Shrewsbury Town are delighted to announce that all five Academy graduates offered professional deals with the club have signed for next season.
Defenders Ryan Sears and Callum Roberts, Midfielders George Hughes and Chris Gallagher and Forward John McAtee have all signed one-year deals with the club.
Academy Manager Andy Jones was delighted to see them sign and is now looking forward to watching them improve.
“It’s great news for them and great news for the football club as well”, Andy told ShrewsWeb.
“They are five good lads and I’m looking forward to seeing how they improve over the next couple of months in a different environment.”
“It’s going to be difficult for them and I wouldn’t expect success too quickly if I’m being honest, but you never know. We will see how it goes and hopefully they can really prove themselves in that environment.”
Jones has worked closely with all five players over the last year and he hopes that they use the values they have learnt during their time in the Academy.
“It’s an unbelievable opportunity for them”, said Andy.
“When they were told they were all massively excited and here is where they want to be. They want to play for the Gaffer and they want to prove themselves within this team.
“It’s every young football players dream and they’ve got to turn that into a reality now. They’ve got to make sure they work hard, they are dedicated and make sure they learn quickly in a different environment.
“From my point of view we just hope they take on the values they have learnt with us in the Academy – resilience, hard work, developing excellence and that pride in playing for Shrewsbury Town – and I’m sure they will go on and do well.”