'Loons' to enter Development League

After much deliberation, Forfar Athletic officials have decided to ‘take the plunge’ and enter a side in the new second tier of the SPFL Under 20 Development League.

With no Under 19 league being mooted for the coming season, this was the only opportunity available to the club to give some of the promising youngsters who have come through the ranks in recent times, continued competitive football.

It is however a major commitment by the club.

Matches will in general be played on a Monday or Tuesday evening, the latter the case for Forfar home games and there is no guarantee at present that enough clubs will enter to allow the league to be regionalised.

Three of last season’s Under 19 squad Liam Keillor, Paul McLennan and Craig Smith have been rewarded with professional contracts.

A substantial number of the remainder of that squad will make up the majority of the pool of players for the new set up, numbers being augmented by first team fringe players on a match by match basis, especially taking into account the fact that five of the eighteen players listed on the team sheet for each fixture can be over age players.

The other three Angus senior outfits have decided not to enter this new structure, meaning that the Fife trio of Cowdenbeath, East Fife and Raith Rovers will be our nearest opponents.

Details of the final structure of the competition are expected from Hampden later in the month.