Joey Barton trimmed his Bristol Rovers squad this week with the decision to move on from Trevor Clarke, Zain Westbrooke and Alex Rodman, who were told to find new clubs on Monday.
Barton's squad was already thin before the decision, with the manager eager to make as many as eight signings by the transfer deadline at the end of the month. But he also believes the situation gives him the chance to take a closer look at the youngsters coming off the production line at the academy.
Seven players have been added to the first-team squad for training this week, joining second-year scholar Jerry Lawrence who has been with the group since the start of pre-season.
Forwards Jamarni Langlais and Jaheim Allen, midfielder Lene Burden, winger Lucas Vaughan, defenders Will Larvin and Malik Sesay, and goalkeeper Ross Mason have all been called up to The Quarters to get more experience training with Rovers' senior players.
Langlais had some experience with the first team last season as a 16-year-old, appearing in the Carabao Cup and EFL Trophy. Vaughan and Larvin got minutes for the Gas early in pre-season.
"We're short at the minute but we keep turning to guys who aren't going to have an impact in our group and I'd much prefer to open the pathways for the next crop, the next generation," Barton said on Thursday.
"While those senior players are around, you lean on them, because you go, 'okay, it's better than throwing the kids in at the deep end'; Saturday's game for me was a kind of line drawn in the sand in terms of cleaning out the group.
"That allows us to bring seven young boys across today from the academy who are raw, are young but are full of potential and I'll much prefer to give those guys the reps than keep turning to people, for no fault of their own - they're all good lads, they just don't have the skillset that I require for us to move forward."
By trimming his squad, Barton believes it will enable the likes of central midfielder Lawrence, who caught the eye in pre-season, to get more chances on the training pitch and, potentially, in match situations while the club also focuses on making additions in the transfer market.
"Zain is a top kid, I really want him to do well, but it just hasn't worked at Rovers and I can't keep turning to him because Jerry Lawrence doesn't get minutes if Zain's about because you would naturally go to the more experienced boy," Barton explained.
"We’ve got a couple who did well in pre-season like Malik and those boys who have been in a bit longer, but I’ve got to see them at the training ground because we don’t have our academy (at The Quarters).
"If you’ve got seniors hanging around, you’ll make up numbers with the seniors and sometimes it’s staff members and when they’re like Whelo and Mangs, they’ll jump in.
"I want the young kids getting the reps because that is the only way they’ll know what work they’ve got to do.
"It’s tricky for me because safety is keeping hold of those players, but every time I turn to them I very quickly run out of trust and confidence with them because they don’t make the most of the opportunity. At least with young kids, if they go in there, at worst they’ve got some experience."
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