Forest Green Rovers are delighted that five promising, local talents have signed full-time scholarship deals with the academy.

The young Rovers players will look to advance their development through the programme, with all of them looking to step up to the next level - while playing in the EFL Youth Alliance division for FGR.

Curtis Dunn, Dylan John, Joe McLaughlin, Jack Carter and Finley Bell all join up with the Under 18s squad from the summer - and both Carter and Bell even made first-team appearances against West Bromwich Albion this season.

It's been incredibly important for the club to recruit local talent in recent years, for both the first-team and academy, to reduce travelling emissions - and the majority of the new scholars hail from nearby, including from Stroud and Hawkesbury Upton.

Hannah Dingley, Head of Academy at FGR, said: "Mark Cooper discussed in the Fans Forum last season that we have previously given a lot of scholarships to players from other clubs and the challenges that poses. So it’s great to see the local talent coming through the FGR Academy system.

"The Academy only gained EFL Category 3 status in 2018/19, so just three seasons later, for us to take to give five of our own boys scholarships is testament to the hard work of the staff who work with the schoolboy players.

"It’s really pleasing to see players who have come through our Academy programme not only getting scholarships but also to see players like Finley Bell and Jack Carter playing in first team fixtures at the age of 15. The future is looking bright!"