A FREESTYLING schoolboy footballer has reached legendary status amongst his peers after showing off his amazing ball skills in a national television advert.
Football trickster Oli Hayes, 14, has made a name for himself throughout the UK for his ‘freestyle’ technique – the art of juggling a football using feet, knees, chest, shoulders, and head while simultaneously performing creative, skilful moves and keeping the ball airborne.
The Ronaldinho-esque teenager, who is in Year 10 at All Hallows Catholic College, already boasts an impressive CV of paid freestyling work and has even starred in an advertisement for Nickelodeon.
He said: “I’ve always been into football but just started doing tricks because I got bored of doing keep-ups.
“I started doing more and putting films of myself on the internet. A company called Ball Fusion got in contact and I started taking part in competitions and professional events.”
The Manchester City supporter even got to take part in the BBC’s Your Game finals at his team’s home ground, in front of the Match of the Day cameras.
He said: “Unfortunately I didn’t get to meet the players but I’ve met some amazing people at other events, like the stars of The Hand of God film and professional football freestylers Billy Wingrove and Dan Magnus.
“At a football exhibition at Coventry City I performed with other freestylers in front of 2,000 people, including Geoff Hurst.”
Oli, whose favourite subject is naturally PE, is dedicated to building a career in the sport and trains hard daily to ensure his skills are maintained.
He added: “I have been working hard over the past year and I train for about three hours each evening and five hours on weekends – it takes up a lot of time. My friends think what I do is pretty cool I suppose, some of them can do tricks too.
“I don’t really show off in front of people but I like teaching them how to do moves.”
In spite of the glitz and glam experienced by the rising soccer star, Oli hasn’t forgotten his local fans.
He said: “In the summer my dad used to take me to the beer garden of our local pub and people would pay me to do tricks.
“I love learning new things and want to carry on coaching and doing exhibitions when I leave school.”
Simon Lees, acting head of PE at All Hallows, said: “He’s incredibly talented and down to earth. We’re proud to have him represent the school, he’s performed in assemblies as well as the tours he does across the UK. It is unfortunate he can’t be in the school team in case he injures himself!”
Oli’s swift moves can be seen online at www.olihayes.com and on YouTube.
