AFC Wimbledon have handed professional contracts to four youngsters who will form part of a new development squad next season.
Chace Jacquart, Tom Beere, Charlie Fayers and Youssouf Bamba have earned pro deals after impressing for the U18s.
Second-year scholars Oluseyi Daley and Kieron Tarbie will also form part of the development side, which is being set up to help bridge the gap between the youth set-up and Neal Ardley's first team.
Wimbledon's youth and community director Nigel Higgs told Dons Player : “We sat down as a board with Neal Ardley and made a decision about how we are going to move the club forward in terms of ensuring that young players progress towards the first-team.
“As part of this we looked at that critical area when U18 scholars finish their apprenticeship schemes and are not quite ready for the step-up to the first-team. We looked at whether we could fill that gap and the club has decided to invest in that area.
“The squad will consist of six of our U18s from last season and there is the possibility of bringing in players from outside of the right quality. Second-year U18s may also fill the squad, along with first-team players that require game-time or young players from Neal’s squad.”
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