QUENTIN Townsend wants new recruit Dean Waldron to see Pershore Town as the stage to get his career back on track.
Manager Townsend regards the capture of the 20-year-old midfielder from Worcester City as a big coup to help Town return to winning ways.
Waldron, who was on the books of Walsall and Aston Villa as a schoolboy, progressed through Worcester’s academy under Mark Owen and was earmarked as a City star in the making but, after a lack of game time and injury, he is desperate to prove his quality.
“Hopefully Dean is going to be a big signing for us,” said Townsend. “He was regarded as one of the most exciting talents to come out of Mark Owen’s academy in the last few seasons.
“He is a box-to-box midfielder with a good engine. He loves a tackle and can score as well. He’s got everything you’d want in a midfielder.
“Due to circumstances he hasn’t played as much football as he would like and he feels he has got a point to prove. That’s good news for Pershore.”
Waldron is set to make his debut on Saturday when Pershore head to Uttoxeter Town in Midland League Division One, seeking to bounce back from Saturday’s 6-0 home pasting by Bolehall Swifts.
Conceding a sloppy first goal inside four minutes left Town with a mountain to climb and, although they managed to create chances, they failed to capitalise while at the other end Swifts again made the most of the hosts’ defensive frailties.
“We had the chances for the game to have finished 6-6 but, like the previous week against Pelsall Villa, we got punished at both ends of the pitch,” said Townsend.
“We defended horrendously as a team and the first goal from a poor back pass summed it up. It was a killer goal at any level of football.
“The first goal is important in any match. It allows you to build the momentum and we’re not really giving ourselves the chance to do that at the moment.”
A ninth defeat in ten league games left Pershore four points above second from bottom Stafford Town with one game in hand.
While Townsend is still looking for further reinforcements, full back Steve Webb and forward Ben Lane are both fitness doubts for the trip to Uttoxeter.
The Town boss added: “Collectively I feel there’s enough in the dressing room to start climbing the table, but we need to start taking our chances and at the same time we can’t be playing catch-up by giving the opposition goals.
“They are honest lads and they will hold their hands up when they’ve made a mistake. The important thing is they learn from their mistakes.”
