There was a surprise name on the team-sheet on Sunday when youngster Duncan Idehen was announced as a substitute for the first time.
A search of his Wikipedia page doesn't give much away. He's a 19-year-old defender who had a short stint at Grimsby making eight appearances in all competitions last season after coming through Norwich's academy and later joining Lincoln's youth set-up.
After leaving Grimsby, he then had a trial at Birmingham City that didn't work out before agreeing a six-month deal with the Robins in the New Year. He has made just one appearance for the Under-23s which came in a 3-3 draw with Cardiff.
Manager Nigel Pearson was watching on from the stands and was obviously impressed enough to give Idehen the opportunity to travel with the squad for the defeat against Swansea although unsurprisingly didn't make his way off the bench.
If there's one major tenet of Pearson's reign at Ashton Gate it's been his willingness to place faith in youth with Alex Scott, Ayman Benarous, Sam Pearson, Louis Britton, Sam Bell and Ryley Towler earning Championship minutes on his watch, and Josh Owers and Harvey Wiles-Richards regular first-team companions.
So who is Idehen?
We spoke to an academy coach who worked with Idehen at Birmingham and provided an insight into why the club opted not to keep him on the books.
He said: "He's a left-footed centre-back or left-back. We had other players in that position already. We've just had a lad who we have just sent on loan to League Two in that position.
"He came in and did really well, he's unfortunate really he came and got sent off in a game against Wolves which obviously didn't help.
"For me, he would be a longer-term project. For us, there is a real quick pathway to the first-team but we just think we had a club who had been at the club for a long time now and we thought that was a better fix for us now.
"It depends on the club but we think he would be a longer-term project, we've got a couple of lads who can play at centre-back too so he just came in at a time where unfortunately there was competition.
"He's potentially a decent player, he'll work hard to where he wants to get to so I wish him all the best. He'll work hard to get where he wants to go, he's a really nice lad."
We also got the lowdown on Idehen from former Grimsby Town writer James Findlater who managed to watch him in action in the short time he was at the club. Here's what James had to say in a Q&A.
What are his main qualities?
During his few appearances for Grimsby, Idehen looked to be comfortable on the ball and fairly strong with his tackling.
And his weaknesses?
His positioning was found wanting at times, although that could boil down to his inexperience and being thrown in at the deep end last season.
Pearson has particularly criticised his players for lacking desire and "copping-out" of tackles, is he a player who is not afraid to stick in a boot?
As mentioned previously, he’s not the sort of player to shirk a tackle, in fact he ended up in the side for the opening game of last season after impressing in training. He does need an experienced head alongside him though as he did look very nervy at times.
What's his primary position across the back four and is he versatile playing out on the right?
He plays as a centre-back, whether that’s in a two or a three. When he’s played in a three, he has played as one of the defenders either side of the central option, although I’ve never seen him playing at right-back so I’m not sure how he would fare out there.
In the few appearances he played for Grimsby, was he a player that stood out among the squad?
He certainly looked like he had the makings of being a valuable asset, albeit while needing a lot more work on his game. While he looked solid enough in some of his performances, in others he looked very nervy and it wasn’t much of a surprise to see him coming out of the team last season.
Unfortunately, he was perhaps thrown in too quickly by Ian Holloway, owing to his awful recruitment before the start of last season, and once new signings arrived in January, there wasn’t a way back into the side under Paul Hurst.
Are you surprised to see him sign for a Championship club?
If I’m honest, I am. That’s not to say he hasn’t got potential, but I would have expected him to land at a League Two/lower end of League One club. Being at a Championship club though could be just what he needs for his development.
What were the reasons behind him leaving Grimsby, was it performance-based or contractual?
Like I said previously, once Paul Hurst arrived and set about trying to fix the mess left behind by Holloway, Idehen couldn’t really find a way back in, with Rollin Menayese and Elliott Hewitt striking up a good partnership at the heart of the defence. He remained under contract heading into the new season, but pre-season made it fairly clear he wasn’t in Hurst’s plans, and he was made available for transfer before eventually leaving the club in October.
Did you see enough in his game to determine whether he has the potential to become a success with City?
A lot of fans were surprised to see him not get another crack with Grimsby, as he had looked to have some potential. Being at a higher level and perhaps having more time on the ball may actually suit him and could help him grow his game, although I wouldn’t expect instant results given the amount of time he spent out of the side before eventually leaving Grimsby.
Having said that, it will be interesting to see how he gets on should he be called into action this season.
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