THERE’S never a dull moment with Newport County AFC and it’s been a busy week as always with our 16-year-old star Regan Poole attracting a lot of interest and Wales international Darcy Blake back training with us.
My new role with the under-18s this year has meant I’ve had a front row seat watching Regan’s development this season.
For a boy of his age to be playing regularly in a strong physical league like ours is exciting enough and it is no surprise that clubs like Manchester United and Fulham are looking at him.
They are not the only ones and I’m sure it won’t be long before somebody comes in with a serious offer and Regan will be moving on.
There has been a lot of talk of him going to Fulham this week and they are a great club who were in the Premier League until last year.
I just hope that we don’t sell ourselves short with the fee because I have no doubt that he is going to be a star.
There are limits to how much we can receive for a player of Regan’s age but he is under contract so we don’t have to sell unless the deal is right for the club and for him.
I’ve been really impressed with the way he has handled the pressure over recent weeks and I thought the second half against Carlisle last week showed that he is starting to settle into the defence alongside Darren Jones and Ismail Yakubu.
Regan looked more assured on the ball and his passing out of defence was more like what we know he can do for the academy side.
If he does go this month then we have a ready-made replacement in Darcy on our doorstep.
He and the gaffer had a good chat this week and it looks as if he could get a contract here.
As far as I’m concerned that is great news for everyone.
He just needs to knuckle down now and work consistently hard and everything else will take care of itself because he obviously has the talent to play at this level and above.
He wasn’t fully fit when he came to us last season but he still stood out and if he eats right and gets himself in proper shape we will have one of the best defenders in the lower leagues in our ranks.
I was also pleased to see youngsters Kyle Patten and Aaron Collins go out on loan to Merthyr this week.
That should be an important move for both of them for different reasons.
For Kyle it is make or break really because he needs to go there and make a big impact.
He’s been unlucky with injuries but he needs to stand out at that level and prove he can play in the Football League.
For Aaron it will toughen him up a bit and show him what men’s football is all about.
The under-18s had a good 3-1 win in a match against the Welsh Schools under-19s side in the week with Tom Owen-Evans scoring two.
They will be back in action in the Football League Youth Alliance at Swindon this morning in what should be a high scoring encounter.
We beat them 6-2 in pre-season then lost 6-4 to them in the league.
It sounds like a score from Wimbledon and fingers crossed we can make it game, set and match today.
I won’t be there as I will hopefully be getting some minutes on the pitch with the first team in what should be a really exciting match against Pompey.
It should be a big crowd with a lot of away fans and hopefully everyone behaves themselves and we can continue our great run of form.
Your support really makes a difference and we appreciate all the money you spend to follow us home and away.
Talking of homes, you will see adverts for my new property company Crook, Hudson and Flynn in today’s programme and on the big screen at Rodney Parade.
County fans are assured of a warm welcome and a great service so spread the word!
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