Hunting the glamour life across the water can be a cut-throat and demoralising business for a teenager, but although promising Irish players are increasingly being made aware of the statistical improbability of working through to the Premiership, the lure generally proves too strong to resist.

The wisdom of severing home ties and committing oneself to the pressure and tedium of soccer apprenticeship is often questioned by those in the game here. Brian Kerr, Ireland's phenomenally successful under-age coach, has mixed feelings about it.

"Well, I certainly wouldn't like one of my kids to follow that path," he says.

"There is a well-known statistic that not one Irish apprentice has made it to the Manchester United first team in 40 years, not since John Giles went there as a 15-year-old, which tells a tale. All of the lads came at a later stage in their careers. "But as well as that, the youngster misses out on natural development. I remember growing up and having a great time playing Gaelic, hurling and football, and having the bit of freedom and building up local relationships. And I enjoyed school - not necessarily the pressure of exams, but you survive that and go on in the world," he says. "This is the kind of thing you miss out on as an apprentice. Soccer life sounds great - `Ah, I do a bit of training in the morning, a few things in the afternoon and head home' - but there is the pressure to perform, the enormous amount of free time to deal with. Often, kids who don't make it found it hard to re-adjust to normal life after that."

While Kerr accepts that the educational disadvantages in the apprenticeship system are slowly being redressed, he stresses that it will take time before the initiatives can be regarded as a genuine alternative to the regular schooling system.

"There are options in place now, but it is not the same as being in school, where you enter a certain environment each day and you literally have to hand up your homework. Take Sunderland, which happens to be a club who have created a good atmosphere through people like Pop Robson and Jim Hagan. They seem to have an affection for Irish lads, and Niall Quinn's presence there is a great help. But not all clubs are like that, it can be easy for a youngster to feel lost."

Yet who could blame them for trying? Increasingly, there is talk of silly money being flashed before young apprentices as the Premiership wages racket continues to skyrocket. Often parents are seduced by the promise as readily as kids, and they can justifiably defend their stance by pointing to the possible outcome.

"Well, there is that chance that the kid will become a star or what have you," agrees Kerr. "And if he isn't interested in school, then maybe it's not a bad thing to head across the water. Definitely, the potential rewards are immense. But I would like to see a genuine option in place here for kids."

The only alternative for youngsters right now is to try their hand in the League of Ireland in the hope of gaining a first team place and the relevant exposure to club scouts.

"Some young lads are doing that - Sligo, St Pat's, Cork and UCD are all going with young players. But clubs need to be more aware of the emerging talent available in this country now, to give them a realistic opportunity to stay here, finish school and perhaps still go on to professional football."