NOAH Chilvers says he fulfilled a dream after making his senior debut for Colchester United.

The 18-year-old made his first-team bow for the U’s when he came on as a late substitute in their 3-0 triumph over Newport County, last weekend.

Chilvers has been at Colchester since he was eight years old, progressing through their academy ranks at Florence Park.

The midfielder became the latest of the club’s home-grown youngsters to play for John McGreal’s side and says it was a special day.

Chilvers told the Gazette: “It’s a moment I’d dreamed of really, from when I first started out in full-time football.

“Since signing here, my whole life has been at Colchester and I’m buzzing.

“When it went to 3-0, I thought it might be the day for it.

“I was waiting for the ball to go off the pitch so that I could come on.

“It was nice to get a few early touches and get rid of any nerves.

“When you complete your first couple of passes and go on a little run, the confidence starts flowing.

“Since I’ve been in and around the first team more this season, I’ve just been hoping it would happen and thankfully it has, so I hope I can now push on.

“It was the perfect day all round.

“It was a great performance by the team and there were some great goals.

“Hopefully, we can push on from it against a good team and keep going.”

Chilvers had been an unused substitute for Colchester on three occasions earlier this season, prior to making his first senior appearance last weekend.

The talented teenager is now hoping to feature more for McGreal’s side, as they push for the League Two play-offs.

“I want to see how many appearances I can rack up between now and the end of the season and hopefully get a few more,” said Chilvers, who previously captained the U’s under-18 side.

“I’ve been working hard and getting my head down since I went full-time and try and improve.

“I’ve been in and around the first team since November time, when the gaffer told me I was going to be in the squad for the FA Cup game against Accrington.

“Since then, I’ve really trained with them most days every week as well as playing for the under-23s.

“I’ve been a bit more confident in training and showing what I can do a bit more, compared to when I first started.

“When you’re younger, you’re looking up to players like Sammie (Szmodics) and Laps (Tom Lapslie) and seeing what they’ve done.

“It’s something you try and replicate and now I’ve made my debut, hopefully I can do similar to how they’ve done.

“Ollie Kensdale has been with the first team week in, week out and made his debut earlier in the season.”