A latecomer to the international scene, winger Matt caught the eye with some of his performances for Wycombe Wanderers after breaking into their first team reckoning and received his first call-up to Noel Blake's U19 squad in April 2010.
He travelled with the squad to Ukraine and the Elite Qualifying Round of the European Championships, where he made his debut in a win against Republic Of Ireland before scoring his first goal for the Young Lions against Bosnia-Herzegovina a few days later.
Phillips' stock continued to rise in the summer of 2010 when he was with the England squad which travelled to the European U19 Championship Finals in Normandy and it was the Aylesbury-born man who scored the equalising goal against hosts France to take the Young Lions into the semi-final and also qualify for the U20 World Cup the following year.
A few weeks later, Phillips was bought by Premier League new boys Blackpool and went on to impress in the English top flight despite the Seasiders' eventual relegation.
He was capped at U20 level in February 2011 against France, before Head Coach Brian Eastick included him in the squad for the FIFA World Cup in Colombia.