IT’S PURE DES-TINY AS TYLER BAGS HIS HAT-TRICK
TYLER Walker had no idea his old man was in the crowd on Wednesday but the striker put on a show to earn praise from his Mansfield manager David Flitcroft.
The 21-year-old is the son of former England defender Des Walker, and is currently on-loan from Nottingham Forest.
And he caught the eye in the 6-1 thrashing of Accrington Stanley, scoring a first-half hat-trick in front of Walker senior, who Tyler did not realise was in attendance.
While Des’ place in the crowd went unnoticed, Flitcroft explained that the former England international’s influence is clear for all to see on the striker, who scored twice from the spot before completing his treble on the stroke of half-time.
Flitcroft said: “The kid is pure class. You can see from his upbringing from his dad that he has been honest with him
“He’s not like an academy player. He gets up, he is robust, he wants to run and he does run. I love working with the kid and he’s deserved that.
“He is elusive in the box and pure class.”
Flitcroft was not the only person heaping praise on Walker, with assistant Ben Futcher adding: “I believe his dad doesn’t like telling him when he comes to watch him.
“He is a credit to his dad. He’s a fantastic professional and to get a hat-trick in front of his old man must have been a very proud moment for Tyler and for Des.
“The manager and I have looked at him a couple of times and tried to sign him, but not got him. So to come to Mansfield and been able to sign him was fantastic.
“He is a great kid and he works so hard. The ball sticks when it gets to him and he is a natural finisher.”