Football Ollie, 17, 'excited' about next season after his Rovers breakthrough

OLLIE Dewsbury has reflected on his breakthrough season at Bristol Rovers after the teenage striker made seven appearances for the first team in what proved to ultimately be a disappointing campaign that ended with relegation to League Two.

- Dan HARGRAVES

The 17-year-old was handed his senior debut by then-interim manager Andy Mangan in November 2023, when he came off the bench in a 7-2 FA Cup victory at home to Whitby Town. Aged 15, Dewsbury became the second youngest player to play for the club.

His next appearance came nine months later under Matt Taylor, when he came on against Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s in the EFL Trophy back in August, before being handed six League One appearances by Inigo Calderon at the back-end of the campaign with forward options severely limited.

Dewsbury did well considering the circumstances, particularly impressing in his first start on the final day at Blackpool. As painful as a relegation will have been, the young striker admitted he sees it as a valuable learning opportunity.

"First and foremost, it was very difficult," the teenager told Bristol Rovers' club media. "That's the main thing. I was just focusing on helping the team as much as I could, but in terms of my development, it was brilliant.

"Especially to start the last game of the season. I really enjoyed that I thought I did alright. I really enjoyed it, but I'm just looking at areas to improve now.