Lierse Kempenzonen reached an agreement with 21-year-old attacker Aske Sampers in the last hours of last winter mercato. After playing for more than ten years at Cercle Brugge, the young Alveringem native signed a contract at the Lisp until June 2025.
“On the one hand, I am very grateful to Cercle Brugge for the past decade, because I have become the player I am now. On the other hand, I am a bit disappointed that I could not break through after my debut in the first team. My departure was also a bit unexpected in the end, because it was thought that I would still finish the season at Cercle. However, Lierse Kempenzonen suddenly came up on the last day of the winter mercato with a very concrete proposal, with attractive conditions for the Association. In the last hours, the clubs still found an agreement. Cercle did not want to slow down my development and future as a young player by letting me play for another six months in the second division with the promises.”
His start at Lierse Kempenzonen was rather chaotic. “I had only had two training sessions when I was immediately dropped into the starting line-up in the derby against Beerschot. You felt with the supporters, with the board and in the group of players that this was an important match,” says Sampers, who was able to look back on a successful debut and a 1-0 win. “It was a start I could not have dreamed of. My integration into the group also went smoothly.”
Bruised hip
The good feeling continued for the Alveringem native in the match against Lommel, until he collided with the Limburg keeper. Scans at the hospital showed that his hip was somewhat bruised, forcing him to take a rest period. “After that good start, this was of course a minor setback. I only returned a month later in the Promotion Play-Off against RSCA Futures. I feel that the team needs my profile – someone who can keep up with the ball. We may have nothing to gain or lose, but getting to the top four is still our goal. I’m not too worried about my first goal, because I know it will come anyway. If I keep working hard enough, that goal will come naturally.”
“I’m not too worried about my first goal, because I know it will come anyway if I keep working hard enough”
Ash Sampers
Maybe on Saturday in the home game against Club NXT. “Matches against blue-black always live extra hard for me and I always play them with a knife between my teeth,” says Sampers. “Club NXT is putting in great results this season. Also the fact that it is the only West Flemish club in 1B and that I know some players personally, make it special. In short, in a match against blue-black I always feel that I can do that little bit more to achieve a result.”
Sampers does not notice such a large difference in level between 1A and 1B. “You feel that there is still a strong pace and you don’t get that much time to make choices. Physically, 1B is a very tough competition with more duels than in 1A, where it is still a bit more technical. It took some getting used to the physical style of this competition. You will of course notice a difference with 1A in terms of professionalism and speed of execution, but that is of course normal.”
Art as relaxation
The ambitions of the young Alveringem resident are still as high as possible, in Belgium or abroad. In addition to football, the attacker also has a pronounced interest in (painting) art, poetry and photography, sharing his works on an Instagram page. “You never know if you might be able to do something with it after your football career, but at the moment this is the ideal relaxation and outlet next to football.”