In Praise of Max Dowman 

Here's Sir Henry Norris with his inimitable take on Arsenal's precocious 15-year-old Max Dowman 

This morning, I pulled on a pair of socks older than Max Dowman’s 15 years, eight months and 25 days, before tentatively stepping out into the crisp autumnal North London air, only somewhat tinted by the sweet fug of marijuana wafting from a VW Golf parked under a tree on the corner. 

When I was 16, a midweek skelp to Stoke on Trent involved our brave lads enduring conditions that would have had Henry V telling those around him on St Crispin’s Day to hold off for a few hours due to the waterlogged conditions. Those on the other side of the pitch had a similar malign intent.  

Crucially, last night was not a trip to the troglodyte side of the city. And Darren Moore isn’t Tony Pulis. Port Vale performed superbly without resorting to crippling our players. Max was only 58 days old when Ryan Shawcross proved he is exactly that type of player when his reducer on Aaron Ramsey saw the Welshman suffer a horrific double leg break. Stoke City was never a welcome place for artistry. For a town famed for its pottery, Pulis’s team stormed around like the proverbial bull in a china shop. Bash, destroy, smash. 

Moore’s Port Vale are the antithesis of that. They performed well last night and I wish them and the excellent Darren Moore the best for the season. Mainly because success for Port Vale will send bridge dwelling Stoke fans into an apoplectic rage. 

Dowman’s second half arrival brought something different to the field. He has the touch of a surgeon. But not one of those who practice orthopaedics, replacing joints with a lump hammer and a chisel.  That is not to denigrate the skill of the bone setters. But Max is something different. He’s the urologist. His razor sharp scalpel deftly probing a gentleman’s most delicate area. One slip and the patient will be singing castrato. His touch is sublime and when combined with a supernatural instinct of where his teammates are, he is a generational talent. 

His pace and intensity of drive would see him pick up penalty points on the Holloway Road if he was old enough to get behind the wheel of a car. 

He may become Arsenal’s youngest ever goal scorer in the coming months. Cesc Fabregas was 16 years, six months and 21 days when his League Cup goal secured his place in the record books. If that doesn’t happen, it isn’t failure. He has a long career ahead of him and there will be records galore.

And maybe, on March 22, 2026, aged just 16 years, two months and 22 days, he will be lifting the first of many trophies