PROMISING defender Harrison Bright has become the latest Newport County AFC prospect to join the Cymru Premier learning experience at Pontypridd United.
The 18-year-old from Blaenavon will spent the rest of the campaign at Ponty in the top tier of Welsh football, joining forces with Exiles midfielder Jack Karadogan.
Attacking midfielder Lewys Twamley was with the Cymru Premier new boys in the first half of the season along with defender Joe Woodiwiss, who suffered an injury at the Treforest-based club.
Now Bright, primarily a full-back who can also slot into the right of a back three, will head for an extended spell of senior football in one-from-bottom Ponty’s bid to beat the drop.
The defender featured in four EFL Trophy games for County before making his first team debut against Rochdale in the last game of the 2021/22 League Two campaign.
Bright came off the bench late on against Premier League Leicester in the FA Cup, had a cameo at MK Dons in the EFL Trophy and was an unused sub against Derby in the FA Cup and Crawley and Carlisle.
The arrival of Stoke loanee Matt Baker has allowed County to send out their player for proper game time.
The link-up allows the Exiles to keep their prospects in touch with the first team at Spytty Park and also feature in development fixtures along with the Ponty games.
“All the young lads have to earn it. Harrison has with the way that he has gone about his work, trained and applied himself,” said Coughlan after calling him from the bench at Leicester.
“The kid fully deserved it and it wasn’t a token gesture. If he hadn’t shown he was up to it then he wouldn’t have been on the pitch.
“All credit to him, he has done exactly what we have asked of him and he is aggressive in his work on the training ground, he defends properly and takes on board instruction.
“He is a bright one for the future and that type of attitude will stand him in good stead, particularly in League Two. He will be the type you can call upon and rely on.”
“You need players on the brink of the side and ready to step in,” continued the manager.
“From my background with Southend, Bristol Rovers and Sheffield United Under-23s, I love working with kids and bringing them through.
“I enjoy that and so does Joe [Dunne, assistant manager] with his development background. We will try and get more through but it’s just about getting them game time.”
Karadogan made his debut with 21 minutes off the bench in the 4-1 loss at Flint Town on January 21 and will hope to feature prominently in phase two of the Cymru Premier.
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