Gavin Cowan opens door for Shrewsbury’s title-winning youngsters

Gavin Cowan has opened the door for Shrewsbury Town’s title-winning under-18s to gain first-team experience.

Cowan heaped praise on the young side after they secured the EFL Youth Alliance League North West Division title in emphatic fashion with a 5-0 victory over Salford City on Tuesday.

They achieved that success without academy scholar Will Gray, who has recently made his first senior starts alongside fellow academy product Isaac England.

First-team head coach Cowan also expressed his desire to strengthen the pathway between the academy and the senior squad.

Asked how pleased he was to see the under-18s secure the title, Cowan said: “Over the moon. They're an excellent group.

“We had them in and we arranged the game a little reserve game where some of the squad players played with the youth team players.

“It's been great keeping some of them on and watching them go and win that league, it's something that they'll be able to hold dear forever.

“But they've been excellent. I've been watching games recently and there's some really talented players in there.

“They're a brilliant group, great lads, want to do things right, show a lot of maturity, and they've been great around the place.

“We've got a lot in store for the academy and the youth team to try and link them in with the first team.

“I'll be utilising Sean Parrish, Sean McAllister and Charlie Musselwhite with some of the ideas where we want to try and take it back to when I was here, where they're engaging a lot with the first team.

“It's a resource that we want to use. You've got your Isaac Englands of the world and your Will Grays.

“We've got some really good prospects coming through there, that, if they're willing to work hard and stay dedicated, they might get the opportunity to train with the first team at our brilliant training ground.

“Congratulations to them, all the hard work that's done with those guys, it's brilliant. It is great for us as a football club.

“Our youth team coming through, how they've conducted themselves and the way they play has been a real privilege to watch.”