself one last push and get myself really fit and sharp - then I started scoring for Dulwich so I thought that if I didn't make it after that then I would have missed my chance but given it my best shot.''
This week the roads around Watford are once again clogged up with traffic - so that must mean the kids have gone back to school! That's what Omari would have been doing had he not been given this opportunity by the Hornets.
"I was a teaching assistant working with kids who have learning and behavioural difficulties,'' he explained. "I taught sport and a variety of other subjects to kids who found it hard to concentrate and learn simple things.I should have been going back to school this week, my school said to me because I have been on other trials before, if I went to Watford then I might not be able to come back to work in September, so that was a risk I took and fortunately it paid off.''
Swapping the classroom for a professional football club is a huge step, particularly in the fitness stakes, but it's a career change he is adapting well to, although competition is fierce at Vicarage Road in the very healthy striker department.
"You have got to be professional about everything you do here,'' he said. "You have to rest at every opportunity as the different training patterns take a toll on your body. It has taken me a while to get used to it, at Dulwich Hamlet I trained twice a week and now it's almost every day. It's a mental and physical thing that in time you get used to.
"There are a lot of good strikers here at Watford and it's up to the individuals to fight for the two positions up front. I'm not fazed by it though, I'm just here to do my best and I believe that then things will go well.
"My goal for this season is just to get myself known here, establish myself and earn the respect of the management and players here. I just want to do well, whether it's in the reserves or if I get a sniff of the first team. I just want to make sure I do myself justice.''
From the Watford Official Website
