Academy Quartet Pen First Professional Deals

Derby County Academy quartet Josh Barnes, Kyron Stabana, Calum Macdonald and Tom Mellors have become the latest players to put pen to paper on their first professional contracts.

Following the completion of their second-year scholarships, Barnes, a goalkeeper, Stabana and Macdonald, both full backs, and Mellors, a forward, have signed one year deals.

All four players will link up with the Rams’ Under 21s squad from the start of pre-season in July ahead of their first campaign in the Barclays U21 Premier League – Division 1.

They join Ethan Wassall, Kellan Gordon, Alex Cover and Alex Babos, who all signed their first professionals deals earlier in the 2015/16 season.

Stabana and Macdonald played a significant part in the Under 21s team that secured promotion as Division 2 Champions as both played a prominent part over the course of the second half of the season, whilst also turning out for the club’s Under 18s squad.

Barnes featured on one occasion for the Under 21s, but has been a regular between the posts for the club’s Under 18s over the past two years.

Mellors has endured a frustrating season due to injury and has been given a further opportunity to showcase his talent.

Rory Delap, Derby’s Professional Development Phase Coach, has worked with the quartet over the course of the season at Under 18 and 21 level and says all four players have shown they are more than capable of taking the next step in their careers.

He told dcfc.co.uk: “All four of these boys have deserved their contracts. No-one at this club gives contracts out that aren’t deserved and a lot of work has gone in by all of them to get into this position.

“The players are at different levels, they all have things that they have to work on, and from my point of view it has been interesting to look at some players that have not had as strong a season as others, but you can see something within them.

“All four of these players have been excellent and shown that they are capable of taking the next step to play for the Under 21s.

“This is the start of the next challenge for them and the work starts all over again, because they will have an eye on earning their next contract.”

Full interviews with Rory Delap and the four players will be available across dcfc.co.uk and Rams Player HD in due course.