EX-WANDERERS academy product Luke Woodland has headed to the Big Apple in an effort to kick-start his football career.

The 20-year-old was released at the Macron Stadium in the summer after 13 years on the club’s books.

And while a successful loan spell at Oldham Athletic last season showed the youngster was quite capable of carving out a career lower down the Football League, his next move may surprise some.

Woodland has been on trial with MLS giants New York Red Bull and head coach Jesse March told BigAppleSoccer.com that he has made an encouraging start.

“I think he's done okay. We find that anytime someone gets thrown into our training, it is a lot,” he said. “There's a little adjustment period.

“We'll give Luke a little time to adjust; today was a hard training session but not bad.

“He can play deep in the midfield, he can play in the back. He's got some flexibility to his game, a good passer, a fairly good athlete.”

Woodland has now earned a senior cap for the Philippines despite representing England at youth team level.