‘Lifeblood of any club is developing own talent’
given an opportunity then they can flourish.
“I want to see a lot of Bristolians in our team. I want to see local lads in and around our football club because I think there is nothing better for a fan to see somebody who is one of your own.
“We’ve got it with Alfie Kilgour and Hooley. When you’ve got people who understand the fabric of the football club playing for the football club, I think that’s really important, not only for the supporters but for the culture.”
Jarmani Langlais and Max Edwards-Stryjewski both made debuts for Rovers aged 16 earlier this season, with Niall Lovelock, Tyron Mbuenimo, Kieran Phillips and Tom Mehew also making fleeting appearances for the club. Greenslade is yet to get a taste of first-team action, but he was an unused substitute in the FA Cup first-round replay win over Oxford. The manager believes he is a promising talent.
“They won’t be with us if they can’t hold their own,” Barton added. “He’s a good player. It’s not a charity and we’re not trying to develop Bristol people who are below the level.
“As Hooley has shown and as I think young Harvey will with a bit of time, they are competent and they can cope with what the senior game throws at them. We’ve got to improve our pipeline because the lifeblood of any football club is developing its own talent. If that comes out of our academy and from the streets of Bristol, nothing better.”
With Rovers’ development squad effectively disbanded at the end of last season when the club did not enter into the Central League, there are limited opportunities for players to be assessed in-house unless they make a strong enough impression – be it out on loan, in pre-season or the fleeting opportunities when injuries have depleted numbers for training – to earn chances to work closely with the first team.
On the pitch, Rovers are two points off an automatic promotion place with Rochdale away and Scunthorpe at home to come.