Williams full of praise for Town's young starlets

Robins fans were treated to an exhibition of youth at the County Ground for the League One season finale, as Will Henry, Jake Evans and Jordan Young each flew the flag for the club's academy system, much to the appreciation of manager Luke Williams.

Williams again opted to start with youth goalkeeper Will Henry between the sticks, following his highly impressive penalty-saving debut away to Rochdale.

Henry would soon be joined by fellow academy compatriots, as defender Jake Evans and midfielder Jordan Young entered the fray midway through the second half to make their home debuts for the club.

While the three starlets covered themselves in glory with respective solid, mature performances, it was Young who would grab the headlines, after cooling slotting away his first goal for the club to give Swindon Town a third.

Following the full-time whistle his boss Williams was keen to praise the showing of the 16-year-old, along with his fellow academy peers.

"Bringing jordan into a side that's very strong - where people are going to find him more and he's got more people to play off - then you can see a glimpse of what we've all been talking about and he a very good first impression, just like Jake Evans," Williams began.

"The players at the top end that can keep their calm in the box and around the box and make the correct contact with the ball and find the area of the goal that's undefended - they're few and far between. 

"Jordan has shown at youth team level certainly that he can do that and now he's shown us that he can do that at first team level, so let's hope he keeps developing the way he has been," he added.

Williams then turned his attention to the final Man of the Match winner of the season, 17-year-old goalkeeper Will Henry.

Continuing his early remarkable form, Henry put in a flawless performance against visitors Shrewsbury, keeping a clean sheet and pulling off a remarkable one-on-one reflex save to deny Shrews' forward Jean Louise Akpa Akpro.

Williams was quick to praise the Bristol born goalkeeper, commending his ability to do it all.

"I think he's shown us a little bit of everything that he can do, from being able to distribute the ball properly to being able to make one-on-one saves and being able to organise his box," said Williams.

"He made one decision to come charging out of the box to make a clearance and got it spot on. He showed bravery and then ran the entire length of the pitch to jump on someone's back to celebrate (the goal) so I don't think there's anything left really. 

"We just hope he can maintain this level. With young players we've got to make sure that we look after them and nurture them through, but he's certainly showed us that he's taken everything in his stride," the manager added.