Ryan Sears and Ryan Barnett given squad numbers
Two of Shrewsbury Town’s Youth Team scholars will be involved in today’s game against Bristol Rovers.Ryan Sears and Ryan Barnett have both been called up by Paul Hurst after impressing in the Youth Team this campaign.
Second year scholar Ryan Sears has trained with the first team on a number of occasions this season and came on as a sub against Stourbridge in pre-season.
Sears, who is from Newtown, can play at either right back or centre half and has scored in both the first and third rounds of the youth teams impressive FA Youth Cup run.
17 year old Ryan Barnett is a first year scholar who has been with Shrewsbury since the age of 8.
Barney, as he is known, attended Thomas Telford School and can play anywhere across midfield, including as a wingback or in the number 10 position.
Manager Paul Hurst is pleased to get the youngsters involved, but warned them that this is only the start.
“We’re obviously missing a few players and the two lads have done pretty well in the games I’ve watched,” Paul told ShrewsWeb.
“I said I didn’t just want to have players on the bench for the sake of it and I think those two are the ones that have played the best overall.
“Defensively we need a bit of cover, so Sears will cover us there and Barney can play wide or centrally in midfield. They both trained with us this morning and they both did okay. It was in my mind that provided they didn’t freeze they will both be involved, so they will both be on the bench.
“It’s a small reward for them, but there’s still a lot of hard work to come. They’ve far from made it and from my point of view it’s two players that perhaps have a chance of earning a professional contract down the line, but I certainly need to see more from them before that’s the case.
“It shows that there’s an interest there and if any of them happen to get on then age doesn’t really concern me. So, hopefully it’s a bit of a carrot for the other lads in the youth team and they can continue on what has been a couple of better results of late.”
Ryan Barnett will wear number 37, whilst Ryan Sears has been given number 38.