Paul Sheerin’s U20 development squad arrived back on Monday morning ahead of commencing their pre-season work for the 2016-17 season.

The U20 squad rotates each year with players progressing and departing, but Paul can’t wait to get the work started with his new squad which includes five new Youth Academy graduates: Joseph MacPherson, Sam Robertson, Sebastian Ross, Lewis Hutchison and David Dangana along with new recruits Sam Roscoe and Toby Wells. Harlain Mbayo is also available to play after receiving international clearance from FIFA.

Aberdeen’s U20 coach Paul Sheerin previewed the new campaign with www.afc.co.uk:

“I’m really looking forward to it, I think we have a good blend in the squad with Scott Anderson’s U17’s who have come in and I am looking forward to working with them. Sam Roscoe has joined from Blackpool along with Toby Wells from Stoke City so we have added well in terms of the age brackets in addition to there being a good balance in the squad.”

First team football is vital for the development of any young footballer and Paul is looking for more senior members of his squad to go out and experience this:

“We may get senior squad members out on loan allowing them to get some experience at a higher level which hopefully will be the case. Then when that happens we need the youngsters in the squad to step up to the plate, which they did in the main last season. When called upon the young lads were excellent so hopefully that will stand them in good stead for the season ahead.”

The U20’s will fly off to Portugal this weekend to undergo an intense two-week pre-season camp in Rio Maior which is situated north of Lisbon. Again the trip is funded by Erasmus+. Paul has lauded the positives these trips bring to the club.

“I’ve been fortunate since I’ve arrived at Aberdeen. The first year we went away to Vilamoura then visited Austria last year and now this summer it’s back to Portugal to go to Lisbon. The benefits are massive, the facilities are great, we get good weather and it is relatively relaxed as you have plenty of time to get out onto the training pitch. You’re not rushing away when it’s pouring down of rain or you’re pitch booking time is over!

“The camp is about preparation for the season ahead and we are looking forward to our three games over there which includes a fixture versus Benfica. That game especially will be a good experience for the players to see how they play. It will be a test in itself identifying a way how we counter against a different style of football. It will be good experience against quality European opposition at this early age for the players.”

The pre-season trip provides not only an excellent opportunity for the players to work on their football, but the team also get valuable time to bond and go on cultural experiences to broaden their horizons. Further to this the young lads also get a chance to try out their linguistic skills and have been studying Portuguese ahead of their trip, however according to Paul the staff are on top with regards to that…

“The Portuguese lessons are going well. The staff and I won the translation competition yesterday so we are well ahead of the game in terms of getting ourselves organised for communicating over there! It is good for the boys to see a different view point and it is nice for them to pick up a few Portuguese words which they might be able to use across there.”

Paul like any other manager sets his ambitions high for the season. After winning the SPFL Development League in his first season in charge, the young Dons then finish a very creditable third last year. So the U20s coach will again be looking for a consistent league campaign and he has a real desire to progress further in the cup competitions.

“I’ve got a real bug bear with the Youth Cup, I’d love to get a proper run in it.

“The two seasons I have been here we have let ourselves down a little bit and not quite performed on the bigger stage at Pittodrie. I’d like a good run and to see where it could take us.

“We’ve also got the Irn Bru Cup this year which is a really good test for younger players. It would be great to get a run in it, but it will be extremely difficult as there is an obvious gulf in age and experience between us and senior teams, however saying that it would still be excellent to get through two or three rounds if possible.”

However as ever the main aim for Paul is developing young players and preparing them for first team football and the coach takes great pride in the U20 graduates who went on to make their professional debuts last season:

“The main aim is to get players into the first team. We were fortunate last year that we managed to get four debuts and it would be good to add to that and also if the four debutants breakthrough and play more first team football that is a positive obviously.

“You hope that the younger ones in the Academy see people like Connor McLennan coming through and getting a first team debut. Hopefully that is where they want to be and where they want to get to. Connor at only 16 making his debut is great to see and more than deserved. He came in full-time and the transition to adjust in the early months of his career to professional football was tough for him, but since then he’s hit the ground running and managed to get his debut and is now even working with the first team in St. Andrews for part of his pre-season. Hopefully this kind of progress will continue with regards to younger players coming through.”

back row: Toby Wells, Harlain Mbayo, Paul Sheerin (coach), Sam Roscoe, Sam Robertson
front row: Joe MacPherson, Seb Ross, Lewis Hutchison, David Dangana
 

---

Profile's on the new players:

Joe MacPherson
Joe was one of five players from the Youth Academy to be offered a professional contract going into the 2016-17 season. Before signing for the Academy he was originally part of the Paul Lawrie Football Foundation.  Joe can play across the back-line and featured on 12 occasions last season despite only just turning 15 last September. His qualities include athletic abilities as well as being strong in the air and with the ball at his feet. Joe will continue to study at Cults Academy and sit his SQA ‘higher’ exams whilst playing next season. Joe was also called up to the Scotland U16 side to face Moldova and Serbia earlier this season.

Sam Robertson
Sam is another one to come through the Youth Academy this season and is a unique case in the fact he only signed for Aberdeen at the beginning of the 2015-16 season. The powerful full-back’s remarkable development was spotted by Paul Sheerin who rewarded his hard work with a full-time professional contract this summer. Sam played a number of games for the U20s at the tail end of last season and did really well in the right back spot.

Sam Roscoe
One of the recent signings from across the English border, Sam signs after previously playing football on the English west coast at Blackpool. The 6 foot, 5 inch central defender penned a two year contract which will keep him at Pittodrie until 2018 at the earliest.

Toby Wells
After a successful trial period Toby was signed for Aberdeen after departing Stoke City at the end of last season. Described as a versatile and adventurous defender, Toby will be looking to follow in the footsteps of fellow young defenders Scott McKenna and Daniel Harvie in breaking into the AFC first team set up.

Seb Ross
Seb is yet another local lad who has been with the club from a young age, first signing for the Dons at 10 years old. The central midfielder has a great first touch along with an impressive range of passing and will be looking to make an impression during his first season with the U20s. A player who has performed exceptionally well throughout his time with the Aberdeen Academy, Seb looks an excellent prospect for the future.

David Dangana
Born in Nigeria and brought up in Aberdeen, David attended Hazlehead Academy and joined AFC from Lewis United at the U14 age group. David possesses excellent attributes to contribute to the team as both a striker and central attacking midfielder. Good hold up play along with a goal scoring instinct was one of the many reasons David picked up last season’s Youth Academy John Delday Award for the U17 age group.

Lewis Hutchison
The final Youth Academy Graduate of 2016, Lewis joins the Dons after convincing Paul Sheerin that he has the potential to become a first team striker in the future. Lewis is a pacey forward who possesses the key component of finding the net and has also featured for Scotland U16s alongside Seb Ross and Joe MacPherson.

Harlain Mbayo
‘Ace’ as he is referred to by his teammates, is a strong centre-half who previously played for Oxford United & Leyton Orient. Although Harlain signed for the club during the second half of last season, he is yet to make his first competitive appearance due to clearance issues. Harlain has had to be patient and will now be looking to cement his position in the heart of the U20’s defence.