West Brom future path set by Taylor Gardner-Hickman after star display
West Brom finally picked up a win in the Championship yesterday and there was a star performance by one of the club’s homegrown stars.
Karlan Grant may have bagged a brace in the 2-0 win against Hull City but it was 20-year-old Taylor Gardner-Hickman who inspired Steve Bruce’s side to three points at the MKM Stadium.
The Baggies academy product was a bundle of energy in midfield and offered plenty in both attack and defence all day long.
His passionate performance is a sign of things to come for Albion if Bruce decides to trust the club’s academy stars and starts to give them more first-team chances.
Most notably perhaps is 17-year-old Reyes Cleary who is lighting up the Under-23s scene in a West Brom shirt having scored seven goals in 13 games.
He is even more lethal in the Under-18s where his eight games have brought about 12 goals and one assist.
It’s an attacking record that few players can boast and given the first team’s struggle to score in recent weeks, it seems bonkers that Cleary hasn’t seen a minute of senior football.
Something that is common with every football club in the world is that homegrown players are often given a long span of patience with the fans as they want to see one of their own do well.
With promotion looking unlikely at the very best, Bruce has a brilliant chance to give these players a try and they could become stars very quickly and help to kickstart a promotion push next season.
But considering it took so long for Gardner-Hickman to get a start under the new boss, you shouldn’t hold your breath over any more making their debuts.
In other West Brom news, Ian Holloway reacted to the Baggies’ victory on TV as he highlighted the key games ahead for Bruce’s Albion.
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