He was once employed as a “mannequin” in training by superstars such as Thierry Henry and Cesc Fabregas now, James Dunne aims to show he’s tailor made for Scottish Cup success.
The on-loan Stevenage midfielder spent four years as a youth with Arsenal and has some great memories from his time there.
One of his friends while he was with the Gunners was present first-team full-back Kieran Gibbs and by a neat piece of symmetry, the duo now have a chance of securing silverware on the same day, with Arsene Wenger’s side set to take on Hull at 5pm at Wembley in the FA Cup Final on Saturday.
Dunne said: “Kieran’s from near me and we played against each other in the Sunday League games. I played against his little brother Jayden, who is at Aldershot now.
“We were in the Croyden, Bromley areas so we played in the Kent Leagues and we played with our schools. I am still close to Jayden but I’ve lost touch with Kieran. He was a good guy.
“He’s done exceptionally well, playing in Champions League games. We used to play central midfield together and I never would have thought that he would become a left-back.
“He’s had a few injuries but other than that he’s done really well.
“When I was at Arsenal, I dealt more with Pat Rice than Arsene Wenger. But we went round to the first team training when they were preparing for Champions League and needed mannequins and the like!
“We also worked with them pre-season and it was obviously a great experience. Steve Bould, who is now with the first team, was our coach and he was quality.
“You’d go over there and you would be training with Cesc Fabregas and Thierry Henry. They were superstars but made you feel so welcome they would shake your hand and ask if you were all right.
“Training with the best players in the world made you feel good but sometimes I did feel a bit scared. Playing against guys like that you can get found out and I got found out quite a few times.”
While Dunne did not make it through to the first team at Arsenal, there was another of his contemporaries who he had no doubt was destined for great things Jack Wilshire.
He added: “Of the people who are now in the first team, I came through with Jack Wilshere who has done exceptionally well. He’s had a few injuries but is a very good player.
“The year before he broke through, he was on the bench for the reserves because he was quite young. Then all of a sudden, we came back pre-season and he was playing in the Emirates Cup.
“We were playing Real Madrid and he smashed their right-back Michel Salgado right up in the air with his first tackle. They loved him from then on. He is an unbelievable player and reminds me of Iniesta. He is so hard to get the ball off. He had loads of quality about him that other English kids like me didn’t have.”
While Dunne learned a lot at Arsenal, he admits that the coaching he is receiving at Perth under manager Tommy Wright and his assistants Callum Davidson and Alec Cleland is as good as any he has had in his career.
And he believes it will only be a matter of time before his boss is attracting interest from elsewhere.
Dunne added: “I have been very impressed by the way the gaffer handles the players and the training. It is up there with the best training I’ve had and that’s also down to Callum and Alec. It’s done so professionally. Tommy can go as far as he wants in the game. It’s up to him, really.
“Even if he doesn’t win the cup, the things he’s done this year in his first year getting to a League Cup semi-final, a Scottish Cup Final and top six again teams are going to look at him.”