WHAT a difference a day makes. Eight days ago, County Durham youngster Mathew Tait began his Newcastle Falcons career by scoring a try with his very first touch of the ball.

The term 'dream debut' could have been coined for the occasion but, just 24 hours later, the 18-year-old found himself returning to the real world with a bump.

There are plenty of ways to celebrate taking your first steps as a professional sportsman, but a double dose of biology revision isn't normally top of the list.

"I've had to have a day with the books," admitted Tait as he relaxed in his Wolsingham home. "My exams are just about six weeks away now so I've got to keep on top of things.

"I'm doing biology, sports science and geography and there's always something that needs doing for one of them."

Taking your A-levels is normally one of the most stressful periods of your life but, for Tait, handling pressure is nothing new.

The teenager has been one of rugby union's best kept secrets for some time now as his blossoming youth career has alerted more and more observers to his obvious potential.

Praise has come from the highest quarters, with even a certain Jonny Wilkinson describing him as "a fantastic athlete, an exciting prospect and the one you should be talking to because he is a lot better than I was at his age".

Quite an endorsement from a World Cup winner but, even at his tender age, Tait is already able to take such platitudes in his stride.

"It's flattering when anyone says something like that about you," said the fully-fledged Falcon who signed his first professional contract last month. "But it's especially nice when it comes from someone like Jonny.

"It's good to know that people have faith in what I'm doing but I don't feel under any extra pressure because of it.

"I just want to keep playing and keep learning - everything else will take care of itself after that."

Tait's rugby career began with Northumberland and Durham League side Consett at the age of eight and, by the time he was 16, he was already representing his country at youth level.

He played for England Under-18s a year before the rest of his peers, and was one of the youngest players to travel to South Africa for the Under-19s World Cup last month.

That tournament led to an unique school vs country clash when Barnard Castle reached the final of the Daily Mail Schools Cup at Twickenham, and England's reluctance to release Tait spoke volumes for how highly he is already regarded in the national set-up.

His performances in the centre helped England to finish fourth in the tournament and, upon returning from representing his country, the youngster suddenly found himself as a marked man.

Gloucester, Leeds and Sale were reported to be interested in securing his services but, for someone born and raised in the North-East, there was only ever going to be one port of call.

"I actually trained with Gloucester for a bit after my time with the Under-16s," said Tait. "And I had a really good time down there.

"But, over the last six or seven months, Newcastle have shown more and more of an interest in me and that was always going to be the club for me.

"I wanted to stay in the area and I'm able to do that now - I was always a bit of a Newcastle fan so it couldn't have worked out any better to be honest."

Most fans dream of one day joining their idols but, for Tait, that dream became a reality last Sunday.

Six weeks earlier he had been standing behind the Kingston Park posts watching Newcastle book their place in the Powergen Cup final - suddenly he was running between them to touch down against London Irish.

"It was a dream 50 minutes," said Tait. "Scoring the try was fantastic and everything seemed to go well.

"I felt pretty comfortable with everything I was doing skill-wise, but the pace and power of the game was a massive step-up from anything I'd experienced before.

"I felt really tired after about ten minutes of the second half but that'll come over time.

"The whole experience was incredible. I'd been watching these guys play for years and then all of a sudden I was there in the dressing room with them getting ready to go out and play.

"I'd had four or five training sessions with Jonny after the World Cup so I already knew him, but the rest of the other guys made me feel like part of the team straight away."

Tait has signed with the Falcons for the whole of next season, although he is yet to decide whether or not he will combine his playing duties with more studies.

"I've got to decide whether I'm going to go to university next year or take a year out," he said. "There's a lot to think about but I'm getting close to making a decision."

Whatever he chooses, the books are likely to take more of a back seat if he lives up to the grand predictions that are being made of him.

In the field opposite Tait's family home, there is a set of rugby posts that he has hastily assembled so that he can practice in any rare spare time.

University or not, it looks like the homework will be continuing for a little while yet.