Three youngsters from the Club's Academy agree to sign professional contracts.
Newport County AFC are delighted to announce that three scholars from the Academy have today agreed to sign professional contracts with the Club.
Lewis Bamford, Dafydd Jones and Ben Jones (brother of County defender Darren Jones) have all accepted offers of a six-month professional contract that will see the trio make the progression from the Academy to the first-team setup. This comes following the progression of Liam Angel to the first team after signing a professional contract in February 2016.
Academy Manager, Byron Anthony, said, "It is always nice when players progress through the Academy to become professionals."
"The three players in question have done extremely well over the past two years and they have earnt the right to become pro's and show what they can do at the next level."
"For the Academy it is great to see players coming through the system and it's great for the younger players as they can see that there are opportunities here for players to progress."
"Dafydd Jones has impressed in a number of games this year, he's got a silky left-foot which I'm sure we will see out on the pitch at Rodney Parade in the near future."
"Lewis Bamford is a hard-working midfielder, who likes to get box-to-box and do the nitty-gritty bits in the heart of midfield."
"Ben Jones has come a long way since he has come to us. Ben is a Newport boy and he is a physical defender, who is very good in one-on-one situations."
Manager, Warren Feeney, added, "I'm big into bringing younger players through into the first-team."
"Attitude is a massive part of the progression for a young player. If you look at the players who have come through the youth setup here, like Aaron Collins and Regan Poole, those players have set the benchmark for the younger players."
"It's a big opportunity for three that have signed and I want them to go and express themselves."
Below is the full list of players retained by the Academy for the 2016/17 season;
Lewis Bamford – Retained Pro
Andrew Evans – Retained Scholar
Ben Jones – Retained Pro
Dafydd Jones – Retained Pro
Rhys Kavanagh – Retained Scholar
Dion Molyneux – Retained Scholar
Cairan Smith – Retained Scholar
Kyron Tolland – Retained Scholar
Finlay Wood – Retained Scholar
Jake Young – Retained Scholar
They will join the new intake of Scholars who have agreed to join the club, as follows;
Jay Williams
Joe Hunt
Joshua Williams
Liam Warman
Michael Cook
Momodou Touray
Rhys Davies
Tom Savigar
Whilst the Club can also confirm the following releases at the end of the current season;
Nyall Gray
Connah Hughes
Samuel James
Nathan Mathias
Cedrick Mpadi
Corey Shephard
Harry Waterhouse
Ellis Redman
The Club would like to thank them all for their efforts during their time with us and wish them all the best for their future within the game.