Bristol Rovers’ pre-season preparations are well underway and the Gas have notched up three wins from three friendlies so far, all against non-league opposition, and they have given plenty of minutes to youngsters from the academy.
Many of those featured so far have been to fill the voids left in a squad which had so many depart during the close season, but familiar names including midfielders Kofi Shaw and Jerry Lawrence, as well as striker Ollie Dewsbury, have made significant contributions.
Bristol Rovers academy showing promise but below Taylor’s needs
As you would expect, this time of the year is when young academy prospects receive their biggest opportunities to impress their manager and to showcase their talents in front of a wider audience in a senior match environment. To gain a feel for the demands and the intensity of senior football, as they seek to place themselves at the forefront of the minds of the coaching staff, who will assess how far these youngsters are from the required level to meet the needs of the first team.
Manager Matt Taylor had expressed following the 1-0 friendly win against National League South side Bath City last weekend that he believes many are currently far below the standard to meet the needs of the team.
Taylor told club media: “We have to accept they’re below the level, that’s below our level. That’s absolutely fine in terms of academy level and right from where they are.”
He continued: “They’re below our needs, they’re here because the squad’s too thin at the moment. It’s great experience for them, great exposure, great for us to grow that connection.”
The fast rising Ollie Dewsbury is an academy standout from pre-season
One youngster who is certainly attracting a lot of attention, however, is 16-year-old Ollie Dewsbury. The striker from Wales has featured in all three of Rovers’ friendlies so far and has already made his debut for the senior team, coming off the bench as a 15-year-old in the FA Cup clash against Whitby Town last season, making himself the sixth-youngest player in FA Cup history, according to transfermarkt.co.uk.
Dewsbury had previously been lighting up youth pitches for Bristol Rovers with wide praise heaped on the youngster and social media clips shared online of his goalscoring abilities.
The 16-year-old has also featured for his country, Wales, on multiple occasions, both at Under 15s and Under-16s level, bagging himself three goals in 13 matches.
The youngster is rising fast and has continued to impress in the three brief outings he’s had so far in pre-season, with reports from Bristol Live stating the youngster was unlucky not to add to his tally in pre-season. In the report, Bristol Live’s Bristol Rovers reporter wrote that the 16-year-old was “pressing hard and closing defenders down, getting into good positions and, at times, good finishing with a goal scored against Melksham while being unlucky on a few occasions against Yeovil.”
Others have been commenting on the bright start to pre-season for Dewsbury with ‘Off The Line Blog’ on ‘X’ referring to his linking up with fellow academy prospect Brooklyn Leipus. And well-known Gashead, Charlie Hayne, who called his opening performance of pre-season: “Brilliant”.
My thoughts on the game about #YTFC + #BRFC ⬇️
Finished 3-0 to Rovers. Lots to like about both sides + stuff to work on. https://t.co/dJOTzfF9mJ pic.twitter.com/6FhnObDtHG
— Off The Line Blog (@OffTheLineBlog) July 17, 2024
Many will be hoping to see what this kid can do as the Gas ramp up the quality of opposition they face before the EFL campaign gets underway next month.
Ollie Dewsbury International Youth Stats | |||
---|---|---|---|
Pld | Gls | Ast | |
Wales Under 16s | 10 | 1 | – |
Wales Under 15s | 3 | 2 | – |
Bristol Rovers need to tread carefully
Naturally, there might be a desire from fans to see more of these young hopefuls right now, but manager Matt Taylor and the development team at Rovers – which includes academy manager and Welshman Byron Anthony – will first and foremost have preparations to complete to ensure the first team is up to speed for the new season.
They will also want and need to tread carefully, ensuring not to expose the youngsters to too much too soon.
What is perhaps currently in Dewsbury’s favour is that the Gas have already been struck by injury in his position, with both Chris Martin and Ruel Sotiriou picking up injuries in pre-season. The Gas will need to prioritise this position, but Dewsbury does look set to continue to feature as the Gas travel to Portugal for warm weather training and two more friendlies next week. And the exposure that all these kids have had so far to senior football can only set them in good stall as they continue their development.
Dewsbury’s talent is well-known and his involvement in pre-season so far underlines how highly he is thought of. He isn’t the answer right now, of course, but that is no reason why Rovers fans can’t be optimistic looking to the future when, inevitably, this impressive 16-year-old will be getting his chance on a more regular basis.