KEELAN O’Connell is aiming to make the most of his challenging loan move to Morton.

The youngster joined the Ton from English Premier League side Bournemouth last month on a temporary switch until the end of the season.

The move to Greenock will be the teenager’s first spell away from his home town, and he’s looking forward to the test.

O’Connell has yet to make a senior appearance for the first team, with his first team contract with the Premier League outfit up at the end of the season.

The Englishman says he and the club agreed it was best for him to go out and get some first team experience as he looks to kick on with his career.

The attacking player was an unused substitute against Dundee United earlier this month, and after a few weeks in Scotland the winger says he’s beginning to settle in with his new surroundings.

O’Connell told the Tele: “It’s a lot different up here, I’ve never been away from home.

“It’ll be a challenge but it’s something I’m looking forward to.

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“I’ve been up training here for the last few weeks, the lads and the staff have been great and have helped me settle in.”

It’s the 19-year-old’s first move on loan, after progressing through his parent club’s youth ranks since he was 11-years-old.

The Cherries had just lost their League One play-off semi-final, but were bought over by Russian businessman Maxim Demin.

The club appointed Eddie Howe, and within the space of a few seasons were competing in English football’s top flight.

The south coast outfit went from breaking their transfer record of £800,000 in 2012 to spending £25million last summer.

In that time the club have overhauled their ground and academy, with O’Connell managing to keep up and remain at the Cherries with the ever-changing environment at the Vitality Stadium.

The winger has been on the bench several times for the first team, as well as training with them, but he has not yet managed to make his mark for Howe’s side.

He added: “Through the years it’s changed each year and for the better. We’ve coped with it well so far.

“I’ve trained with the first team a few times and been on the bench a couple of times, and I was with them training quite a bit.

“It’s very competitive at Bournemouth, there’s not much room for mistakes. At Bournemouth it’s hard trying to get into the team this year, which is why I’ve come up here to try and get some games.”

While O’Connell admittedly didn’t know much about Morton before making the move to Greenock, he managed to catch their win over Ross County last month on BBC Alba.

He added: “I hadn’t heard about the club much to be honest, but once I’d heard about the interest I started digging around a bit.

“I watched one of their games on TV against Ross County, so I’ve started following their results and was looking out for where I might be playing next.”