TEENAGE ice star Kieran Brown is back in Bradford after two years of living the American dream.

The 16-year-old from Clayton has just been signed up by the elite Sheffield Steelers to get to the top of his game.

The premier club which sits in the sport’s highest division beat off interest in Kieran from the Cardiff Devils and The Panthers in Nottingham.

Already known as one to watch, on his way back from the signing a couple of weeks ago he had 11,000 followers on his Twitter account.

He will now serve out an apprenticeship with the Sheffield Steelers training four days a week and having to commute from Bradford getting lifts from his family until he is old enough to drive, said dad Andy Brown who is head coach at Bradford Ice Hockey Club.

At the age of just three, Kieran was Bradford’s youngest ever ice hockey player, spending as much time as he could at the city’s ice ice rink in a £200 kit he got from Santa. He also played for Great Britain in the Under 16s.

Kieran’s time in America was funded by his family chipping in together and generous sponsorship from Bradford food company Delifresh. He came back from the States after turning 16 in February making him old enough to meet UK regulations and play in senior games here.

The rules are different in America where he had been living with a host family, playing and training with the Iowa Wild AAA to develop his game skills.

His dad said: “He’s been leading teams and been the highest-point scorers from being eight or nine. If he’d stayed here he might not have progressed so much, that’s why he had to go to America. It was a wrench for us as a family, especially his mum Louise and grandmothers but we had to let him go and follow his dream. He’s learned a lot. Now he can live the dream here.

“We were invited to Sheffield we thought just for a chat about his future but they had a contract ready and waiting for him. They wanted him and he wanted to play for a Yorkshire team, he’s back to his roots.”

Head coach for the Sheffield Steelers, Paul Thompson said: “Kieran is an exceptional young talent, ranked number one in the Country at his age. He is ready for the next stage of his hockey education. Training full time as a professional on and off the ice will only improve him. Yes he is young but he is also super talented with a strong work ethic. He will need all that of to succeed but we will give him every opportunity.

“We are excited to bring him to the Steelers. The world's his oyster, now it’s up to him.”