Young striker Callum Devlin is a breath of fresh air for Worcester City, says captain Danny Jackman

The 16-year-old forward made an impressive second half cameo in City’s 1-0 win over Stalybridge Celtic last Saturday.

It was the teenager’s third outing for the Blue and Whites having also come off the bench against FC Halifax Town and Altrincham.

Jackman said he was delighted to see Devlin prove himself in the Vanarama National League North.

“Devlin is a young boy and has still got a lot to learn, but it is great to give him a bit of game-time,” Jackman said.

“If he can get involved in next year’s plans then this is experience that he is going to be able to take into it.”

Devlin has been training with the first team along with his under 18s team-mates Tyreece Ruddock, Aaron Brett, Riley Keasey, Nathaniel Nisbett, Jordan Maddocks and Josh Willis.

Teenagers Edwyn Davies, Callum Harper, Bailey Fuller, Sam Yeomans, Bailey Beddows and Ben Tilbury, who are part of Heart of Worcestershire College’s football academy, have also been brought into the fold.

Jackman said Delvin’s “youthful exuberance” has rubbed off on Worcester’s players as they battle to avoid the drop.

City are two points clear of third-from-bottom Gainsborough Trinity with six games left.

“As a youngster you perhaps don’t feel the pressure of the situation you are in,” said 34-year-old Jackman.

“Callum is full of youthful exuberance and dying to play football, so he is a breath of fresh air for all of us.

“He trying to score goals, create things and just run around which is a delight for us.

“It probably gives the rest of us a lift to see someone like him not really feeling the pressure and having a go.

“He was good when he came on at the weekend.

“He had a couple of shots which is great and they were on target as well, but there are things to work on.”

Luca Gabriel, head of the club’s youth development, said he had been pleased with the progress of Devlin, who joined City from Alvechurch.

“Callum is still 16 and is in his third year with us,” said Gabriel who has been working with caretaker boss John Snape and Jackman in recent weeks.

“When he came to us, we used him as a number 10 because he needed a little bit more work.

"But in the past year or so he has gone back to being a number nine because he has worked on his game.

“His first touch needed work and his ability to create pictures in his head of what to do next was the major problem he had.

“He would get the ball and then decide what to do, but as the levels go up you need to have a picture in your head of what you are going to do while the ball is on its way.

“That is what we have worked on and has had a lot of experience this year with the under 18 set up and I thought he did really well on Saturday.”