Season 2008/2009
Duffy arrived at Finch Farm in the Summer of 2008 to pursue his dream of becoming a professional footballer. With high hopes and determination, Duffy was compelled by his dream to work hard and improve his game. Despite being only 16, Duffy enjoyed the advantages of being a monstrous 6'4" defender. However, as the new arrival, he not only had to prove himself to his coaches, but also to his team-mates and he quickly made his presence felt in the Everton under-18 squad (a squad which included José Baxter and James Wallace). However, shortly after breaking into the team, Duffy suffered a horrendous injury which appeared to threaten his chances at the club. A hefty last-ditch challenge from Duffy saw him fracture his hip bone and this ruled him out for approximately 6 weeks. "It was so scary. I thought I'd broken my back", remarked Duffy in retrospect. Injuries can have a severely detrimental effect on a player's confidence and certainly tests their will, but Duffy showed no signs of being deflated as he returned to action and even headed the winner in the under-18 Merseyside derby versus Liverpool. Duffy continued to shine for the under-18s, winning the Academy Player of the Month award for January and he was even promoted to the reserve side for some games toward the end of the season. In addition to this, Duffy's international career began to take tremendous strides and his performances, both domestically and internationally, caught the attention of Northern Ireland manager Nigel Worthington and his coach Steve Beaglehole, who propelled Duffy through the ranks from under-17 to under-19 to B level and eventually into the senior national squad, despite still only being 17. Worthington has since admitted that his decision to promote Duffy to the senior squad was, in effect, an attempt to quell any interest in the young defender from the Republic of Ireland national team, whom Duffy is also completely eligible to play for.
Season 2009/2010
Duffy's second season with the 'Toffees' has seen him play for the first-team in pre-season friendlies. A combination of injuries and lack of transfer funds meant that Everton were very weak in defence and David Moyes felt that Duffy had impressed sufficiently in training to merit a place in the team. He played for 90 minutes in their 2-1 defeat to Bury, for 60 minutes in the 4-1 defeat of Rochdale (where he scored the opener) and for the final half hour in the 2-1 defeat to Blackpool (where he noticeably settled the defence). Duffy has featured in the squad for Everton's opening 5 games of the 2009/2010 season and was handed his first under-21 cap for Northern Ireland in a 2-1 defeat to Portugal. The youngster played 90 minutes and confidently slotted home a consolation penalty in the game:
Duffy (5) scores penalty against Portugal
More to follow
