Stevenage FC have been boosted by the news that two of their young goalkeepers have been called up to England for their respective age groups, as reported by their official site.
Rylee Mitchell, 17, has been called up for an England Development Training Camp. These camps are designed for young stars to team up with the national team goalkeeper coaches and an opportunity for the player to showcase their talent and potentially prepare them for a step up into the youth international groups. This follows his first professional contract with Stevenage which was signed in May of this year.
Furthermore, 15-year-old prodigy Max Woodford has been placed on the standby list for England Under 16’s who host Ireland and the Netherlands at St George’s Park this month. Woodford became Stevenage’s youngest ever debutant, at 15 years, six months, and 9 days old, last month. He replaced Taye Ashby-Hammond in the 82nd minute against Crystal Palace Under 21’s in the Bristol Street Motors’ Trophy.
Following his debut, manager Steve Evans stated that Woodford was a ‘real asset for the football club.’ “He’s 15 years old, not 16 until next May,” he told the Comet.
“I saw him three or four months ago at the academy and just thought to myself he was another boy that’s capable of playing at a really good level. He has all the attributes.
“He was almost in contention to start,” the manager added. “We were in conversation at training [Monday] afternoon and with Hegyi away on international duty, it was either going to be young Woody or Taye [Ashby-Hammond].
“We plumped for Taye because even though we are out of the competition, we wanted a win. We won all three at this stage last year.
“We went with Taye but we said that if the opportunity arises, we’ll give a young man his debut.
“And he’s come on and done really well. He’s a real asset for this football club.”
This callup has undoubtedly raised the value of the goalkeeper as an asset as they may hope he follows in England U18 International Elyh Harrison’s footsteps following his sale from Stevenage to Manchester United for a six-figure sum in the summer of 2022.
Stevenage are currently riding high in League One, sitting fourth, just three points outside the top two. Their good form has taken many by surprise, as they were only promoted from League Two at the end of last season.
Writer’s View
For any football club in League One to have two players called up to England youth teams and development camps is an impressive feat. For those two players to be in the same position is a clear indicator that Stevenage are doing the right things with their young players.
Of course, this is only a milestone in Mitchell and Woodford’s pathways, however, it does mean that their progress is very much worth monitoring, not just for Stevenage fans, but English football fans overall.
