Shrewsbury Town hand scholarship deals to history-making academy stars

Three academy starlets have been awarded third-year scholarship deals with Shrewsbury Town.

Jeval Thompson-McKenzie, Reuben Falding and Jay Snook have all signed new deals with Salop after playing a key role in the club’s history-making under-18s side, which won both the EFL Youth Alliance North West and North divisions last season.

The talented trio joined Town’s academy at under-13 level and have been involved in first-team pre-season training this summer. They will now look to continue their development while competing for opportunities in Gavin Cowan’s senior squad.

Academy manager Charlie Musselwhite said: “Jeval, Jay and Reuben are three terrific young men who thoroughly deserve the opportunity to continue their development at Shrewsbury Town as they look to forge careers in the professional game.

“The chairman, Liam Dooley and Gavin Cowan have all shown a real commitment to giving young players opportunities, and this is another example of that.

“We're incredibly grateful for the way the Gaffer has integrated our academy players into the first-team environment, while the support from the Chairman and Liam behind the scenes has been invaluable.

“Everyone involved in the academy is immensely proud of the lads.

“They have conducted themselves brilliantly throughout their time with us and have developed into outstanding young men.

“Their achievements on the pitch speak for themselves, but seeing their growth as people has been even more rewarding.

“We believe they have the character and attitude to thrive in a professional environment.”

Alongside their recent league titles, the trio also helped Shrewsbury win the under-17s Professional Development League Trophy, the under-16s league title and the under-15s Floodlit Cup.

Snook and Falding both enjoyed loan spells at Kidsgrove Athletic last season, where they became regulars, while Thompson-McKenzie joined Stourbridge towards the end of the campaign.

Town boss Gavin Cowan has also been impressed by the trio since taking charge and during pre-season.

He said: “I came in towards the end of last season, so I've only played a small part in this - the real credit goes to our academy staff and the three lads who have earned the opportunity.

“I'm a big believer in creating opportunities, whether that's employing people in my businesses outside of football or in the football environment. I think it's important to give young people a chance when they've shown they deserve it, and these three certainly have.

“Throughout pre-season so far they've been excellent. Their attitude and application have been first class, and that's exactly what you want to see from young players coming into a first-team environment.

“They should be proud of what they've achieved, but this is only the start.

“I'm really looking forward to working with them and seeing how they continue to develop.”