Shaun Rowley signs pro contract with Town
Highly rated young keeper Shaun Rowley has signed his professional contract offer from Shrewsbury Town.Shrewsbury born Shaun has progressed through the youth ranks at the club since joining the youth academy’s U9s side. He has impressed year on year and moved through the age ranks before joining the clubs youth scholarship programme.
Over that two years he has continued to progress but had the competition of Callum Burton and then Harry Lewis. He spent time last season on loan with Watford and then Market Drayton before being offered his professional deal at the end of last season.
Over the summer Shaun has been mulling over the contract and after returning from holiday popped into the club to sign his contract:”I’m really happy to have put pen to paper on the contract, I’ve been at the club since my childhood and it’s what I’ve always wanted to get.”
The loan spells with Watford and Market Drayton helped Shaun to develop in different ways both physically and mentally:”“I went to Watford for five months and that helped me come along a lot, then I went to Market Drayton and that really helped me to develop physically.
“I then came back and have ended the season well and impressed, was pleased to have been offered the contact and happy to have signed it.
“It was a great experience at Market Drayton and I lost a few teeth during my time there but that’s what it’s all about.
“You have to step up to the men’s game and it opens your eyes to what you can expect on a Saturday afternoon.
“It was a good loan for me and really helped me to grow as a player and as a person.”
Town have a number of good keepers already on their books with Jayson Leutwiler, Mark Halstead, Callum Burton and Harry Lewis already working with goalkeeping coach Danny Coyne:” Shrewsbury have got a lot of good keepers and we all work together well putting pressure on each other.
Coyney is a really great coach and a really nice guy as well, he is good to speak to both on and off the pitch.
“They know you are still young, they know you are still learning but they all want to help you and it makes it a great place to learn.
“I like to have a joke but also like get my head down and work and that is what this season is going to be about, hard work.”
Shaun has been through all the youth ranks at the club and worked with some good coaches during that time. He has also been aware that the first team have been willing to bring players through with over seven youngsters making the step up to the first team in recent years:”I’ve had some good coaches during my time in the youth set-up and they all gave me the opportunity.
“Dave Hughes was a big help, and during my time at Watford, and he really has helped me to come through.
“It does show that the first team are looking at the youth team to bring players through.
“They have a plan for everyone once they come through and the progression is there through to playing in the first team.”
With Jayson Leutwiler, Mark Halstead, Callum Burton and Harry Lewis on the Town books it now makes it five first team keepers with Shaun. The three young keepers have all worked together for a while now and will continue to keep pushing each other:”The competition is there but my focus is to work hard for the year and then to see what happens.
“If they want me to go on loan then I’m open to the idea of going out on loan, if they want me to play in the reserved then I’ll do that.
“I just want to play games wherever I can and when the opportunity comes around.”
The focus now is the return to pre-season training and getting down to the hard work with the first team. It’s going to be a season of hard work for Shaun and one that he is determined to grasp with both hands:”It’s been a nice break but you get to the point where you want to get back in and get back to football.
“Obviously I’ve been doing bits and pieces in the gym but it’s not the same as catching balls.
“The challenge now for me is to be the best I can and to impress everyone and do my best.”