PROMISING Southend United striker Emile Acquah insists he is more confident than ever before after netting for an eighth game in succession.

The 17-year-old bagged a brace for the Shrimpers’ under-18s in their 2-2 draw with Oxford United on Saturday.

But the former Southend High School pupil is determined to keep on hitting the back of the net.

“I want to keep the run going and score in every game I play,” said Acquah, who has been with Blues since the under-10s.

“I wanted 25 at the start of the season and I’m on 18 now, but I obviously want to try and get as many as I can.

“I’m really happy to have scored in eight games in a row.

“I try and score in every game I play and it’s going well at the moment.

“Sometimes it’s hard, but I’ll never stop trying and I feel more confident now.

“When I go out there for games, I know there will always be a chance to score and if I miss one then I know I’ll get another chance which I’ll focus on making sure I put away.”

And Acquah - who is based in Southchurch - is also keen to feature more regularly for the Shrimpers’ under-23 side.

“Another aim of mine is get into the under-23s here,” said Acquah.

“It was good to come on against MK Dons yesterday, but it was frustrating to have to come off shortly afterwards.

“I think I rolled my ankle, but hopefully it’s not too bad.”

However, Acquah is not the only member of his family trying to become a professional footballer.

“My brother Isaac plays in midfielder for the under-13s here,” said Acquah.

“My other brother plays in goal for West Ham, which is good because we have someone to take shots at when we go to the park.”

But Acquah’s fine form has not come as a surprise to Shrimpers’ youth coach Dave Huzzey.

“Emile is the first one in and the last one out,” said Huzzey.

“He’s out on the training ground at every possible opportunity and he’s always practising different types of finishing.

“He’s excellent to work with and it’s very rare for a striker to score in eight successive games at this level, so it’s been great to see.

“He’s also done it at a time of the season where we’ve been playing under pressure trying to get into second place and he scored twice against a very strong Oxford United side in our first Merit League game at the weekend.”