By Stephen Wright

Nahki Wells still has to pinch himself when he reflects on his meteoric rise from the patchy well-worn St John’s Field pitch to the heady heights of the Sky Bet Championship in England.

His fleeting feet remain firmly on the ground, however, with the striker insisting that he will not be satisfied until his ascent reaches the promised land of the Barclays Premier League.

The 24-year-old became Bermuda’s first million-pound footballer when he signed for Huddersfield Town from League Two side Bradford City last January, scoring a respectable seven goals in 22 appearances.

And while he believes that his progress is six months ahead of its curve, he is well aware that there is plenty of work to be done if he is to establish himself as one of the second tier’s most feared finishers.

“I guess my progress hasn’t been normal,” Wells told The Royal Gazette. “Not too many players have done what I have done [in such a short space of time], but I have to remain humble because I haven’t yet achieved my goal of reaching the Premier League.

“I didn’t expect to make the move to the Championship until this summer and I feel it’s important to have already got 20-plus games under my belt at Huddersfield.

“I have time on my side and that I was able to chip in with a few goals and make an immediate impact enables me to hit the ground running, as opposed to having to work my way into things at a new club.

“Hopefully, the Championship will be a stepping stone for me and I’ll get an opportunity to play in the Premier League — that’s always been my dream. I’m sure people will throw my name out there as one of the ones to watch and I want to hit 20-plus goals next season. I want to become one of the Championship’s top scorers.”

While Wells’s 2012-13 season was a remarkable one, making two appearances at Wembley Stadium, in the Capital One Cup final and League Two play-off final for his previous club, Bradford, he believes that last season, from a personal point of view, was even more significant in terms of his development.

While some observers’ eyebrows might have slightly raised when he joined Huddersfield as opposed to a more storied Championship side — he had been linked with Queens Park Rangers — Wells said that his decision to remain in West Yorkshire was a calculated one.

“In many ways last season was an even more important one for me,” Wells said. “I got the opportunity to play in the Championship and now it’s about growing in this league like I did in the previous leagues I played in.

“I’ve seen plenty of players make a big move from a League Two or League One team to a Championship side and struggle to make the breakthrough.

“I didn’t want to sign for a club where I would be considered as a player for the future. My intention was always to make an immediate impact and play games straightaway and gain some experience.

While Wells wasted no time in endearing himself to the Huddersfield faithful, scoring in his first two games for the club against Millwall and QPR, he then experienced a worrying lean spell, failing to find the net in the next eight matches.

Having a former top-flight striker as his manager certainly helped him to come through that difficult period, with the former Dandy Town man now determined to repay the faith that Mark Robins bestowed upon him.

“My two early goals did me the world of good and I thought it was going to be plain sailing,” said Wells, who admits that he struggled initially playing as lone front man.

“But then I hit a rough patch and it was difficult, but the manager stuck behind me and told every day that he wasn’t too concerned about the goals.

“He said that he knew I was capable of scoring goals at this level and that it was all about getting experience and becoming a better player.

“Eventually I came out of that rut, scored a few goals, and ended the season on a high. When I return to Huddersfield for pre-season it will feel like I’m going home.”

Despite a promising start to last season, Huddersfield spluttered to a seventeenth- place finish, losing 12 matches during the second half of the campaign.

Wells, however, remains confident that they can force their way into the promotion picture this time around, although he concedes that the competitiveness of the league could be ramped up considerably next season.

“Next season will be the hardest in the Championship for quite some time because of the clubs coming down [Norwich City, Fulham, Cardiff City] and also the clubs coming up [Wolverhampton Wanderers, Brentford and Rotherham United],” he said.

“We know it’s going to be a lot tougher and we know we need to do a lot better. Once there was no chance of promotion last season, we just drifted away and got ourselves into a position when we were looking down, which is something we can’t afford to do this season.

“I do believe that we can be a good side; we want to be contenders and we want to take everyone by surprise with the club’s philosophy of free-flowing football.”

Since returning to Bermuda for a well-deserved rest, Wells has been reminded of the deep affection in which he is held in his homeland.

He said that the level of fondness he has felt from the Bermudian public has further fuelled his fire to continue to make the Island proud.

“I never expected this kind of support,” Wells said. “I can’t walk anywhere without getting a congratulations or a thank you for doing so well for Bermuda.

“I definitely do it for my family, friends and country. I put my all into [my career] and it’s great to have a small island that is very supportive and entirely behind me.

“I can promise everyone I will continue to do the best I can for Bermuda. When I score, the Bermudian people are sure to let me know how happy they are for me, especially through social media — and I really do appreciate their support.”